Ollis/Akers/Arney exec takes CEO post at Missouri Trust

Richard Russell left Ollis/Akers/Arney to join Missouri Trust & Investment Co.

Tim Parrish did not respond to inquiries about his position with the company.

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Last edited 2:46 p.m., April 17, 2018

A legally embattled Tim Parrish appears to be changing his role as CEO of Missouri Trust & Investment Co.

Former Ollis/Akers/Arney President and General Counsel Richard Russell has taken the chief executive spot with Missouri Trust, having left his former post on March 29, officials with both companies confirmed to Springfield Business Journal.

Russell and Parrish, who still appears to be employed by Missouri Trust, did not respond to messages left for each at the Missouri Trust office.

But Richard Ollis, CEO of Ollis/Akers/Arney, said Russell officially departed his firm on March 29.

“We’re excited for Richard,” Ollis said. “It’s obviously a big move.”

As part of an ongoing case, Parrish was court ordered in March to pay $4,000 in compensation and $10,090 in attorney fees and costs incurred by his former employer, Simmons First National Corp. That order and judgment was filed March 12 in Greene County Circuit Court.

An initial petition alleged Parrish wrongly began soliciting Simmons’ customers and employees on company time, en route to helping launch Missouri Trust. The petition also claimed he breached fiduciary duties with Simmons by failing to avoid conflicts of interest and damaging the company with his behavior.

Parrish worked with Simmons as a senior vice president and trust development officer through March 7, 2017. He previously worked for nearly 18 years as senior vice president of Trust Company of the Ozarks, which Simmons purchased in 2015.

A permanent injunction issued June 12, 2017, officially barred him from soliciting Simmons’ clients and hiring personnel from its wealth management division.

Missouri Trust received its state charter in July 2017, with Parrish serving as CEO.

Missouri Trust board member Teresa Hall, a real estate agent with Century 21 Integrity Group, said the board, which includes Parrish, has not yet been updated on the change. Hall said the board’s next meeting is set for April 19, when an update likely would be provided.

Hall indicated Parrish remains with the company but was unaware of his position.

A company statement released April 6 to Springfield Business Journal noted that Russell officially assumed the CEO position on April 3. Parrish, according to the statement, now serves as president and director of the company.

Missouri Trust launched with an employee list that included David Richards, a former senior portfolio manager at Simmons Bank, and Jenifer Martin, an operations consultant who formerly was employed at Trust Company of the Ozarks, according to past Springfield Business Journal reporting. Richards and Martin are no longer with the company, according to email correspondence with them.

Another initial employee, Sharon Jobe, previously worked at Trust Company of the Ozarks.

A recent call report filed with the Missouri Division of Finance shows that, as of Dec. 31, 2017, Missouri Trust had $2.6 million in assets and an $2.6 million in liabilities and equity capital. Equity capital liabilities made up $2.2 million of the total. Under fiduciary and related services, Missouri Trust reported $54.7 million in managed assets via 109 accounts by the end of 2017.

The company also posted a calendar year-to-date net loss of $783,000 as of Dec. 31, according to the Division of Finance report.

Typical client accounts at Missouri Trust have minimum values of $250,000, according to SBJ reporting.

At Ollis/Akers/Arney, Russell had been taking on new management duties for the insurance firm when he decided to move companies. Ollis said Russell’s former duties likely will be filled by an outside legal consultant, though the firm could groom an in-house successor.