Charles William Brady: Founder of Invesco
By: Alumni Publications | Categories: In Memoriam
In 1964, Brady interviewed with Mills B. Lane, Jr., the Chairman of Citizens & Southern National Bank (C&S), and was hired on the spot. Brady believed that it was possible to build an investment management company in the Southeast, as he saw enormous opportunity to provide investment management services from independent money managers rather than bank trust departments. He persuaded Lane, a great mentor of his, to set up an SEC-registered investment advisory division. So began C&S Investment Counseling, the first bank-owned investment management firm in the United States.
Brady acquired the business from C&S, and in January 1979, he and eight other former C&S investment professionals established Invesco Inc., with $400 million of assets from U.S. institutional clients outside the Southeast. Widely regarded as a “people person,” Brady exuded warmth and confidence and was known for his support of a collegial culture at Invesco and at each firm it acquired.
Throughout his life, Brady was a quiet philanthropist and a recipient of many prestigious awards. Chief among them, he donated the Invesco Chair in International Finance at Georgia Tech‘s College of Management. In 2004, he was entered into Georgia Tech‘s College of Management Hall of Fame. He also received the prestigious Georgia Tech Alumni Distinguished Service Award.
Brady served as a member of the Board of Councilors for The Carter Center, as a trustee emeritus of the Georgia Tech Foundation, as a member of the advisory board for the College of Management, and as chairman emeritus of the Board of The National Bureau of Asian Research.
