Paul is a respected industry leader and investment veteran with 40-plus years of experience managing ultra-high-net-worth client and institutional portfolios. As such, he will be a critical part of the relationship team serving clients and their families, and he will be a welcome addition to our Investment Committee, which is comprised of other former Bank of America and Wells Fargo Private Bank market leaders.
He spent the last 31 years at U.S. Trust / Bank of America Private Bank where he directly managed client assets in excess of $2 billion, departing as Managing Director and Market Investment Executive.
Let’s start with the top question that family and friends are asking you: Why would you come out of retirement—again?
Paul Trippe: I don't think I'm a good fit for retirement, at least not yet. My first retirement lasted about a year. Clients I served for decades needed stability, and I couldn’t stand on the sidelines. In June of 2022, I returned for a year and a half to help them feel at ease.After retiring a second time, here I am another year and a half later going back to work. I enjoy the challenge. I enjoy the engagement that work provides, both with colleagues and clients. By definition, you could say I’m a workaholic—I like to work. I also wanted to find a long-term home for the clients who have trusted me for so many years.
What drew you to Fidelis Capital?
PT: My connections and history with Matt and Neale Ellis were absolutely what drew me to Fidelis Capital. The team here has built a very special, client-focused platform with state-of-the-art technology, which I didn't always have at my previous employer.Another important aspect was the true focus on clients. After working as closely with families as I have for 40-plus years, you gain a wealth of perspectives—and deeply personal relationships. Clients become family, and you want the best for them as if they were relatives.
Fidelis Capital is built to serve clients in this way, like they are family. Each advisor serves no more than 25 clients. A smaller number of client relationships easily allows for more time with clients and more focus on their unique needs.
Unlike the first time, I am coming out of retirement because Fidelis Capital’s very nature allows me to serve these clients in the way I’ve wanted to for years, far beyond what I was limited to before. I also know that they will be in very capable hands once I attempt to retire again. (I think they say third time’s the charm.)
You have 40-plus years of experience. You’ve seen the buy side and sell side at regional and institutional levels, served in advisory and administrative capacities. You retired twice. After speaking with Matt and Neale, what made Fidelis Capital such a compelling choice?
PT: Fidelis Capital has more tools, more flexibility and more readily available expertise regarding multi-generational wealth and estate planning.Industry leaders from the top private banking institutions have joined forces to create a more personal client experience. They work together, directly with clients, in each client relationship, which is only possible because of how Fidelis is structured.
The former National Head of Wealth Planning for Wells Fargo Private Wealth Management is creating your custom wealth plan, helping to mitigate the impact of income and estate taxes while providing a full family educational program to prepare heirs.
The Co-Chief Investment Officers managing a number of in-house investment strategies are the former principal portfolio manager of Managed Active Core for Bank of America Private Bank and one of the top portfolio managers nationally for Wells Fargo Private Bank, who has deep expertise in private market investing.
The former Head of Fixed-Income Portfolio Management for Bank of America’s Chief Investment Office is managing your fixed-income portfolio based on your income tax bracket and risk profile, not the generic allocation scaled for thousands of clients.
And those are just some of the exemplary individuals who know you, your family, your needs, your life outlook, all of those details.
When I was at my previous employer, clients couldn’t walk away with that feeling no matter how many people you put around the table, which was the worst thing to do in many cases. They are intimidated. They don’t want to open up and tell you every detail. Knowing every detail is what allows a client’s advisory team to create the very best investment and planning solution for them.
Speaking of your previous professional setting, in what way is Fidelis Capital the most different?
PT: Succession is a major difference. The constant re-shuffling of client teams I experienced at a larger provider was disruptive and often worrying for the clients. Experienced portfolio managers would join competitors to earn higher salaries and that would leave clients with younger, less experienced managers.That isn’t how Fidelis is structured, there is a firmwide succession plan. The “next up” advisor is part of the relationship in the early days. Clients know and develop a relationship with them over the years. When the day comes for the next-up advisor to be in the driver’s seat, clients already know and trust in them. The change is a ripple effect, not a tidal wave. It’s a tangible difference in the client experience.
What parting thoughts do you have for those reading the Q&A?
PT: It was refreshing to see that Fidelis has built something that is, from what I see, a much more client-friendly platform and it’s real. It’s not talking about delivering a private banking experience, it is built to deliver that and more. You won’t get it at big institutional managers.Scale is a word you probably wouldn’t ever hear at Fidelis—it isn’t important. At the bank, that’s what they focus on, wanting more clients, collecting more fees, etc. The client isn’t the first consideration, it’s the organization—and that goes for how they spend money, improve technology, compensate teams. Fidelis is a full 180. Clients and their needs are once again the focus of the entire experience.
