Cresset has hired Joe Zidle, a former Blackstone Private Wealth strategist, as Executive Managing Director and Chief Market Strategist, according to the firm's announcement. InvestmentNews reported the move on Oct. 8, describing it as the latest in a string of senior hires at the multi-family office since June.
Zidle most recently ran Zidle Macro Strategy Group, an independent research and investment strategy firm he founded after leaving Blackstone, according to Cresset's announcement. The firm focuses on macroeconomics, public and private markets, asset allocation and portfolio construction.
At Blackstone, Zidle spent nearly eight years as Senior Managing Director and Chief Investment Strategist for Blackstone Private Wealth, according to the announcement as published on Le Lézard. Cresset said he brings more than three decades of experience in investment strategy, asset allocation and global markets.
His earlier career included a stint as Portfolio Strategist at Richard Bernstein Advisors, where, per the announcement, he handled portfolio strategy, asset allocation, investment management and relationships with major wealth management firms and independent RIAs. A Comparably profile also lists him as Head of Investment Strategy for Global Wealth Management at Bank of America Merrill Lynch and Deputy Director of the Research Investment Committee. The same profile says he served as a military intelligence specialist in the U.S. Army Reserve from 1993 to 2001, was named to Crain's New York Business 40 Under Forty list in 2010, and holds a bachelor's degree in economics and history from Emory University.
Cresset was founded in 2017 by Eric Becker and Avy Stein and is headquartered in Chicago, according to its Wikipedia entry. The firm describes itself as an independent, client- and employee-owned multi-family office serving ultra-high-net-worth families, business owners and entrepreneurs. Its website states it is about 80% client- and employee-owned as of April 1, 2026, and reports more than $260 billion in assets under management and advisement as of July 1, 2026.
The hire follows a period of growth for the firm. In August 2025, Cresset announced a strategic combination with Monticello Associates, a deal the firm said brought it to nearly $200 billion in assets, according to its PR Newswire releases. In February 2026, Heather Pelant joined as Managing Director, Wealth Advisor, bringing a $2 billion advisory team to its San Francisco office, per another Cresset release.
The sources do not give Zidle's start date, his reporting line or compensation terms, and they do not detail the other senior hires InvestmentNews referred to.