Envestnet co-founder Crager to step down as CEO

Envestnet CEO Bill Crager is stepping down from his role at the end of March, the company announced Monday morning.

Crager, who co-founded the company with the late Jud Bergman in 1999, will be replaced on an interim basis as CEO by board chair James L. Fox. Crager will remain at the firm as a senior advisor to focus on relationships with clients and partners, the company stated, while executive vice president Tom Sipp will continue to lead the company's business lines, working with Crager and Fox.

"For more than 24 years, it has been my privilege and honor to work with Envestnet, creating an industry leader. We now serve more assets, more financial advisors, and more accounts than anyone in the marketplace,” Crager said in the announcement. "Starting in April, I will have the time and opportunity to focus on what I have always loved doing – growing Envestnet's relationships and empowering our clients to provide holistic financial advice and solutions. This transition gives me a front-row seat for our next chapter, and I look forward to continuing our journey."

The change in leadership comes after more than a year of significant events at the firm: It relocated its headquarters in 2022 from Chicago to Berwyn, Pennsylvania; it saw several high-profile employees depart; it settled a proxy-voting battle with an activist hedge fund that resulted in changes to its board; and it underwent a corporate reorganization in 2022. In November, the firm launched a 401(k) fiduciary service in partnership with record keeper Empower. And the prior month, it established an investment advisor to provide services through banks and credit unions.

Crager has led the firm since 2019, following Bergman’s death in a car accident.

The fintech, which was early to provide a turnkey asset management platform for fee-based advisors, has relationships with 107,000 of them, representing $5.4 trillion in client assets. The company reports working with 16 of the country’s 20 biggest banks, and 48 of the 50 largest wealth managers and brokerages, as well as 500 RIAs.

"Bill has been a driving force of Envestnet,” board chair James Fox said in the announcement. “He is an inspirational leader who set the bar for our quality client solutions and services. Bill also built a strong and experienced management team and we're confident in their ability to continue to execute our strategy."