Steve Booth Delivers Keynote at SIFMA Annual Meeting

Firm

Steve Booth, Baird Chairman and CEO, shared his perspective on the state of the financial services industry and what sets Baird apart at the Securities Industry and Financial Markets Association (SIFMA) Annual Meeting held Nov. 7 in Washington, D.C. The invitation-only meeting for SIFMA members was attended by approximately 300 senior industry leaders including broker-dealers, investment banks and asset managers. Jim Allen, Baird Vice Chair and SIFMA Foundation board member, opened the session. John Taft, Baird Vice Chair and SIFMA board member, moderated the conversation with Steve.

SIFMA is the leading trade association for our industry, and advocates on legislation, regulation and business policy on behalf of its members including Baird. SIFMA Foundation provides financial education programs to promote understanding of the financial markets.

During their conversation, Steve and John discussed timely topics including:

  • The resiliency of our industry and how collectively its members have turned challenges into opportunities
  • How navigating the current regulatory climate and aggressive pace of rulemaking is having a meaningful impact on our industry, and the steps Baird is taking to minimize the impact on our clients and associates
  • Our philosophy on growth as we reflect on the integration of seven strategic mergers over the last two decades, and how we strike the right balance between organic and acquisition-related growth
  • The “power of relationships,” and the importance of maintaining a high degree of cultural connection while running organizations that are increasingly dispersed and distributed
  • Opportunities on the horizon including:
    • The Great Wealth Transfer and the advantage Baird Trust gives Baird in meeting client needs
    • The extraordinary growth of the private market ecosystem and how our Global Investment Banking business is poised to respond
    • The “Golden Age of Macro,” which is driving a thirst for the high-quality macro-economic and government policy research Strategas produces

In addition to John and Jim’s current SIFMA and SIFMA Foundation board service including both having served as SIFMA board chair, Paul Purcell also served on the SIFMA board. Currently more than 100 Baird associates participate in SIFMA committees, taskforces or forums.