Investor services group IQ-EQ has appointed Steve Sokić as the firm’s new Group Head of Private Wealth.
Sokić will also sit on both the Group Management Board and Business Executive Committee. His appointment is effective immediately.
Sokić joins IQ-EQ from a FTSE 250 alternative asset and corporate administration services provider, where he was Managing Director of its Corporate and Private Client segment and held broader executive stewardship roles, including as a key member of its Executive Committee. Prior to that, he spent nearly 14 years in the Caribbean and Jersey with the wealth management arm of a leading multinational bank, where he rose through the ranks to take up the role of Global Head of UHNW Trust/Fiduciary and was a key member of its Global Trust Advisory Board, overseeing the bank’s global trust/fiduciary businesses. A Canadian native, Sokić began his career in Toronto and gained significant experience over a decade as a trusted tax advisor with one of the ‘Big 4’ accounting firms, with a focus on global UHNW families’ cross-border connections with Canada and the USA.
Sokić comes to us with a truly global perspective, both in terms of where he has worked and the worldwide nature of his clients and their needs over the years (including the Americas, Europe, Middle East and Asia), but also his own personal background being a tri-national of Canada, Britain and Croatia. He is a graduate of Toronto’s York University and has since qualified as a Certified Financial Planner (CFP), Trust and Estate Practitioner (TEP), Certified Management Accountant (CMA) and Chartered Professional Accountant (CPA). He has also completed the Leading Professional Service Firms programme with Harvard Business School. Finally, Steve is also a well-known and eminent speaker on various trust/fiduciary, governance, succession, tax and related wealth topics.
Sokić will lead IQ-EQ’s Private Wealth business worldwide, a core segment within IQ-EQ, adding value and delivering growth for the service line through the development and implementation of global and regional strategies whilst also adding his unique perspective to the stewardship of the Group via its management and executive committees.
“I am delighted to join IQ-EQ at such an exciting and pivotal time, particularly as it moves forward under a unique and bold new brand identity,” says Sokić. “There has been a lot of change in the global wealth and fund administration industry over the years and IQ-EQ’s vision and path reconciles very nicely with my own view of the current state and future of our industry. Furthermore, its core ethos, which centres on harnessing the combined strength of its people’s technical and empathetic intelligence, combined with operational precision and worldwide presence, is truly unique in the market and what clients and their advisors search for. I genuinely look forward to bringing together my own experience with the client service power already within IQ-EQ.”
Mark Pesco, IQ-EQ’s Group Chief Executive Officer, adds: “I am hugely excited about the future of IQ-EQ – especially with someone of Steve’s calibre, global perspective and industry experience leading our Private Wealth business. Under his expert leadership we are extremely well positioned to take advantage of the global market opportunities that lie ahead. It is a pleasure to welcome Steve to the team.”
