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JNBA Adds to Company Name to Reflect Advocacy-First Focus

It’s not every day that a 40-year-old business undergoes a change to its name, but that’s exactly what a Twin Cities wealth management firm is doing this month. As it celebrates four decades as a well-respected fixture in Minnesota’s business community and as a national leader in the financial services industry, JNBA Financial Advisors will now be known as JNBA Financial Advocates.

With just a six-letter change, JNBA’s name and identity now reflect an approach that it has unwaveringly embraced since its inception in 1978. The move reinforces the groundbreaking advocacy-first philosophy started by CEO and Chairman Richard Brown’s mother, Judi, when she founded the firm 40 years ago this year.

The now-retired Judi Brown was one of the first advisors in the country to do away with commission-based sales and act as a fiduciary for her clients, which means she was legally obligated to always act in their best interests. That philosophy is stronger than ever, and JNBA continues to be recognized for its approach: Last month, Barron’s named JNBA CEO Richard S. Brown Minnesota’s top financial advisor. Also, for the ninth consecutive year, the independent Registered Investment Advisor (RIA) has been named to Barron’s list of the 1,200 top advisors in the country.

“Beyond comprehensive financial planning and an extremely disciplined approach to asset management, helping clients work through life’s most important decisions is what we do best. Sometimes those decisions involve money, but often times they don’t. Not all advisors want to go deeper with their clients, but it’s who we are. When it comes to our clients, we are all in. Everyone deserves to have a trusted partner sitting on their side of the table, even when they’re not in the same room, that’s what advocacy is all about,” says JNBA President Kim Brown. “Adding ‘advocates’ to our name really represents who we’ve been all along. It’s the culmination of a 40-year journey that is only gathering momentum; we’re more excited than ever about what’s on the horizon.”

Under Richard and Kim Brown’s leadership, the firm has enhanced service levels and streamlined processes, growing the business to more than 850 clients and over $950 million in assets under management, while maintaining a client retention rate of over 97 percent since tracking began in 2001. JNBA’s dedication to being an advocate for its clients, employees and community has fueled the firm’s continued growth, including its expansion to Duluth, Minn., in 2010. JNBA’s fiercely independent status allows the firm to customize investment strategies to individual client goals, which are implemented by an experienced team and disciplined process, including a review of each portfolio every 10 business days.

In addition to working with individual clients, JNBA puts its advocacy-first approach into action with JNBA’s specialized Family Office Advisory Team. JNBA works with high-net-worth, high-profile families, including businesspeople and professional athletes, to ensure every aspect of a client’s financial well-being – from wealth management to philanthropy to household administration to reputation management – is understood and managed effectively. That deep commitment is one of the key ways its team demonstrates how it goes far beyond portfolio management.

Better Business Bureau of Minnesota and North Dakota named JNBA a winner of its 2015 BBB Torch Awards for Ethics, and the firm was named a finalist in the 2016 BBB International Torch Awards for Ethics. In addition, for three consecutive years, the Financial Times named JNBA to its 300 Top Registered Investment Advisers (RIA) list, which recognizes top independent RIA firms from across the U.S. JNBA was also named a Barron’s Top 100 Independent Advisor in 2015, 2016 and 2017.*

ABOUT JNBA
Minneapolis-based JNBA Financial Advocates is an independent fee-only wealth management firm driven to deliver a higher standard of comprehensive planning, asset management, and life enrichment by providing customized financial strategies with an advocacy-first approach. As a four-decade old firm, its advisory structure leverages a team approach, reviewing client portfolios every 10 business days and driving the planning process, including strategy development and implementation with estate, tax, and risk professionals as appropriate. For more information, visit www.jnba.com.

*As seen in the 6/16/16, 6/18/15 and 6/26/14 issues of the Financial Times and in the 2/22/10, 2/21/11, 2/20/12, 2/18/13, 2/24/14, 2/23/15, 8/24/15, 3/7/16, 8/29/16, 3/6/17, 9/18/17 and 3/10/18 issues of Barron's. As recognized by the Better Business Bureau of Minnesota and North Dakota for 2015 and the Better Business Bureau International for 2016. Rankings and/or recognition by unaffiliated rating services and/or publications should not be construed by a client or prospective client as a guarantee that he/she will experience a certain level of results if JNBA Financial Advisors, Inc. is engaged, or continues to be engaged, to provide investment advisory services, nor should it be construed as a current or past endorsement of JNBA Financial Advisors, Inc. by any of its clients. Rankings published by magazines. and others, generally base their selections exclusively on information prepared and/or submitted by the recognized advisor. Rankings are generally limited to participating advisors. Barron's is a trademark of Dow Jones & Company, Inc. All rights reserved.

The 2014/2015/2016 Financial Times 300 Top Registered Investment Advisors is an independent listing produced by the Financial Times. The FT 300 is based on data gathered from RIA firms, regulatory disclosures, and the FTs research. As identified by the FT, the listing reflected each practice's performance in six primary areas, including assets under management, asset growth, compliance record, years in existence, credentials and accessibility. Neither the RIA firms nor their employees pay a fee to The Financial Times in exchange for inclusion in the FT 300.

JNBA’s Chief Compliance Officer remains available to address any questions regarding rankings and/or recognitions, including providing the criteria used for any referenced ranking.

Contacts:

For JNBA Financial Advocates
Brian Bellmont, 612-255-1113
Bellmont Partners
brian@bellmontpartners.com

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