The July issue of Commerce Magazine, now on area newsstands, takes an in-depth look at St. Louis in its historic and continuing role as the "Wall Street of the Heartland." While our region is widely known for its abundant share of national corporate headquarters, with 21 current Fortune 1000 headquarters, what perhaps is not as well known is the fact that, next to Wall Street, more investment brokers call St. Louis home than any other area besides New York.
With the move of Wachovia Securities from Richmond, Virginia to downtown St. Louis in conjunction with its recent $6.8 billion merger with A.G. Edwards, Wachovia Securities now ranks as the 2nd largest brokerage firm in the country, behind only Merrill Lynch, with 15,000 financial advisors and $1.1 trillion in client assets.
To welcome Wachovia Securities to town, RCGA Board Chairman Bob Reynolds held a welcome breakfast for brokerage CEO Danny Ludeman and 15 of the firm's top executives, along with a number of other RCGA leaders. This month's cover story explores what Ludeman and his team have in store for Wachovia Securities and its role in St. Louis. The brokerage expects to have a total of some 1,000 more employees located in St. Louis once the merger is complete.
Edward Jones, the largest privately held brokerage in the country, is also growing. Managing Partner Jim Weddle and his colleagues have surpassed 10,000 offices throughout the U.S., Canada and the United Kingdom. The brokerage plans to grow to 17,500 financial advisors by 2012. St. Louis Commerce takes a closer look at a $260 million campus expansion underway at Edward Jones' Des Peres headquarters and its Maryland Heights complex.
Meanwhile, Stifel Nicolaus is making national news with its acquisitions. It acquired the legendary Legg Mason Capital Markets in Baltimore. It has continued strategic acquisitions with the private client group of Minneapolis-based Miller Johnson Steichen Kinnard, the First Service Bank now named Stifel Bank & Trust, and further planned expansions to the east and southeast with the acquisition of Ryan Beck.
Another key player in the "Wall Street of the Heartland" is Scottrade, the dynamic and growing discount, stock-brokerage firm. With the naming rights for the Blues' home, now the Scottrade Center, it continues to get national attention.
This month's "Day in the Work Life" features the person behind one of our region's most recent corporate HQ moves to St. Louis, namely, David Hoffman, CEO of DHR International, the 5th largest executive search firm in the nation.
Finally, this month's "Spotlight" shines on Rob Reeg, the new President of Global Technology and Operations for MasterCard Worldwide in O'Fallon, Mo. Rob is a valued long-time leader of MasterCard. Among his accomplishments, he helped develop the company's processing platform and seamless global network. |
