Stifel opens new branch with $216M father-son team

Furthering its expansion efforts, Stifel hired a father-son team from UBS to staff its newest branch office.

Jim and Jason Fleck managed $216 million, according to their new employer.

The new private client group office located in Bend, Oregon, represents the next step in Stifel’s ongoing growth of its wealth management business. The firm has courted talent from rivals, primarily wirehouses, and opened 13 new offices this year.

The office in Bend is Stifel’s fourth in the state.

“I’ve known Jim since the ’90s, when I was head of retail for Ragen MacKenzie,” Stifel Managing Director Mark McClure said in a statement. “I have a great relationship with the Flecks and their assistant, Kerry Snook, who formerly worked for Ragen MacKenzie’s Bend office. Jim, Jason and Kerry are high-quality people and will be the perfect team to grow with in Bend, a market we have wanted to be in for a long time.”

The elder Fleck has been in the industry for 37 years, according to FINRA BrokerCheck records. His past work experience includes stints at Wells Fargo, D.A. Davidson and Dain Bosworth. His son has been in the industry for 14 years and also worked at D.A. Davidson and Wells Fargo previously, according to his BrokerCheck profile.

A spokesman for UBS declined to comment.

Last month, Stifel enticed away two California-based advisors from Wells Fargo. Joshua Glass joined Stifel in Los Angeles, while Sandra Wheeler signed on in San Luis Obispo. They previously managed more than $490 million in combined client assets.

The St. Louis-based firm recently reported having 2,193 financial advisors, up from 2,118 over the same period last year.