Needham Bank and the Bulfinch Group, a Needham-based financial services firm, recently announced a strategic partnership.
Executives at both organizations said it has long been in the works, with this recent announcement making it official.
“I met [former Needham Bank CEO] Jack McGeorge a number of years ago through some volunteer work we both did over at Beth Israel Deaconess in Needham,” said Seth Medalie, president of the Bulfinch Group. “I got to know Jack, and just really admired for years what Needham Bank was doing in our community.”
A few years ago, Medalie said he moved his own banking relationship, and eventually his business banking relationship, over to Needham Bank, simply because he liked the organization.
“They’re a perfect combination of high-tech and high-touch. They just know how to do it,” he said. “I moved my banking over there for no reason other than that I admired what they did and what they stood for in the community.”
The two organizations had occasionally referred clients to each other in the past, but about a year ago, Needham Bank approached the Bulfinch Group to talk about making it official.
“Our model isn’t about how much money you have in the market; our model is about what plan you have for whatever you hope to do later in life – whether it’s to pay for your kids’ education, to retire, whatever it is – everyone should have a plan,” said Eric Morse, a senior vice president at Needham Bank. “What attracted us to the Bulfinch Group is that their whole approach is to create something they refer to as a financial roadmap. That’s going to be different for everyone.”
The Bulfinch Group has more than 150 employees at offices throughout New England, but its main office on Gould Street is little more than a stone’s throw from Needham Bank. Medalie said his firm’s business is about evenly divided between families and individuals and small to medium-sized privately held companies. Educational seminars and client appreciation events are in the works to help raise awareness of the partnership between the two organizations.
Morse said the bank’s alliance with the Bulfinch Group fits neatly into the bank’s emphasis on localization.
“That’s what drives our strategy to look for strategic partnerships with local resources. Bulfinch is maybe two miles from our main office. They’re an outstanding member of this community. They are involved in all sorts of charitable and volunteer activities,” he said. “It’s a very natural partnership for us. We value the same things they value.”
