The broker-dealer Investacorp is celebrating its 40th anniversary, and to recognize the event it has launched a new program offering scholarships and paid internships to college students pursuing a career in the financial advice industry.
It’s called the Pioneers Program, said Ladenburg Thalmann Financial Services Inc., Investacorp’s Miami-based owner, and will fund two $10,000 scholarships this year for one son or daughter of an Investacorp advisor and for a child of one of the firm’s clients.
Investacorp said in a press release that the program would also offer paid internship opportunities at the firm’s headquarters in Miami for students during the summer after they graduate. The firm will explore ways to expand the program in future years.
“From its humble roots as a small, regional firm supporting fewer than 15 independent financial advisors, Investacorp has expanded to over 500 advisors nationwide, with nearly $14 billion in brokerage and advisory assets,” said Richard Lampen, the president and CEO of Ladenburg, in a statement.
In addition to the new platform, Investacorp is also offering a program to help advisors groom family members to eventually take ownership of their advisory businesses.
The “Multigenerational Consulting Solutions” platform will bolster family-owned advisory practices with educational workshops offering training resources geared toward helping independent advisors at each stage of the multigenerational family practice extend their firms’ leadership to the next generation.
Patrick Farrell, CEO of Investacorp, said in a statement that the platform “provides the expertise and tools needed by independent advisor practices that want to be family-run on a long-term basis. Independent advisor practices are the backbone of the broader retail financial advice space, and supporting the sustainability of these businesses is crucial for firms, advisors and their clients across the country.”
Chris Yarosh, a veteran member of the firm’s leadership team, has been named as the director of the Multigenerational Consulting Solutions effort, the firm said. Yarosh has served in senior management positions at Investacorp in compliance operations and advisor services. He has a Business Administration degree from the University of Florida in finance and insurance.
Investacorp became Ladenburg’s first independent advisory and brokerage firm acquisition in 2007. The network now includes four other firms: Securities America, Triad Advisors, KMS Financial Services and Securities Service Network.