Bailard Named to Barron's Top 100 RIA Firms
San Francisco — September 21, 2023 — Bailard, a values-driven firm, is proud to announce that it has been named to Barron’s list of the Top 100 RIA Firms for 2023. This prestigious recognition showcases independent RIA firms nationally and underscores Bailard’s commitment to its clients through comprehensive financial and wealth planning, investing, and family office services, all delivered with compassion.
Barron’s, a respected financial news and investment publication, conducts an annual assessment of Registered Investment Advisor (RIA) firms across the United States. The rankings are based on a broad evaluation of criteria, including assets under management, client retention, growth, technology infrastructure, and the firms’ compliance record.
“It is an honor to be recognized by Barron’s as one of the Top 100 RIA Firms in the nation, and this achievement is only possible with the remarkable dedication of our wealth management team,” said Michael Faust, CFA, President of Wealth Management at Bailard. “We are particularly focused on simplifying the complexities of our clients’ financial landscapes. Our team strives to be the trusted ‘one call’ our clients make to get things done.”
Bailard has a long-standing history of excellence in the financial services industry, with a focus on delivering comprehensive and customized financial planning and investment strategies to high-net-worth individuals, families, and institutions. The firm’s commitment to its core values of accountability, compassion, courage, excellence, fairness, and independence has made Bailard a trusted partner in helping clients achieve long-term success and stability.
For more information about Bailard and its comprehensive wealth management services, please visit https://bailard.com/wealth-management/.
About Bailard, Inc.
Founded in 1969, Bailard is an independent wealth and asset management firm serving individuals, families, and institutions alike. Bailard has built a long‐term asset management track record across domestic and international equities, fixed income, and private real estate, as well as robust, in-house sustainable, responsible and impact investing expertise. Through it all, Bailard works with clients to align their financial goals with their values. With $5.5 billion in assets under management as of 6/30/2023, Bailard is a majority employee-owned and women-led firm, and a Principles of Responsible Investing (PRI) signatory. A values-driven firm based in the San Francisco Bay Area, Bailard is deeply committed to its core values of accountability, compassion, courage, excellence, fairness, and independence.
About Barron’s Top 100 RIA Firms methodology:
The 2023 Top 100 RIA Firms was released by Barron’s in September 2023. This 8th annual ranking of independent advisory companies is based on assets managed by the firms, technology spending, staff diversity, succession planning and other metrics. Advisors who wish to be ranked fill out a 102-question survey; Barron’s then verifies that data and applies its rankings formula to generate a ranking. The formula features three major categories of calculations—Assets, Revenue, Quality of practice—with multiple sub-calculations in each. Bailard ranked 99 out of 100 on the 2023 list. This award does not evaluate the quality of services provided to clients and is not indicative of the practice’s future performance. There was no fee to enter.
Bailard's Tess Gruenstein Honored with Prestigious Industry Award
San Francisco — September 14, 2023 —Bailard, a values-driven asset and wealth management firm, is delighted to announce that Tess Gruenstein (Senior Vice President, Acquisitions & Portfolio Management, Real Estate) has been honored as one of Pensions & Investments’ Influential Women in Institutional Investing.
The inaugural 2023 class of P&I’s Influential Women in Institutional Investing recognized 65 industry leaders. P&I assembled an advisory board of leading investors and key industry executives to determine focus areas—including leadership and contributions to the advancement of women—and evaluate candidates on their ability to demonstrate measurable effects and results within one’s own workplace and within the industry.
Having joined Bailard in 2015, Tess is a highly skilled and effective leader who has made significant contributions to the success of Bailard’s real estate efforts, and the company at large. As a testament to Tess’s exceptional achievements, Preston Sargent, Executive Vice President of Bailard Real Estate noted, “Tess has a very special blend of skills and qualities that make her an extraordinary leader, manager, partner, co-worker, and friend. She has an unyielding commitment to fairness, quality, and doing the right thing.”
With her early experiences and support from professionals in the institutional real estate industry, Tess has dedicated herself to providing similar opportunities for others. As a woman in commercial real estate, Tess works to serve as a spokesperson, role model, and advocate, consistently promoting her team’s work. Tess seeks to drive positive change and create a more equitable and inclusive workplace culture for women in real estate.
