Barclays Wealth, a unit of U.K.-based Barclays plc, announced Friday that it has opened a national U.S. trust company, Barclays Wealth Trustees (U.S.), NA., based in Delaware.
The company said this is an important addition to Barclays Wealth's client service offering in the Americas. "This is an exciting time in our development and we are proud to be investing in the U.S. and expanding our global trust services proposition with the recent opening of a Delaware U.S. trust company," said Rob Withecombe, Managing Director and Head of Wealth Advisory globally for Barclays Wealth, in a press release. "Trust and fiduciary services are a vital wealth management service for both our U.S. and non-U.S. clients, and this investment follows the addition of two further trust businesses in Asia over the past year."
Barclays Wealth Trustees will help high-net-worth clients with trust services and estate planning. It will be able to act as a trustee, co-trustee or agent in trust administration.
"Our U.S. trust platform offers the flexibility our clients need to meet the challenges common to high-net-worth individuals and families," said Claire Rosati, a Director at Barclays Wealth and President of Barclays Wealth Trustees, in the press release.
Barclays Wealth in the Americas has 14 offices, including the new trust company office. It has been carving out a niche of very high end retail clients in the U.S. after buying Lehman's private investment management business in 2008, when Lehman filed for bankruptcy, and using that as its base for U.S. operations ever since.
