MutualFundWire.com: Seven Months Post-Merger, Two Chiefs Leave a Fund Distro Giant

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Wednesday, February 1, 2023

Seven Months Post-Merger, Two Chiefs Leave a Fund Distro Giant

A pair of chiefs left a mutual fund distribution and compliance giant at the end of the year, seven months after a merger.

David "Dave" Whitaker

Dave Whitaker, global services leader at ACA Group, and Rich Berthy, a senior advisor to the New York City-based firm, left ACA on December 31, 2022, a spokesperson for ACA confirms. Berthy previously served as founder and CEO of Portland, Maine-based Foreside Financial Group, LLC, and Whitaker served as Foreside's president, prior to Foreside merging with ACA last spring, as planned.

Richard John "Rich" Berthy

Whitaker did not return a call for comment.

Chris Lanza, foirmerly senior managing director and head of distribution and broker-dealer solutions at Foreside, has taken over as head of managed services at ACA in the wake of Whitaker's exit, a spokesperson for ACA confirms. And ACA Foreside (the old Foreside distribution business) is led by Teresa Cowan, who also leads its B-Ds.

Christopher Conte "Chris" Lanza
ACA Group
Head of Managed Services

Cowan did not return a call for comment.

Meanwhile, when the ACA-Foreside deal closed and Berthy switched to being a senior advisor, he passed his CEO duties to ACA's CEO, Shvetank Shah. Prior to the merger, Foreside distribution more than $1.5 trillion in assets through 17 B-Ds and served more than 2,200 clients (including fund firms). After the merger last spring, ACA had more than 1,250 employees across 18 offices serving more than 6,300 clients. The deal also turned Foreside's majority backer, Genstar Capital, into the majority owner of ACA Group.

Berthy had been with Foreside since its inception back in 2005. In those 17 years, he led Foreside through a host of acquisitions. Earlier, he worked with Forum Financial, A.G. Edwards, and Hilliard Lyons. He is an alumnus of Ohio's Miami University.

Before joining Foreside, Whitaker worked with Citigroup Fund Services and PFPC. He is an alumnus of Suffolk University and of Providence College.

Lanza joined Foreside in 2007 to lead its ETP business, and he later served in several other senior leadership roles there. Earlier, he worked with Citigroup Asia Fund Services, AGF Funds, PwC, Charles Schwab Investment Management, and Mitsubishi Union Bank of California. He is an alumnus of Northeastern University.

Cowan co-founded Quasar Distributors in 2000 and served as its president. Foreside acquired Quasar three years ago. Earlier, she worked with Strong Funds and Firstar Investment Services.

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