A round-up of executive wealth management moves in the Americas during the month of October 2013.

Citi appointed Anil Wadhwani as head of consumer banking in Europe, the Middle East and Africa, replacing Marc Luet who was recently appointed cluster head for Central and Eastern Europe and Citi country officer for Russia. The area of responsibility at Citi includes wealth management (not including the private bank, however, which caters to ultra high net worth clients). Wadhwani previously served as the head of Citi’s cards and unsecured loans business for Asia and the head of its consumer banking business in South East Asia.

California-based PIMCO, an international investment management firm, hired Virginie Maisonneuve as managing director, global head of equities and portfolio manager. Maisonneuve was previously head of global and international equities at Schroders. In her new role, Maisonneuve is involved in the development and implementation of new equity and asset allocation strategies.

UBS Private Wealth Management added The Binder, Chiate, Oratz & Brown Team in Los Angeles, CA, from Merrill Lynch’s private banking investment group. Binder, Chiate and Oratz all spent the last 13 years as managing directors within the private banking and investment groups at Merrill Lynch. Prior to Merrill, Binder was at Goldman Sachs, where he was a vice president in the private client services division. Chiate spent eight years at Goldman Sachs, where he served as a vice president in the private client services division. Prior to Merrill, Oratz served at Goldman Sachs as a vice president in the private client services division. Prior to joining UBS, Brown spent ten years in the private banking and investment group at Merrill Lynch.

A $129 million team operating as The Borowiak/Sotland Wealth Management Group joined Wells Fargo Advisors’ private client group in Buffalo, NY. The team is comprised of financial advisors and private investment managers Matthew Sotland and Donald Borowiak, who joined from UBS and have 57 years of combined experience in the industry.

Florida-headquartered Gibraltar Private Bank & Trust hired Douglas Sawyer as senior vice president and market executive in Miami, FL. Sawyer is responsible for administration and growth of the market's client portfolio as well as development of the bank's fiduciary account area. Sawyer joined Gibraltar from his role as president at Nason Consulting, a bank consulting company that provides strategic, operational, regulatory, management, staff and market guidance to community banks.

Dallas, TX-based 1^st Global, a research and consulting partner to CPA and wealth management firms, appointed Matt McBride as its new chief information officer.

McBride joined 1st Global from ADT Security Services, a division of Tyco International, where he served as solution delivery director since 2011, responsible for all technology delivery such as architecture, application, mobility and data solutions for a $12 billion enterprise. In his new role as CIO, McBride oversees the company's efforts to provide the tools, software and technology necessary to run a wealth management business.

Illinois-based Mesirow Financial hired Stephanie Feldman as a vice president and wealth specialist, focused on the areas of estate and trust. Based in Chicago and Highland Park, IL, Feldman operates as part of The Gordon Wealth Management Group, which works with individuals, families, business owners, non-profits and foundations. Feldman has 14 years of experience in the investment industry, the last eight of which she spent as a senior trust officer at US Trust Bank.

A Portland, OR-based team - comprised of senior advisor Joseph Opsahl and advisor Chris Hatfield - left Merrill Lynch’s private client group to join TRUE Private Wealth Advisors. Opsahl has nearly 30 years of experience in the financial industry and spent the last four years with Merrill Lynch in Portland. Opsahl provides wealth management, investment consulting and financial planning services to high net worth families, corporations, retirement plans and foundations. Hatfield also joined TRUE from Merrill Lynch’s Portland office.

US Bank Wealth Management promoted Mike Ott to president of the Private Client Reserve, the firm's high net worth business. Ott, who previously served as central region president and Twin Cities market leader for the PCR, is a member of US Bank’s Wealth Management Executive Committee. Ott joined Minneapolis-based US Bank in 2009 as head of investments for the PCR in Twin Cities.

Florida-based Chilton Trust Company, a trust company and wealth management firm, bolstered its wealth management business with three senior hires.

The hires include Harry Grand, senior vice president and head of client relations; David Phelps Hamar, senior vice president and head of wealth advisory services; and Benjamin Brewster, senior client relations advisor. Grand oversees all relationship management activities for clients and is a member of the External Managers Investment Committee. Before joining Chilton Trust, he was a senior vice president and relationship manager at Lazard Wealth Management, responsible for investment policy formation, asset allocation and client relationship management.

