Alerus Financial Buys
Minneapolis-based Stanton Trust
Assets Under Management Grow to $5.6 Billion

Alerus Financial, a $700 million financial services company with offices in the Twin Cities, is proud to announce the acquisition of Stanton Trust Company, a subsidiary of Minneapolis-based Stanton Holdings Inc. The venture expands Alerus Financial's wealth management division, adding $2.1 billion in assets under management and 390 clients in and around the Twin Cities.

The sale allows Stanton Holdings, through its subsidiaries Stanton Group Inc. and Stanton Investment Services Inc., to focus on its core competencies in the areas of compensation, health and welfare, retirement and risk management, according to Jeff Nevin, chief executive officer for Stanton.

"We welcomed a proposal from Alerus Financial because our cultures are so similar," says Nevin. "Both companies are committed to quality and are on the leading edge of pension and employee benefit plans administration—without losing sight of the importance of personalized service and creative solutions to clients' problems. We're confident Alerus will bring enormous value to our clients."

"Stanton Trust provides a variety of fiduciary, investment and custody services, with a primary focus on retirement plan administration," says John Flesch, director of Wealth Management–Alerus Financial. "Their expertise and reputation in the Twin Cities will be invaluable to us as we expand our market presence in and around Minneapolis."

"The acquisition of Stanton Trust provides a number of benefits to Alerus," says Randy Newman, president and CEO–Alerus Financial. "In addition to expanding our presence in the Twin Cities, it helps us offer Alerus products and services to a new and growing client base while providing an additional source of retirement plan administration revenue."

Since its 2003 purchase of St. Paul-based Pension Solutions—a retirement plan administration company—Alerus has had a presence in the Twin Cities as Alerus Retirement Solutions. Within three years, Alerus has grown the combined trust assets under management from $1.4 billion to $3.5 billion. The purchase of Stanton Trust increases trust assets under management at Alerus to $5.6 billion.

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