“It is a mixture of very good luck, great colleagues and mentors, and hard work that gave me the kind of exposure and career growth to get here,” said Gruenstein. “The recognition that diversity of perspective, gender, and economic and educational backgrounds leads to more dynamic, forward-thinking workplaces is still new and so essential. I benefited from this perspective at multiple points in my career, and I cannot stress enough how it made all the difference for me. I will proudly pay this forward as we support the next wave of women in the business.”
Bailard extends its heartfelt congratulations to Tess Gruenstein for this well-deserved recognition. Her contributions have driven much success, and we look forward to her continued leadership.
About Bailard, Inc.
Founded in 1969, Bailard is an independent asset and wealth management firm serving individuals, families, and institutions alike. Bailard has built a long‐term asset management track record across domestic and international equities, fixed income, and private real estate, as well as robust, in-house sustainable, responsible and impact investing expertise. Through it all, Bailard works with clients to align their financial goals with their values. With $5.5 billion in assets under management as of 6/30/2023, Bailard is a majority employee-owned and women-led firm, and a Principles of Responsible Investing (PRI) signatory. A values-driven firm based in the San Francisco Bay Area, Bailard is deeply committed to its core values of accountability, compassion, courage, excellence, fairness, and independence.
About P&I’s Influential Women in Institutional Investing
Pensions & Investments, owned by Crain Communications Inc., is the 50-year-old global news source of money management. It released this inaugural list of Influential Women in Institutional Investing in September 2023, with 65 honorees. To be eligible, women must be currently employed in institutional investing, have a minimum of 7 years of experience in the industry and demonstrate a measurable effect and results within one’s own workplace and within the industry. Women across the institutional investment industry are eligible (allocators, asset managers, consultants, service providers, etc.) and should ideally demonstrate a commitment to attract, retain, support and promote women into the industry. This award does not evaluate the quality of services provided to clients and is not indicative of Bailard’s future performance. There was no cost for Bailard to enter.
Bailard Recognized as a Top Bay Area Corporate Philanthropist
Foster City, CA — August 3, 2023 — Bailard today announced that it has, for the third year in a row, been ranked among the San Francisco Business Times’ annual top 100 Bay Area Corporate Philanthropists List. This year, Bailard earned 79th place, joining many of the Bay Area’s top companies including Salesforce, Google, and the San Francisco 49ers.
The Corporate Philanthropy Awards, list, and supplement celebrates the Bay Area’s most generous corporate citizens and recognizes those companies that also give their time, talent, and resources. The annual list recognizes 100 top corporate philanthropists ranked by local cash giving. It includes for-profit companies and nonprofit health care organizations that made contributions to Bay Area-based charitable organizations in the following counties: San Francisco, San Mateo, Alameda, Contra Costa, Marin, Napa, Santa Clara, Solano, and Sonoma. This year’s winners were recognized at the Corporate Philanthropy Summit on July 27.
“Bailard’s generosity helps to raise the bar on corporate philanthropy and inspires more giving,” said Mary Huss, Publisher of the San Francisco Business Times. “Their participation in this program helps challenge others to do more.”
“Corporate philanthropy goes beyond just financial contributions,” said Bailard’s Chief Executive Officer Sonya Mughal. “It’s about touching lives and igniting hope in our community, and also empowering our employees to demonstrate the compassion that runs deep for all of us at Bailard. We are pleased to be recognized among the leaders of the Bay Area, knowing that our collective efforts inspire others to embrace the transformative power of giving.”
The recognition highlights the efforts of both Bailard, Inc. and the Bailard Foundation. The Bailard Foundation has donated $454,700 in impact grants (as of 6/30/2023) since its 2019 launch, with 85% of funds going to Bay Area grantees. The Bailard Foundation supports three core focus areas of affordable housing, homelessness & poverty, and financial literacy. To learn more about the Bailard Foundation, please visit the 2023 Annual Update here. Dive deeper into Bailard’s dedication to impact here.
About Bailard, Inc.
Founded in 1969, Bailard is an independent asset and wealth management firm serving individuals, families, and institutions alike. Bailard has built a long‐term asset management track record across domestic and international equities, fixed income, and private real estate, as well as robust, in-house sustainable, responsible and impact investing expertise. Through it all—and in line with its core principles and strong ESG mindset—Bailard works with clients to align their financial goals with their values. With $5.5 billion in assets under management as of 6/30/2023, Bailard is a majority employee-owned and women-led firm, and a Principles of Responsible Investing (PRI) signatory. A values-driven firm based in the San Francisco Bay Area, Bailard has its own private charitable foundation* and is deeply committed to its core values of accountability, compassion, courage, excellence, fairness, and independence.
