Seven of the Nation’s Top Financial Advisors Unite to Create Corient Capital Partners, An Ultra High Net Worth Wealth Management Boutique

Business Wire

Based in Newport Beach, CA, the Firm Immediately Becomes One of the Largest Independent Wealth Management Firms in the U.S. With Over $3.3 Billion in Assets

NEW YORK--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- Seven leading advisors from two teams – Chris Copps, Gordon Hassenplug, Darren Henderson, Michael Phelps, Alex Stimpson, Jon Tenney and Greg Walters – today announced that they have combined forces to launch an independent wealth management firm called Corient Capital Partners. The seven advisors previously worked together at Merrill Lynch in its Private Banking and Investment Group (PBIG). Based in Newport Beach, California, Corient Capital is poised to become one of the premier independent wealth management firms in the nation.

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The founding partners bring robust and broad industry experience to their clients in areas of portfolio management, estate planning, tax strategies, and investment banking. The team’s professional designations include CFP®, CPA, and CFA. Collectively, the partners have over 130 years of industry experience at a variety of Wall Street firms that also include Goldman Sachs, J.P. Morgan, Hambrecht & Quist, Kidder Peabody and HSBC.

Corient advises ultra high net worth individuals and families, non-profit organizations and corporations across the United States. “We founded Corient Capital Partners to create a firm that allows us to customize the service model best suited to our clients,” said Corient Founding Partner, Chris Copps, a thirty year industry veteran. “As a truly independent firm, we can now separate where the advice is given to our clients from where products are manufactured. This fiduciary based advisory model is the future of the wealth management industry and it’s important that we are on the forefront of this movement for our clients.”

Corient Founding Partner Gordon Hassenplug stated, “Now that we are truly independent, we will be able to access a dramatically wider selection of investment capabilities, lending platforms, planning resources, capital market solutions, and alternative manager opportunities on behalf of our clients. Our immediate size, along with our partnership with Dynasty Financial Partners, will allow us to act as a meaningful institutional client of Wall Street.”

Corient has partnered with Dynasty to leverage its industry-leading platform of integrated wealth management services and technology. Dynasty’s platform includes institutional research from Callan Associates along with Wilshire Associates. Additionally, Corient will have access to cutting-edge technology including Dynasty’s proprietary advisor desktop, in-house specialists, home office support, and benefits from Dynasty’s significant scale in the industry.

Dynasty Financial Partners President and CEO Shirl Penney added, “Corient Capital Partners is one of the most impressive RIA launches we have seen in the financial industry to date. The team’s experience, client focus, professionalism, and asset levels have them positioned for enormous success. We are extremely proud and excited to be partnered with Corient and their remarkable team and welcome them to our network of independent advisors."

According to Dynasty Chairman Todd Thomson, “Corient Capital Partners represents the future of the wealth management industry. Fiduciary-based advisors, who own their own firms, minimize conflicts on behalf of their clients and deliver customized advice and solutions for their clients. Dynasty was built to service advisors just like these and we could not be more pleased to welcome them to our growing community.”

Corient has selected Fidelity Investments, a leading provider of trading, custody and brokerage services to registered independent advisory firms, to provide services for its clients’ assets. Corient will be utilizing Addepar for sophisticated portfolio reporting, comprehensive data aggregation, portfolio analytics and client web communications.

Joining the seven founding partners will be Heather Hargrove, Tami Hay, Nicole McMann, Cole Turner and Austin Allen – all from Merrill Lynch.

For more information, please visit www.corient.com.

