Mellon Private Asset Management opened a Denver office Monday in its sixth office start-up this year and says there are more to come in other regions.
The unit of Pittsburghs Mellon Financial Corp. now has locations in nine states and the District of Columbia. But the parent company is no stranger to Denver, home of a mutual fund subsidiary Founders Asset Management that Mellon executives say will give Mellon Private an edge over other bank-owned asset managers entering the area.
David F. Lamere, president of Mellon Private Asset Management, which has $96 billion of assets under management, said having an office in Colorado was a must.
Christopher Flanagan, a senior vice president who heads strategy for Mellon Private, explained why it is imperative to have a presence in the state.
There is a growing high-net-worth population in Colorado, he said. As people buy second homes in Vail and Aspen, Denver is really the hub. We can reach a lot of people from one location.
Running the Denver office as senior vice president is Walter R. Berger. A Denver native with 34 years experience in financial services, Mr. Berger had been managing director and chief fiduciary officer at Northern Trust Banks Denver office, and was responsible for developing the Chicago institutions trust and investment businesses in the area.
Whenever you enter a new market with new faces, it is difficult, Mr. Flanagan said. To have someone there already who is involved in the community is a little wind at your back.
Mr. Flanagan said his company will be able to provide Founders clients with services they may have been receiving from Mellon branches in Pittsburgh, New York, and San Francisco.
He said Denver is not the last stop for Mellon Private, whose other five office start-ups this year were in Los Angeles, San Francisco, Boston, Washington, and Wilmington, Del.
There are marketplaces where we have existing clients who are being underserved, he said. We want to gain proximity to our clients, and we want to be in areas where new potential clients can benefit from our services.
He would not say when further office openings will take place.