Hamar is in charge of wealth advisory services and for coordinating family office services. He is latterly of Silvercrest Asset Management, where he held a range of roles including as a managing director; member of the management committee; portfolio manager; co-chairman of family office services; and director of global tax services. Lastly, Brewster has been named senior client relations advisor. He has over 25 years of industry experience, having previously advised family office clients as managing director at Silvercrest Asset Management.

BMO Global Asset Management bolstered its US investment team with the addition of Pete Papageorgakis and Casey Hatch in Chicago, IL. Papageorgakis joined as managing director, head of product development and management, while Hatch now serves as associate, product development and management.  Papageorgakis oversees the creation and implementation of investment strategies. Prior to joining BMO Global Asset Management, he worked in product development and strategy roles for a number of financial services providers. Hatch conducts industry and competitor research for the creation and implementation of investment strategies. Most recently, Hatch worked in product development, research and analysis.

OppenheinerFunds made three senior hires in New York as the firm strengthens its marketing force. Joining from BlackRock as senior vice president of strategy and market planning is Peter Mintzberg, who spent seven years at his former firm in a range of roles including head of marketing and head of strategy, Latin America and Iberia. Stephen Tisdalle joined as senior vice president of brand marketing from Ogilvy & Mather, where he was a managing director in charge of marketing services across the agency. Lastly, Rupa Athreya joined OppenheimerFunds as head of product development, having latterly served as head of strategy for Chase Wealth Management.

US Bank Wealth Management appointed Leela Rao as director of business strategy for the Private Client Reserve, which serves high net worth individuals, families and foundations. Rao designs and implements business strategies that will contribute to client acquisition, client retention and business growth, US Bank said. Rao was formerly senior vice president and practice leader for Think2Perform, an organizational management and business consulting firm.

James Quigley, chief executive emeritus and a retired partner of Deloitte, was elected to Wells Fargo’s board of directors. Quigley serves on the board’s audit and examination committee. He served as CEO of Deloitte Touche Tohmatsu (the Deloitte global network) from 2007 until 2011. After serving as CEO of DTTL and Deloitte, Quigley retired as a senior partner with the latter in June 2012..  

Maryland-headquartered Sandy Spring Break appointed three new team members to the Sandy Spring Trust wealth management team, which serves high net worth and ultra high net worth clients. The team includes Andrew Seested, private wealth advisor; Jennifer Cumming, senior investment advisor; and Boris Wessely, senior investment advisor. Prior to joining Sandy Spring Trust, Seested was a vice president and senior relationship manager, while Cumming has experience as a vice president and senior investment advisor. Wessely was formerly a vice president and senior investment advisors.

UBS recruited The Reinhold Group in Buffalo, NY, from Morgan Stanley.

The group is comprised of John Reinhold, who has $120 million in assets under management, and Derek Reinhold, with $24 million. Derek Reinhold began his career as a sales liaison with Morgan Stanley’s consulting group and its predecessor firm in Wilmington, DE, in September 2005. A year later he was promoted to regional consulting group technical analyst in Seattle, WA, and then onto Los Angeles, CA, in the divisional office in August 2007.

HNW, Inc, a US marketing and technology firm specializing in the financial services sector, appointed James McLaine as group creative director. McLaine is responsible for HNW’s creative services group, and as such is in charge of content strategy; editorial and marketing communications services; user experience; and graphic design. McLaine has over 18 years of experience working with firms - such as American Express, BNY Mellon, Citigroup and Credit Suisse – in the area of creative services.

Barclays appointed Elyssa Kupferberg as a director and investment representative within the firm’s wealth and investment management division, based in Palm Beach, FL. Kupferberg - latterly of BNY Mellon - is charged with providing Barclays’ global wealth management programs and alternative investment strategies to high net worth individuals, foundations, corporations and non-profit organizations. She spent 14 years at her predecessor firm, BNY Mellon, most recently as the senior sales director and senior vice president.

Long-time financial advisor Mark Orgel launched Orgel Wealth Management, an employee-owned, independent investment advisory firm based in Altoona, WI.

The new firm serves individual investors, trusts, foundations, retirement plans and corporations. Orgel previously worked at RBC Capital Markets.

Atlantic Trust, the private wealth management division of Invesco, appointed Elizabeth Connelly as a vice president and wealth strategist in Boston, MA.

