As Chicago’s wealth management industry grows more crowded, Burling Wealth Partners founder Steven Resnik sees an opening.
A former private-equity investor, Resnik is keenly aware of how well-heeled private-equity firms and large financial institutions are looking to get into the space. In fact, he considered that route himself.
“I had actually looked at the registered investment advisor space from the private-equity side, and there it would be best (for the company) to put all our clients in the exact same portfolio and just trade in and out of that,” said Resnik, managing director of the firm launched last fall.
“But at the end of the day, each client is different,” he said. “The amount of wealth that they bring to the table is different. Their goals in terms of how their wealth works for them are different. Their risk tolerance is different.”
Since launching in September 2024, Burling has hit the ground running, growing its assets under management to around $800 million. The bulk of its clients come from Mark Resnik, Steven’s father, who had been an advisor at CIBC Wealth Management.
“One of my major focuses … is to put together a multigenerational firm so that we cannot just serve my primary clients who are mainly in their 50, 60, 70s, but also be able to work with the next generation and those that are in their 30s and 40s,” said Mark Resnik, who also is a managing director at the firm.
Burling is competing in an increasingly competitive environment, with Baby Boomers retiring and looking for the best way to pass their wealth to their children while also funding their own vacation plans and health needs.
A group from CIBC’s wealth management team started their own Chicago-based investment firm called XXI Wealth last month, while Idaho-based Caprock Group brought on a veteran wealth adviser from Goldman Sachs to build out the Chicago office it launched last year through its acquisition of Grey Street Capital.
Chicago banks large and small are also devoting more resources to their wealth teams. Northern Trust, a long-time leader in the sector, which accounts for more than 50% of the bank’s pre-tax income, has noted the increased competition, both for clients and employees.
“Everybody wants to get into this business and have it be a bigger part,” Jason Tyler, president of wealth management at Northern Trust, said recently at RBC Capital Markets annual financial institutions conference. “They realize the capital returns.”
Signature Bank also highlighted the importance of the space in its most recent earnings report, assuring investors it was dedicated to expanding the wealth management division and noting it recently hired a new senior wealth advisor who previously served as Illinois market leader for U.S. Bank Private Wealth Management.
The Burling team sees independence as their edge. Advisors owned by private equity and wealth management arms of publicly traded companies must answer to outside investors looking for their own profits, which could create conflicts independents like Burling do not have.
“In private equity, there was a push into what is best for the business, not necessarily what is best for clients,” said Steven Resnik, who most recently worked at Edgewater Funds. “There was a push toward efficiency and often that comes with things that you can use to generate scale. We take a much stronger view of, ‘Is this the right way to invest for these clients?’”
Clients in the wealth management space are looking for personal attention, which gives smaller firms room to compete, said Kelly Baumbach, executive managing director with Baker Tilly Wealth Management.
“An investment advisor plays two roles,” Baumbach said. “There is half of it that is very technical, and the other part is the psychology of money. No matter who you’re working with, money is emotional. A big part of working with a financial advisor is the relationship you have with them. It is really having a connection that you feel.”
Burling has around 125 families as clients. Its core customer has about $5 million to $25 million in assets, and the firm has a $1 million minimum for accounts. The company, with offices at 1 S. Wacker Drive, started with five employees and has grown to eight.
Burling whittled down its investment thesis to three legs – public equities, public fixed income and private equity.
“We have a fairly concentrated portfolio, anywhere between 35 to 50 names on the equity side, depending on the client,” said Young Im, Burling’s managing director and senior portfolio manager. He previously worked at Segall Bryant & Hamill focused on advising institutional investors.
“We do something similar on the fixed income side,” Im said. “We focus, making sure that we are able to put all of our attention …into investments.”
Within Burling’s universe of investments, it develops bespoke plans for each client.
“We are not picking a basket of mutual funds,” Steven Resnik said. “We are picking actual businesses that we know and we have diligenced and our team understand so we can speak articulately to clients.”
About Burling Wealth Partners
Headquartered in Chicago, IL, Burling Wealth Partners is an independent wealth management firm. We combine sophisticated expertise, personalized service, and highly tailored solutions to navigate both simple and complex life and financial decisions.
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Burling Wealth Partners, LLC is an SEC registered investment adviser. SEC registration does not constitute an endorsement of the firm by the Commission nor does it indicate that the adviser has attained a particular level of skill or ability. Burling may only transact business in those states in which it is registered or qualifies for an exemption or exclusion from registration requirements.
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