Baird, the US wealth management, capital markets, private equity and asset management firm, has announced a raft of new hires, along with the launch of a new office, as part of its continued mid-Atlantic expansion.

Baird has launched operations in Easton, Maryland with a team of seven, including a four-strong team known as the Satchell group, which is comprised of vice presidents Steve Satchell and Jack Anthony, and financial advisors Cheryl Palumbo and Darin Roser.

The firm has also added five new financial advisors to its Baltimore, Maryland office which opened in February: senior vice presidents Jim Hodges and Bryce Legg, vice presidents Rebecca Ross and Joseph McCann, and SueAnn Griffin, financial advisor. Mr Hodges has also assumed the role of branch manager.

Baird has markedly stepped up its recruitment this year, hiring 62 advisors since the beginning of 2009 in comparison to 59 appointments made in the whole of 2008. Having opened new offices in Minnetonka, Minneapolis; Philadelphia, Pennsylvania and Sacramento, California, the firm’s private wealth management business also plans to launch in San Francisco and various other east and west coast locations.

Baird’s US network also includes two Washington DC offices, a private wealth management operation in Reston, Virginia and an equity research office in McLean, Virginia. Baird is also present in Europe and Asia through its subsidiaries.

In the US, Baird has 600 financial advisors serving high net worth individuals and families; Baird Financial Advisors managed and oversaw more than $44 billion in client assets, as at 31 December 2008.