Connelly joined Atlantic Trust from the trusts and estates department of Rackemann, Sawyer & Brewster, where she focused on estate planning, estate administration, trust administration and tax work matters.

Morgan Stanley Wealth Management recruited two financial advisory teams in Oklahoma and Kentucky from Edward Jones and UBS respectively. Ted Bowling and Aaron Bowling joined Morgan Stanley’s Oklahoma City, OK, office from Edward Jones. Meanwhile, Robert Schneider joined the firm’s Louisville, KY, office from UBS. Schneider is joined by his partner, Paige Abner-Peden, along with group administrator, Stephanie Valsted, and senior registered associate Anne Cheaney.

RBC Wealth Management hired Rob Spawn as senior managing director of the firm’s San Francisco, CA, complex. Spawn joined RBC Wealth Management from UBS, where he expanded the firm’s presence in Las Vegas; led the Nevada-Utah and Houston complexes, and, most recently, served as associate complex director for Arizona/New Mexico. In his new role at RBC, Spawn oversees around 70 financial advisors and 125 employees across San Francisco; San Jose; Fresno; Monterey; El Dorado Hills; Walnut Creek; Santa Rosa; and Oakland.

New York-headquartered Goldman Sachs said that Michael Evans, vice chairman and global head of growth markets, decided to retire at the end of the year after more than 20 years at the firm. He became a senior director upon his retirement, the firm said in a statement. In 2003, Evans became global co-head of the securities division, where he was responsible for investors and companies globally.

Wells Fargo Advisors Financial Network, the independent brokerage arm of Wells Fargo, named Rick Calhoun as managing director of the firm’s innovation and growth team. Calhoun represents the independent brokerage and its practices as regards corporate strategies. He focuses on driving growth and developing practice management strategies across the business. Calhoun joined Wells Fargo Advisors Financial Network in 2008 and was most recently the northeast regional director for the branch development group.

Wilmington Trust bolstered its wealth advisory team in Florida with the addition of Michael Engelbrecht and Michele Vogel as senior private client advisors, and Katrina Lee as senior investment advisor. Engelbrecht, a managing director and senior private client advisor, is responsible for providing wealth management advice to high net worth individuals, families, business owners and entrepreneurs. He has previously served as a managing director with Deutsche Bank Securities. Meanwhile, Vogel provides wealth management advice to HNW individuals, families, business owners and entrepreneurs, based in Palm Beach. Vogel served as vice president at PNC Wealth Management in Palm Beach County, and was a senior vice president and trust officer at Northern Trust prior to that. Lee develops investment portfolios for HNW clients and foundations. She was formerly executive director of Barnstar Funds.

Rothstein Kass promoted five high-profile team members including new principals Miri Forster, Sabrina Ho, Peter Kehrli and Jay Shepulski, and senior director Kevin Sasz. Forster has nearly 20 years of IRS practice, procedure and controversy experience. Shepulski provides audit, accounting and business advisory services to domestic and international clients, in both publicly-traded and privately-held sectors.. 

Ho provides tax compliance and consulting services to high net worth individuals and family offices, while Kehrli specializes in audit and tax services for domestic and offshore alternative investment vehicles. Sasz, a senior director, oversees tax issues and consults on trading strategies.

Citi Private Bank made two senior ultra high net worth hires in Palm Beach, FL.

Phillip Edwards was named a director and UHNW banker while Adam Gillam joined as a vice president and UHNW private banker. Edwards most recently worked at JP Morgan Private Bank and Genspring Family Offices in Palm Beach Gardens, FL.

Gillam joined Citi from Wells Fargo in Palm Beach, where he was latterly a vice president and senior private banker responsible for advising high net worth families on all aspects of wealth management.

Rinehart Wealth Management recruited three Charlotte, NC-based financial executives for its newly-formed advisory board. G Kennedy Thompson, Charles Conner and Cindy Wolfe work alongside Rinehart president and chief investment officer, Daniele Donahoe, and founder and CEO, Mary Rinehart.

The new board helps direct the firm on future growth and development goals, including strategic planning and process improvement. Thompson is a principal at New York-based Aquiline Capital Partners, having joined the private equity firm in 2009. Conner, meanwhile, is one of three co-founders of investment banking firm Bowles Hollowell Conner, which was bought by First Union.

