People Moves

Merrill Lynch Appoints For New UHNW Client Team

Eliane Chavagnon Reporter 22 March 2013

Merrill Lynch Appoints For New UHNW Client Team

Bank of America has appointed Ed Riley and Jonathan Miller to head up a new ultra high net worth client team, in a move reinforcing Merrill Lynch’s focus on clients with over $10 million in investible assets, it said.

Bank of America has appointed Ed Riley and Jonathan Miller to head up a new ultra high net worth client team, in a move reinforcing Merrill Lynch’s focus on clients with over $10 million in investible assets, it said.

Riley and Miller have been named as head of platforms and originations, and head of coverage, respectively. Riley, who was previously in charge of equity risk management within the global wealth and retirement solutions unit, will be responsible for creating investment products, whilst Miller - who joined in October - delivers them to financial advisors and clients. They are based in New York.

In an interview with Bloomberg, Liam O’Neil, who leads BofA's markets group, highlighted that about a third of assets managed by Merrill Lynch are from UHNW clients. 

“They have different needs in terms of the way their wealth is structured,” he was quoted as saying. “We might do something on a customized basis for them because they have a philanthropic strategy, or want a particular way to structure their legacy.”

Meanwhile, Merrill Lynch has named Mary Ann Bartels - formerly head of technical and markets analysis within BofA’s global markets research division - as chief investment officer of portfolio strategies.

Bartels replaces Rick Galiardo, who left last month following the departure of Lisa Shalett, CIO for all of Merrill’s wealth management brokerage force. Shalett has not yet been replaced.

In her new role, Bartels will oversee portfolio strategies, exchange-traded fund strategies, publications and marketing, and communications for current and new product launches.

As reported by this publication on Wednesday, it is understood that Raphael Zagury, who recently left Merrill, is set to join Deutsche Bank as head of key client partners and wealth investment advisory for Latin America – a new position at the bank.  

He joins Deutsche in three months and will be based at the bank’s New York office.

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