Bob Oros, executive vice president and head of the RIA segment at Fidelity Investments, is leaving the company at the end of the month to pursue a “unique new personal challenge,” according to a company spokeswoman.
Mr. Oros, 51, announced the news internally on Thursday. Fidelity spokeswoman Erica Birke would not disclose where Mr. Oros is heading, but said that the unnamed company will make the announcement “at the appropriate time.”
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Mr. Oros, joined Fidelity five years ago from Trust Company of America. Prior to that he also worked at LPL Holdings and Charles Schwab Corp.
"I had an amazing experience at Fidelity over the past five years, and will maintain strong professional and personal relationships with the firm,” Mr. Oros said in an emailed statement. “The great work that the team does on behalf of advisors will continue! I look forward to sharing more about my new role at the appropriate time.”
Mr. Oros, who was not immediately available for comment, oversees 130 people, including seven regional managing directors. Until a replacement is announced,the managing directors will report to Sanjiv Mirchandani, president of Fidelity Clearing & Custody Solutions.
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“We are fortunate to have such a strong group of leaders within the regional managing directors team who will continue to manage and grow our clients during this transition,” Ms. Birke said. “We have a thoughtful strategy, solid pipeline and strong leadership throughout the organization.”
Mr. Oros has a bachelor of science business administration, with a concentration in finance and economics, from Central Michigan University, and completed graduate work in finance at Walsh College.
Ron Carson, who custodies part of Carson Wealth Management's $7.4 billion at Fidelity, said “whoever gets Bob is lucky, because I think he's going to do great things for our profession.”
“I've known Bob for a long time; he's a wonderful person and a wonderful partner,” Mr. Carson added. “We consider Fidelity a key partner in what we're building for the future, and Bob has been a big part of that.”
Mr. Carson said he didn't know where Mr. Oros is going next, but learned during a conversation with him Friday morning that it is a publicly-traded company.
Marty Bicknell, president and chief executive a Mariner Wealth Advisors, which has $16 billion under management, has his largest custodial relationship with Fidelity.
“I know Fidelity is extremely happy with the job Bob has been doing, and it sounds like the opportunity he is taking is just too good for him to pass up,” Mr. Bicknell said. “I'm not sure who they will tap to replace him, so there's a little anxiety over that, but Fidelity has done a good job in the past in filling vacancies.”
Speculating on where Mr. Oros might be headed, Mr. Bicknell said he only knows that it is not a competitor of Fidelity.
