Citizens Securities

Citizens Securities, Inc. is a wholly owned subsidiary of Citizens Financial Group, the $220-billion regional bank holding company headquartered in Providence, Rhode Island. The entity functions as the registered broker-dealer and investment advisor through which the bank delivers securities execution, advisory programs, and insurance products. It operates alongside Clarfeld Financial Advisors — acquired in 2019 — which handles the bank's private wealth and multi-family office services for high-net-worth clients.

No. Citizens Securities acts as a product distributor and advisory intermediary, not as an asset manager with proprietary fund offerings. Client portfolios are constructed using third-party mutual funds, ETFs, model portfolios, and separately managed accounts from external managers. Custody and clearing are handled by National Financial Services, a Fidelity Investments subsidiary, reflecting the firm's introducing broker-dealer model.

The firm sources clients almost exclusively through the Citizens Bank branch network and the broader banking relationships of Citizens Financial Group. Financial advisors embedded in bank branches offer investment and advisory services to existing deposit and lending customers, making the model one of internal conversion rather than external marketing. This captive distribution channel is the entity's primary structural advantage.

Citizens Securities provides retail brokerage accounts, fee-based advisory programs, retirement planning, and insurance products. Its advisory model centers on model-based portfolio solutions where client assets are allocated across pre-built strategies from third-party asset managers. The firm does not operate direct private equity, venture capital, or hedge fund allocation platforms — its product shelf remains focused on traditional liquid securities and packaged retail products.

The exact leadership of Citizens Securities as a distinct subsidiary is not publicly itemized under a dedicated CEO or President title in standalone disclosures. The entity falls under Citizens Wealth Management, which is a division of Citizens Financial Group. Executive leadership for Citizens overall includes Chairman and CEO Bruce Van Saun (public record). Key wealth management leadership resides at the parent-bank level and is not broken out for the broker-dealer entity specifically.