Northern Trust has named W Brett Rees as head of wealth management for the mid-Atlantic region.

He succeeds Joanie Stringer, who is relocating to Miami, FL, to serve as a senior wealth strategist focused on business development.

Rees will be based in Washington, DC, with oversight responsibilities for the firm’s business spanning Virginia, Maryland, Pennsylvania and Delaware. He will lead a team of around 30 financial services professionals including portfolio managers, bankers, trust advisors and wealth strategists.

Meanwhile, Rees will also head up Northern Trust’s foundation and institutional advisory services on the East Coast. This unit provides investment services to small- and medium-sized foundations and non-profit organizations. 

He will report to Dave Blowers, executive vice president and head of the eastern region.  

Rees spent the past six years at Northern Trust as national sales director for wealth management and has worked at the firm for 16 years overall. Before joining Northern Trust, he held a variety of wealth management and commercial banking positions at Bank of America, Bank of Boston and Wachovia.

Northern Trust has $197.7 billion in assets under management, as at end-December 2012. The firm has over 70 wealth management offices in the US and abroad.