GenSpring FO looks to extend its on-the-ground presence into the heartland. GenSpring Family Offices has put former SunTrust Banks wealth manager John Morris in charge of business development in Tennessee.

Genspring, a 19-year-old multifamily office with about $15 billion in advisory assets, is a subsidiary of Atlanta-based SunTrust. GenSpring says it operates independently from its parent.

"John is an experienced wealth advisor with unique insight into the growing Tennessee region wealth-management market," says GenSpring's CEO Maria Elena Lagomasino. "Between his extensive experience, community involvement and tremendous contacts throughout the region, John will be a wonderful addition to our firm."

Common name

There are several other John Morrises in the wealth-management business. One is head of investment products and services at Schwab. Another is CEO of Clearbrook Financial.

Nashville, Tenn.-based Morris had been an executive v.p. with SunTrust's Wealth and Investment Management division. Before that, he was a wealth manager with Bank of America, where he worked with clients in Tennessee and Arkansas.

It's hard to say whether Morris' hire means that GenSpring is establishing a new wealth-advisory office in Nashville. A company press release fails to spell that out, and GenSpring wasn't available to shed light on the matter.

Last summer GenSpring -- then known as Asset Management Advisors -- hired a private-equity team that has offices in Nashville and Atlanta. Like Morris, this team had worked for SunTrust.

Its Palm Beach Gardens, Fla., headquarters aside, GenSpring has wealth-advisory offices in Atlanta, Charlotte, N.C., Greenwich, Conn., New York, Phoenix and Washington, D.C., as well as additional Florida offices in Orlando, Sarasota, Tampa Bay and Miami (which is also the site of GenSpring International, the firm's Latin American division). -FWR

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