Bank of America has named John Thiel as head of Merrill Lynch’s US wealth management business, taking over from Lyle LaMothe, media reports said.

Thiel has for several years run Merrill's private banking and investment group, a business that caters to families with $10 million or more to invest.

He will continue to run that business along with the wealth management unit, which puts him in charge of Merrill's "Thundering Herd" of 15,695 brokers, reports said. 

Merrill Lynch later confirmed the reports to this publication. A spokesperson said the appointment is effective as of May 1. The appointment is a "a broad expansion of his role as head of the Merrill Lynch Private Banking and Investment Group."

"John is one of our most accomplished senior managers and I know he will build on his successes to impact our wealth management business more broadly," she wrote.

Thiel began his career as a KPMG Peat Marwick accountant. After joining Merrill in 1989 as a Tampa, Florida, broker, he rose through the ranks and by 1995 became part of Merrill's advisory division leadership team. He also served as regional director near Chicago and joined Merrill's high net worth private banking business in 2000, a unit that now manages $160 billion in client assets.