Barclays' Wealth & Investment Management division has launched a Beverly Hills office as part of an investment plan for growth in the US.

“We remain focused on strengthening our wealth management offering in the Americas,” said Mitch Cox, head of wealth management, Americas, adding that growth in Southern California was a priority.

Brian Sears, managing director and regional manager for Los Angeles, will manage the new office. He will be joined by Watt Webb and Warren Cohn, who recently joined Barclays, and Scott Madison and Jonathan Bates, who are relocating from the bank’s New York and Century City, CA, offices respectively.

The new office is located 245 North Beverly Drive.

“Los Angeles County has the second largest population of ultra high net worth individuals in the US and we are uniquely positioned to serve their distinct needs through our offices in Century City and Beverly Hills,” said Sears.

According to the Capgemini US Metro Wealth Index for 2012, the top five metro areas in terms of wealthy resident numbers are: New York, Los Angeles, Chicago, Washington DC and San Francisco. New York had over 727,100 high net worth individuals among its populace last year, having experienced 1 per cent growth, while Los Angeles came in at around 255,600, a drop of 0.3 per cent.