Genstar Capital acquired a majority stake in Cetera Financial Group, the independent broker/dealer network with nearly 8,000 financial advisors, this summer.
In the wake of its acquisition by private equity firm Genstar Capital, Cetera has installed a new board of directors, which now includes some Genstar executives, as well as folks who sit on boards of other firm properties.
Ben Brigeman, a retired executive vice president for Charles Schwab and former head of Schwab’s retail business, will serve as chairman. Bob Dineen, former vice chairman at Lincoln Financial Network, was most recently serving as non-executive chairman of Cetera’s board. Brigeman is on Genstar’s non-employee strategic advisory board, and also serves on the boards at Ascensus, Apex Group and Institutional Shareholder Services, all owned by Genstar. He’s also the chairman of the advisory board for Stratos Wealth Partners, a large hybrid registered investment advisory firm registered with LPL Financial.
Other board members include Gary Michel, former chief financial officer of TravelClick and member of Genstar’s non-employee strategic advisory board, and Hal Strong, a former 18-year veteran of Russell Investments. Strong is also on Genstar’s non-employee strategic advisory board, as well as the boards of Genstar-owned Altegris, Apex Group, Institutional Shareholder Services, Mercer Advisors and Strategic Insight.
Genstar Managing Director Tony Salewski, who previously served as the chief of staff for Barclays Global Investors, is also new to Cetera’s board. Sid Ramakrishnan, vice president of Genstar and a former chief of staff to the CEO at AssetMark, also joins the board.
“Genstar’s affiliated Strategic Advisors are second to none, and having access to such accomplished and talented individuals played a significant role in our decision to select Genstar during our capital structure review process,” said Cetera CEO Robert Moore, who will continue to serve on the board, in a statement. “We are eager to begin the next chapter in Cetera’s growth with our new Board of Directors.”
Edmond Walters, the former CEO of financial planning software company eMoney Advisor, will no longer serve as a board member. Previous board members also include Michael Kaufman, principal at Redwood Capital Management, David King, managing director at Fortress, and Mary Cranston, retired senior partner and past chair of Pillsbury Winthrop Shaw Pittman, an international law firm.
