Advisers managing $1.7 billion move to Noyes from Wells Fargo

Chris and Brian Cooke partner with the 108-year-old firm for strategic expansion.

A team of financial advisers managing $1.7 billion in client assets has joined Noyes’ wealth management group from Wells Fargo Advisors.
Cooke Financial Group, led by advisers John Chris Cooke (who goes by his middle name) and Brian F. Cooke, is based in Indianapolis. The group provides financial planning and wealth management services to high-net-worth individuals and families, not-for-profit organizations, institutional clients, retirement plans and trusts. Besides the advisers, the team consists of accountants, attorneys, institutional portfolio managers and investment management analysts.
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Both Chris and Brian Cooke will be joining Noyes as partners, as part of the firm’s strategic plan to expand.
“The partnership will primarily empower Cooke to do more for their clients and concurrently attain a series of key strategic goals,” said L.H. Bayley, chairman of the Noyes board of directors. “These include expanding family-office capabilities, offering clients additional investment opportunities leveraging Noyes Capital Markets’ capabilities and expertise, while boosting growth by acquiring firms or teams with complimentary offerings.”
The move follows a trend of wirehouse advisers leaving to launch their independent practices. Mark Damer, president and CEO of Noyes, said Noyes’ recruiting efforts are attracting “wirehouse refugees and independent advisers alike.”
According to Chris Cooke’s BrokerCheck profile, he began his career with Prudential Securities Inc. in 1991 before joining Wells Fargo Advisors in 2003. Brian F. Cooke followed a similar trajectory, starting at Prudential Securities in 1992 before joining Wells Fargo Advisors in 2003, his BrokerCheck profile shows.
Noyes was founded in 1908 and is a full-service investment firm based in Chicago, with seven offices around Illinois, Indiana and Michigan. The firm is employee-owned.