Wolfe has 26 years of experience in the banking industry and serves as metro Charlotte market president for Bank of the Ozarks.

The PrivateBank, part of Private Bancorp, appointed Rose Panico-Marino as managing director of private wealth in Chicago, IL, with a focus on retirement plan solutions. Panico-Marino joined The PrivateBank from Verisight, where she was managing director and part of a leadership team focused on devising retirement plans for clients.

Raymond James recruited the firm Provenance Wealth Advisors - consisting of 10 advisors and 14 registered associates - in Fort Lauderdale, FL. The team was led by owners Eric Zeitlin, Todd Moll, Lee Hediger and Scott Montgomery. They joined Raymond James from Walnut Street Securities, where they managed more than $1 billion in client assets

BNY Mellon, made a string of hires in recent months, and appointed Heneg Parthenay as chief operating officer of BNY Mellon Asset Management International, based in London. In his new role, Parthenay is responsible for assisting in the management of BNY Mellon AM International, with a focus on developing and implementing strategy for the insurance channel. Parthenay spent the last eight years at Aviva, latterly on the executive team of their global asset management arm, Aviva Investors.

SCBT Wealth Management, part of First Financial Holdings, appointed David Kirkpatrick as senior vice president and portfolio manager in its wealth management group. Kirkpatrick, with more than ten years’ experience in the investment management industry, previously spent six years with a southeastern regional bank, where he served as a vice president and portfolio manager in the South Carolina market. In his new role, Kirkpatrick focuses primarily on portfolio management for the South Carolina markets of SCBT and First Federal.

New York-based Lebenthal Holdings, a woman-owned boutique investment bank, launched Lebenthal Wealth Advisors, a private wealth advisory division, led by Jeffrey Lane and Frank Campanale. Lane serves as chairman of the board of Lebenthal Holdings, while Campanale serves as chairman and chief executive of LWA. In addition, Andrew Grillo, a former regional director of Smith Barney, is president of LWA; James B Lebenthal serves as chief investment officer and market strategist; and James A Lebenthal has become chairman emeritus. Lane was previously CEO of Bear Stearns Asset Management; chairman and CEO of Neuberger Berman; and a vice chairman of Lehman Brothers. Campanale is latterly of First Allied Wealth Management.

Cornerstone Real Estate Advisers brought in Pamela Boneham from Deutsche Asset & Wealth Management as a portfolio manager for one of its largest separate accounts.

Boneham joined Cornerstone on October 21. She helps with Cornerstone’s business development activities. Boneham has spent the last 16 years as a portfolio manager and managing director for Deutsche Asset & Wealth Management - formerly known as RREEF - where she was lead portfolio manager for several public and corporate pension fund separate accounts.

Pacific Trust Bank and The Private Bank of California, subsidiaries of Banc of California, merged into a single entity named Banc of California. Pacific Trust Bank completed its previously-announced sale of eight legacy branches in San Diego, Riverside and Los Angeles counties to AmericanWest Bank, a Washington state chartered bank.

Aviva Investors Americas hired Jeff Jones as a high yield trader in Chicago, IL.

Jones joined Aviva Investors from Tejas Securities Group, with over 10 years of experience in the investment industry. He previously traded high yield bonds at FBR Capital Markets, Barclays Capital, and worked as an analyst at Goldman Sachs.

Opus Capital Management, the Cincinnati, OH, employee-owned investment management firm, added Nathan Bishop as a portfolio manager within its wealth management team. Bishop was latterly chief investment officer and senior portfolio manager at Haberer Registered Investment Advisor.

Investcorp appointed Lionel Erdely as head of hedge funds and chief investment officer in New York. Erdely joined from Lyxor Asset Management, a subsidiary of Societe Generale Group, where he served as chief investment officer since 2004 and chief executive of Lyxor since 2009. In his new role at Investcorp, Erdely oversees the New York hedge fund group’s strategic direction and investment decisions, as well as managing day-to-day operations. He also serves as a member of the firm’s management committee.

Babson Capital Management, the global asset management firm, brought in Ricardo Adrogue and Brigitte Posch to lead the firm’s new emerging market debt investment team, based in Boston, MA, and London, respectively. Adrogue joined from Cabezon Investment Group, where he was an emerging market fixed income portfolio manager. Posch joined Babson Capital from PIMCO, where she was executive vice president and head of emerging market corporates. In their new roles, Adrogue heads the team and oversees portfolio management activities for sovereign and local currency strategies, while Posch heads up portfolio management activities for all emerging market corporate debt strategies.

