Trust companies compete for wealth management

When it comes to the efforts of financial institutions to gain the management of accumulated wealth, it's all a matter of "good stiff competition," according to Rick Gutman, senior vice president and regional manager of The Commerce Trust Company.

St. Louis-based Commerce Trust, the trust division of Commerce Bank, is responsible for more than $15 billion in assets, $10 billion of which is under active management.

According to Gutman, the local division, located at 1345 E. Battlefield, manages $650 million of that total.

The trust department recently changed its name from the Investment Manage-ment Group and expanded services to keep up with diverse customer demands. "We've done a 180-degree turn ... to meet the growing needs of our clients," Gutman said. He added that the company has "put a lot of effort" into making sure it knows what clients expect from it and has restructured the division to make sure it meets client needs. In addition, the 18-member staff has grown by slightly more than 20 percent in the last year and a half. Gutman added, "We've standardized procedures to make us more efficient.".

Randy Saul, senior vice president and manager of the Bank of America Private Bank, oversees the 20-employee trust division of Bank of America, located at 117 Park Central Square.

"The thing that sets us apart is we're a private bank within a bank," Saul said.

He added that the connection with the bank franchise has provided a list of many services for the trust division to offer customers. Those services include financial planning, tax planning, estate planning, advisory services for business owners, alternative strategies, venture capital, interest rate swap, single stock diversification strategies and specialized industry or asset lending.

Saul's department has helped clients obtain second homes in Hawaii, Florida and many other areas, and has assisted people in buying or leasing aircraft and purchasing yachts.

Saul added that with Bank of Am-erica's international locations, clients can expect personal attention in those locales through their affiliation with the company.

Bank of America Private Bank has $129 billion under management with the Springfield division managing $650 million.

In evaluating financial needs the bank looks at all aspects of a client's portfolio, even down to evaluating and making recommendations on their health insurance coverage.

"I've been surprised at the number of things we can do for (customers)," Saul said.

In the banking industry, the trust divisions are no longer the loss-leader service departments once used to draw de-positors, Saul said, but rather fee-based income producers for the banks.

Because of the aging population, the amount of wealth being passed to the next generation is enormous, Saul said. For this reason, other financial institutions, such as brokerage companies, are offering trust services and the number of private trust companies has grown substantially in the last few years.

The first private trust company in Springfield was Springfield Trust Com-pany, 1906 E. Battlefield. It was established in 1991 by John R. Courtney, president of the company.

The company, which recently celebrated its 10th anniversary, effectively competes for trust dollars that all entities in the industry want to manage, according to Julie Guillebeau, chief operating officer.

Actually, Courtney wasn't only the first independent trust operator in Springfield, but the first to be chartered in the state of Missouri, Guillebeau said.

Springfield Trust Company and its 28 employees have met the competition with lots of empathy and personal service to their clients. "We are there for them at whatever level they need," Guillebeau said.

The company works with all financial institutions, CPAs and attorneys to service clients. Springfield Trust sets up family meetings with clients to show beneficiaries what will happen and how the individual trust is set up, so they fully understand all aspects of it.

Recently, Springfield Trust Company initiated two pilot programs called $mart Debt to help high school seniors understand how debt can get out of hand and how to save. "It is important to give back to the community," Guillebeau said.

In 1998, Dwight Rahmeyer, attorney and chief executive officer of Trust Company of the Ozarks, established the second of the two private trust companies located in Springfield. The offices are housed at 3828 S. Fremont.

As a fiduciary, the trustee is obligated to act in the best interest of the client, Rahmeyer said. This usually involves working with the trustor or grantor during his lifetime, then following up with the beneficiaries in accordance with the grantor's wishes.

Rahmeyer said he and 15 employees do everything a client needs from making deposits and paying bills to making sure documents are set up to meet government rules and regulations.

"People think of a trust as being very narrow, but it is very broad in the number of things we have to deal with," he said.

Often the trustee has a great deal of discretion to make decisions and carry out the client's wishes. The amount of involvement in the client's personal business forms a natural bond, according to Rahmeyer, the business being very relationship-oriented.

"We do whatever is appropriate for that client," Rahmeyer said. "No two people's needs are the same."

Like the other trust companies, Trust Company of the Ozarks relies heavily on referral business from banks and other professionals and from their client base.