The Chicago branch of Wells Fargo Private Bank says it intends to increase its staff from 30 employees to 80 employees by 2011, with a focus on hiring more private bankers, brokers, investment managers, and trust and estate planners, according to a report from the Chicago Tribune.

Chip Flannagan, the bank’s senior vice president and regional manager, expressed his confidence that Chicago will be a high-growth wealth management market in the years to come, and cited the Chicago wealth management group’s strong 30-month performance as another reason for the planned expansion, the report continued.

Wells Fargo Private Bank was not available for comment to Family Wealth Report at the time of publication.

Despite the impact of the global recession, Wells Fargo Private Bank has continued to be successful by catering to those in need of wealth management services. According to Wells Fargo Private Bank’s website, prospective clients typically have a minimum total balance of $1 million with Wells Fargo, excluding mortgages.

Wells Fargo opened the Chicago branch of its private bank service in September of 2007.