About Corient Capital Partners

Corient Capital Partners is a privately-owned wealth management firm that focuses exclusively on a select number of ultra-high net worth individuals and families. The firm offers bespoke investment strategies and planning solutions to preserve capital and build legacies. With an emphasis on best-in-class personal service, Corient takes an integrated approach to values-based financial strategies. Services offered include: investment management, tax strategies, private equity and alternative investing, concentrated stock solutions, philanthropy and estate and legacy planning. The firm is headquartered in Newport Beach, California. For more information, please visit: www.corient.com

About Dynasty Financial Partners

Dynasty Financial Partners is the premier integrated platform for the wealth management industry’s top advisors. Dynasty develops, sources and integrates wealth management capabilities, solutions and technology into its open-architecture platform to help independent advisors protect and grow their clients’ wealth. Dynasty’s core principle is “objectivity without compromise,” and the firm is committed to crafting solutions that allow investment advisors to act as true fiduciaries to their clients. For more information, please visit www.dynastyfinancialpartners.com and follow us on Twitter @DynastyFP.

CORIENT CAPITAL PARTNERS
Founding Partner Biographies:

CHRISTOPHER A. COPPS
Founding Partner
Western Michigan University: B.B.A., Finance and Real Estate
Before Corient
Chris was a Managing Director in the Private Banking and Investment Group at Merrill Lynch for 14 years. Prior to that, Chris was a Founding Partner of the Southern California office of Hambrecht and Quist and Senior Vice President with J.P. Morgan Private Bank. Chris began his career in Michigan, where he was an active real estate and private equity investor. He has a passion for identifying and investing in unique and provocative opportunities. He holds the CERTIFIED FINANCIAL PLANNER™ (CFP) designation, awarded by the Certified Financial Planner Board of Standards, Inc. and is a Certified Investment Management Consultant® professional (CIMC®).

GORDON HASSENPLUG
Founding Partner
Seton Hall University: B.S., Business Management
Before Corient
Gordon was a Senior Vice President in the Private Banking & Investment Group at Merrill Lynch for 17 years. He was a specially qualified Senior Portfolio Manager in the Merrill Lynch Investment Advisory Program. Prior to joining Merrill, Gordon was an advisor to senior management in the marketing division at AT&T.

DARREN L. HENDERSON
Founding Partner
The Wharton School - University of Pennsylvania: M.B.A., Finance
Brigham Young University: B.A., English, minor in Economics
Before Corient
Darren began his career on Wall Street as a Financial Analyst at Goldman, Sachs & Co. in the Private Wealth Management Division. After graduate school, he returned to Goldman Sachs advising some of the wealthiest and most influential families in the country on all aspects of their investments and financial lives. For the past 7 years, Darren has advised clients as a Senior Vice President in the Private Banking & Investment Group at Merrill Lynch.

MICHAEL R. PHELPS
Founding Partner
Brigham Young University: B.S., Accounting
Before Corient
Mike was a Senior Vice President in the Private Banking & Investment Group at Merrill Lynch for 12 years. Prior to joining Merrill, Mike was a Senior Accountant for Deloitte in Costa Mesa, California. He is a Certified Public Accountant.

ALEXANDER F. STIMPSON
Founding Partner / Co-Chief Investment Officer
Northwestern University - Kellogg Graduate School of Management: M.B.A., Finance
Northwestern University: M.S.J., Journalism
University of Vermont: B.A.
Before Corient
Alex was a Senior Vice President in the Private Banking & Investment Group at Merrill Lynch for 16 years, where he was a specially qualified Senior Portfolio Manager in the Merrill Lynch Investment Advisory Program. Prior to joining Merrill, Alex worked for 10 years at HSBC Securities in the Global Markets and Investment Banking Group.

JONATHAN P. TENNEY
Founding Partner
Brigham Young University: Master’s of Accountancy – Taxation
Brigham Young University: B.S., Accounting
Before Corient
After working in the Private Wealth Management Division at Goldman, Sachs advising ultra-high net worth clients, Jon joined Merrill Lynch, where he was a Senior Vice President in the Private Banking & Investment Group.

GREGORY J. WALTERS, CFA
Founding Partner / Co-Chief Investment Officer
Brigham Young University: B.S., Accounting
Before Corient
Greg was a Wealth Management Advisor at Merrill Lynch for 7 years. Prior to that, Greg worked at Goldman Sachs in the Private Wealth Management Division in the New York and Los Angeles offices. He holds the Chartered Financial Analyst® designation awarded by the CFA Institute.