The private equity firms buying Wells Fargo & Co.'s asset management business for $2.1 billion have poached another executive from State Street Global Advisors to build out the legal and compliance departments of the rebranded company, Allspring Global Investments.
Chris Baker is exiting the Boston-based asset manager to serve as chief compliance officer of Allspring, where he'll report to another State Street Global Advisors alum—Kate McKinley, who joined Allspring in August as chief legal officer. She'd served as State Street Global Advisors' general counsel for nearly three years.
Baker and McKinley will join incoming Allspring CEO Joseph Sullivan, who is leaving his chief executive role at Legg Mason Inc. He succeeds Wells Fargo Asset Management CEO Nico Marais, who is retiring but will continue to serve as a senior adviser at Allspring.
Chicago-based GTCR and Reverence Capital Partners in New York announced in February that they were acquiring WFAM, which will become Allspring, an independent company, after the deal closes later this year.
"This transaction represents a significant milestone in the growth and evolution of our firm," Marais said in an earlier news release. "Through this new partnership, our business will be even better positioned to execute our strategy and provide our clients with innovative products and solutions to help them reach their investment goals."
The deal follows Wells Fargo's massive fake-account scandal and subsequent failure to enact compliance measures, which resulted in the bank's paying a $3 billion penalty. The former general counsel and CEO incurred multimillion-dollar fines.
