A growing tax-focused wealth management firm is moving forward without a respected industry executive once thought to be key to its plans.
Nearly a year after Blucora
It wasn’t immediately clear whether David Knoch — who was
In January, the Dallas-Fort Worth Metroplex area firm
Knoch had spent 18 years affiliated with 1st Global before HD Vest’s parent purchased the firm.
In a LinkedIn message, Knoch referred questions about his exit from Avantax to Blucora but discussed opening the new Dallas-based consulting firm now listed on his profile.
“Preston Creek Capital is a consulting firm I've started to keep me occupied while I work to find a permanent role where I can make a meaningful difference to a team of people and to and our industry,” Knoch says.
Knoch’s LinkedIn page describes the purpose of the consulting firm — which has only a barebones
His stewardship of 1st Global and influential position among the many prominent members of FSI led industry
1st Global had spun off from HD Vest in 1992 over differing approaches to helping CPAs and other tax professionals branch into wealth management. In September, Blucora
Representatives for Blucora — which is also the parent of tax filing software TaxAct — emailed a statement about Knoch’s exit from the firm.
"David was a key figure in growing 1st Global over the years," spokeswoman Laura Simpson said. "We wish him nothing but the best in his future endeavors."
In 2018, the firm then still known as
After Blucora Chief Business Operations and Development Officer Todd Mackay served as interim CEO, the firm
The executive shakeup in the wealth management unit preceded another one last month at its parent firm. In addition to Walters being named the new CEO on Jan. 30, Blucora
Longtime technology firm CFO and former investment banker Rick Simonson has since joined the firm as a special advisor as Blucora searches for a successor. On the same day as it announced Athwal was leaving, Blucora said it was
Blucora will report its fourth-quarter earnings this week. In prepared remarks that Mackay made on a call with analysts after the firm said Clendening was leaving, he didn’t elaborate on the reasons for the CEO’s departure beyond stating that it wasn’t related to business performance, any shifts in strategy or any potential alterations to new programs.
The 1st Global deal “further strengthened our market leadership and strengthened our leadership team across that channel,” Mackay said. He also cited the pending HK Financial acquisition as another example of Blucora’s success in moving away in the past five years from
“We believe we have even more significant opportunities for growth now — along with a stronger company and team — than we did in 2014,” Mackay said. “We know that there are great things ahead for Blucora.”