Liberty Bank parts with securities division

Liberty Investment Services Inc. – lead by President Phil Wannenmacher – has been dissolved, and its assets were transferred to Wealth Partners LLC, an entity Wannenmacher originally registered with the Missouri secretary of state’s office in August as Growth Partners LLC. The company’s name was officially changed to Wealth Partners in mid-September.

Liberty Investment Services sent a letter to clients – signed by Wannenmacher and Liberty Bank President Gary Metzger – explaining its agreement with Liberty Bancshares. The assets were transferred Aug. 30, according to the letter obtained by Springfield Business Journal.

“This agreement will allow Liberty Bank to focus on its core banking business, and Mr. Wannenmacher and his associates at Liberty Investment Services to concentrate on your investment needs,” the letter reads.

Clients are told that “the transition will be virtually seamless.” The letter also notes that Wealth Partners will move from Liberty Bank’s headquarters at 4625 S. National Ave. later this year, at which time another letter will be sent out with the group’s new address and contact information.

In an e-mail to SBJ, Liberty Bancshares Chief Operating Officer Blake Thomas stated that the terms of the agreement were confidential and that bank officials had declined to be interviewed.

“Liberty Bancshares Inc. is focusing on its primary banking subsidiary, Liberty Bank, by enhancing its consumer and commercial products, increasing the number of banking locations, and continuing to invest in technology,” Thomas wrote. “By doing this, Liberty Bank customers will be better served and the previous management team at Liberty Investment Services Inc. will be solely focused on providing financial planning to its customers.”

Florida-based Raymond James Financial Services Inc. will remain the broker-dealer for clients who elected to keep their accounts with Wealth Partners, according to the letter. Thomas declined to release how many financial advisers Liberty Investment Services employed or the combined value of portfolios they managed.

The Liberty Investment Services Web page on Liberty Bank’s Web site, www.therisingstar.com, lists Wannenmacher, Eric Griessel and Charles Ladd as contacts for the office.

An online broker search through the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority Inc., however, revealed that Ladd is no longer registered with Raymond James. He has been registered with Morgan Stanley & Co. Inc. since July, according to FINRA.

Griessel has been registered with Raymond James since June 2002, and Wannenmacher’s registration with the firm dates back to May 2000, according to FINRA. Wannenmacher, a former state representative, is a licensed broker in nine states, including Missouri.

Earlier this year, Liberty Bank wrapped up a three-year-old sexual harassment claim against Wannenmacher filed by one of his former employees. On June 1, Liberty Bank reached an undisclosed settlement with Michele Osborn, a Liberty Investment Services financial adviser February 2003–February 2006. In April 2006, Osborn filed a sexual harassment charge against Wannenmacher with the Missouri Commission on Human Rights and the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission.