Ben Edwards, former CEO of A.G. Edwards, is dead

Benjamin F. Edwards III, the former chief executive officer of A.G. Edwards & Sons Inc. of St. Louis, died today at his home in Naples, Fla., after a long battle with cancer.
He was 77.
Mr. Edwards, the great-grandson of the company’s founder, Albert Gallatin Edwards, ran A.G. Edwards for nearly 45 years until 2001, when he retired.
Always outspoken, Mr. Edwards later criticized his successor, Robert Bagby, for selling the brokerage firm to Wachovia Securities LLC in 2007.
His open management style made Mr. Edwards popular with employees. He made it a point to visit at least 100 branch offices every year.
“He personally met every employee on their first day of work, answered his own phone and always had an open-door policy for everyone,” his son, Benjamin F. “Tad” Edwards IV, said in a statement released today by the Edwards family. He is chief executive of Benjamin F. Edwards & Co. Inc. of St. Louis.