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Waddell & Reed Financial Announces Executive Team Changes

Thomas Butch has stepped down as executive vice president and chief marketing officer of Waddell & Reed Financial Inc. (NYSE: WDR) and as president of its subsidiaries Waddell & Reed Inc. and Ivy Distributors Inc. He was with the company for 18 years.

In conjunction with this transition, the company announced several changes to its executive team.

Shawn Mihal will become president of Waddell & Reed Inc, a registered broker-dealer subsidiary that offers securities and insurance products and investment advisory services through financial advisors. Mihal, who currently serves as chief operating officer, will be responsible for all aspects of the company’s broker-dealer operations.

Brent Bloss, who has served as chief financial officer of the company since March 2014, was promoted to chief operating officer of Waddell & Reed Financial. Bloss will continue to serve as CFO through the filing of the company’s annual report at the end of the year. In his new role, he will be responsible for the day-to-day management of the company’s operations and the delivery of strategic initiatives.

The board intends to appoint Benjamin Clouse, who has served as the company’s chief accounting officer since February 2017, as CFO to succeed Bloss in 2018. Clouse is a CPA with 21 years of finance and accounting experience, formerly serving as CFO of Executive AirShare Corporation and in various leadership positions on the finance team at H&R Block.

Nikki Newton will become president of Ivy Distributors Inc, a subsidiary that serves as the largest distributor of the Ivy Funds. Newton, who has 25 years of industry experience and has been with the company since January 1998, currently serves as head of global relationship management for IDI, which includes national accounts and consultant relationships, as well as institutional sales. In his new role, Newton will lead wholesale and institutional distribution, and sales and product development, as well as manage strategic relationships.

Waddell & Reed, Inc., founded in 1937, is one of the oldest mutual fund complexes in the United States. Through its subsidiaries, Waddell & Reed Financial, Inc. provides investment management and financial planning services to clients in the United States and internationally.

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