* The Bailard Foundation supports initiatives that the Firm, its employees, and its clients value, as we seek to collectively improve the communities in which we live, work, and engage. The Bailard Foundation has a board of directors that is led by chairwoman Terri Bailard, widow of Firm co-founder Tom Bailard, and features both select friends of Bailard, Inc. and employees.
About the Corporate Philanthropy Awards
For 23 years the San Francisco Business Times has published the Corporate Philanthropists List. The list features 100 top corporate philanthropists in the Bay Area ranked by local cash giving. It includes for-profit companies and nonprofit health care organizations that made contributions to Bay Area-based charitable organizations in the following counties: San Francisco, San Mateo, Alameda, Contra Costa, Marin, Napa, Santa Clara, Solano, and Sonoma. The Corporate Philanthropy Awards program was founded in partnership with Northern California Grantmakers. A portion of the proceeds goes to NCG to fund the Corporate Philanthropy Institute, with the mission to educate more companies about effective giving and best philanthropy practices. The aim is to honor those who give the most and in doing so to help raise the bar and inspire more giving. This achievement does not evaluate the quality of services provided to clients and is not indicative of Bailard’s future performance. The San Francisco Business Times Top 100 Bay Area Corporate Philanthropists is an annual award, given to Bailard by the San Francisco Business Times in July 2023, July 2022, and July 2021. Each year, 100 firms appeared in the San Francisco Business Times list. Bailard ranked #79 in 2023; #82 in 2022; and #89 in 2021. There was no fee to enter.
The Bailard Foundation Annual Update 2023
The Bailard Foundation continues to be a bright spot of the Bailard community. In the last year, the Foundation donated over $197,200 to 22 charities and held seven successful volunteer events. The Bailard Foundation highlights the best of Bailard in a genuine way by putting its community first, showing compassion to those in need, and always going the extra mile for others.
The focus areas of giving for the Foundation remain affordable housing, homelessness and poverty, and financial literacy. In its four years since inception, the Foundation has made over $454,700 in impact grants. This giving is a combination of support from Bailard, its clients, employees, and friends of the Firm.
In this fourth year, the members of the Board worked to increase community engagement with additional volunteer opportunities. In-person engagement became easier as COVID subsided across the country and the Bailard team took full advantage of the ability to be in person. Volunteer opportunities included teaching financial literacy to high school students, volunteering twice with Bay Area food banks, physical labor with Habitat for Humanity of Greater San Francisco, and co-hosting two Pride celebrations for a homeless shelter network in San Francisco alongside Bailard’s Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion committee.
The Foundation also worked to establish routine donations for ten charities to provide consistent financial support, while maintaining a portion of its annual funds to be used for just-in-time donations. This allows the charities to rely on funding as part of their annual budgets and helps disseminate the funds in a reliable way, while preserving our ability to react to real-time needs as they arise. In the coming year, the Foundation will continue to evaluate new charities and offer new volunteer events.
Volunteer Events
The Foundation held its largest volunteer event in April with Habitat for Humanity Greater San Francisco: 33 Bailard colleagues participated, representing over half of the Firm’s locally-based employees. In what is also a treasured opportunity to work together, the group designed and constructed three playhouses, which were donated to Mission Neighborhood Center and also provided funds to help build eight permanently affordable homes in the Bay Area.
The Foundation’s most recent volunteer event was held in late June in conjunction with Bailard’s Diversity, Equity and Inclusion committee in celebration of Pride Month. Bailard teammates helped to bring a celebration of the Month to A Woman’s Place. A Woman’s Place provides the only 24-hour supportive residential services in San Francisco, providing emergency shelter and long-term treatment to all women, regardless of their special needs.
Bailard has collectively donated more than 240 volunteer hours since it began hosting employee events one year ago in June 2022.
The Bailard Foundation supports initiatives that the Firm, its employees, and its clients value, as we seek to collectively improve the communities in which we live, work, and engage. The Bailard Foundation has a board of directors that is led by chairwoman Terri Bailard, widow of Firm co-founder Tom Bailard, and features both select friends of Bailard, Inc. and employees.