Jamie Coulter, CEO of Raymond James, at the company's Toronto office. Mr. Coulter, who will depart the company on Sept. 30, spent the majority of his 30-year career working for the Canadian operations of Raymond James.Christopher Katsarov/The Globe and Mail
Jamie Coulter has unexpectedly stepped down as chief executive officer of Raymond James Ltd. RJF-N after a 30-year career at one of Canada’s largest independent capital markets and wealth management operations.
Raymond James spokesperson Samantha Ouimet confirmed Tuesday that Mr. Coulter will depart the company as of Sept. 30.
Former CEO and current non-executive chairman Paul Allison has been appointed interim chief executive – effective immediately – as the company conducts a “thorough search” for Mr. Coulter’s successor, Ms. Ouimet told The Globe and Mail.
Mr. Coulter could not be reached for comment.
Mr. Allison is a well-known leader among the more than 1,800 employees, which includes 519 financial advisers, having served as CEO of Raymond James from 2008 to 2021. Since then, Mr. Allison has also served in several international director roles for Raymond James.
“We are pleased to have Paul’s proven leadership and remarkable industry and firm experience during this transition period,” Ms. Ouimet added. “Raymond James remains confident in the strength of our Canadian leadership team. We’re highly focused on our mission, our advisors, and clients.”
The news of Mr. Coulter’s departure was announced internally on Monday. Paul Reilly, executive chair of U.S. parent investment giant Raymond James Financial Ltd., told employees of the executive changes in a staff memo obtained by The Globe.
“I understand this news may come as a surprise and want to assure you that while leadership changes can be challenging, our priorities, strategic direction and focus on our people remain unchanged,” Mr. Reilly wrote in the memo.
Mr. Coulter spent the majority of his 27-year career working for the Canadian operations of Raymond James. He first stepped into the financial services industry as a rookie investment adviser for one of the largest investment brokerages in Western Canada – Goepel McDermid Inc. – an independent business that Raymond James Financial bought to enter Canada in 2001.
Over the years, Mr. Coulter worked in several executive roles and moved to Toronto in 2000 to augment Raymond James’s capital markets business. In late 2019, he was promoted to the head of wealth management in Canada for the firm.
In January, 2022, he was appointed CEO, replacing Mr. Allison. Just months into his tenure, Mr. Coulter vowed to increase the company assets from $70-billion under management to more than $100-billion by 2027.
Today, Raymond James manages about $95-billion in assets.