Chicago, IL-based HighTower, the advisor-owned firm, named its chief operating officer, Michael LaMena, as president. LaMena succeeds Drew Kornreich, who HighTower said has moved into an advisor role focusing on corporate finance and strategic M&A activities, while retaining his equity stake in the company.

LaMena has been COO since 2011 and will retain this position alongside his new role as president.

This move is one of several executive team changes the firm has made. For example, Michael Parker is now national director of HighTower’s enterprise development and relationship management unit, overseeing business and advisor development initiatives; Mike Papedis is national director of business development; and Matthew Camden is now chief of staff, serving as a liaison between executive management and departments across the firm.

First Financial Trust & Asset Management Company hired Bradley Brown as senior vice president, based in Orange, TX, until the firm opens a new office in Beaumont next spring. Brown has been a principal of accounting firm Edgar, Kiker & Cross since 1991.

RBC Wealth Management added The Resin Hammitt Group to its Manhattan Beach, CA, office. Philip Hammitt and Jonathan Resin joined RBC from Merrill Lynch and have a combined 40 years of experience in the financial services industry. In New York, RBC Wealth Management appointed Ira Mark and Michael Berger as senior vice presidents and financial advisors in Midtown. They have 22 and 14 years of industry experience respectively. Nadira Ramnarain, senior registered client associate; Michael Carlin, registered client associate; and Jessica Laurino, registered client associate, also joined.

PENSCO Trust Company, an alternative asset custodian, appointed Eileen Loustau as head of marketing. Loustau, with more than 20 years’ marketing experience, most recently served at BlackRock as global head of social media, where she was responsible for building its social media program. In her new role, Loustau is responsible for PENSCO's marketing and communications strategy. 

Richard Bernstein Advisors, an investment firm founded in 2010 by former Merrill Lynch chief investment strategist Rich Bernstein, hired Terry Ober as a regional investment specialist covering the Northeastern part of the US. John McCombe, president of RBA, said that Ober works closely with the firm’s “key partners” - Eaton Vance and First Trust - on portfolio positioning across various asset allocation and equity strategies. Ober was previously regional vice president for ING US Investment Management.  

Independent financial advisors Romaine Macomb and Theresa Donatelli joined LPL Financial’s Northstar Wealth Partners office. In their move to Northstar, they were joined by retirement plan coordinator, Ellie Kasimir.

Lincoln Financial Network, the retail wealth management affiliate of Lincoln Financial Group, appointed Gene Mulligan - latterly of Merrill Lynch - as senior vice president for investment products and platform. Mulligan leads LFN’s wealth management platform, including its managed account strategy, products and operations. Mulligan is formerly of Merrill Lynch Global Investment Solutions, where he was a managing director as well as head of business strategy and development for the Merrill Lynch global investment and advisory platforms. The move comes after Bill Fortner was appointed in June as managing director of Lincoln Financial Advisors to lead the Pacific regional planning group.

Palm Beach, FL-based Chilton Trust Company, a trust company and wealth management firm, hired three senior wealth management professionals.

Harry Grand is the firm’s new senior vice president and head of client relations; David Hamar joined as senior vice president and head of wealth advisory services; and Benjamin Brewster is a senior client relations advisor. Grand oversees all relationship management activities for clients and is a member of the external managers investment committee. Before joining the firm, Grand served as a senior vice president and relationship manager at Lazard Wealth Management, where he was responsible for investment policy formation, asset allocation and client relationship management.

Hamar oversees wealth advisory services and coordinates family office services for various clients. He was previously a managing director, portfolio manager, co-chairman of family office services and director of global tax services at Silvercrest Asset Management. Brewster serves as a senior client relations advisor to US clients and works on the firm's strategic initiatives. Brewster has over 25 years of experience in the industry, having previously served as a managing director at Silvercrest Asset Management. Along with these hires, Chilton Trust also announced that senior vice president John Rau has assumed the position of head of fiduciary services and oversees all fiduciary and trust-related services for the firm. 

Executive recruiter Laura Pollock launched Third Street Partners, a New York City-based executive search firm specializing in the investment management sector.

Pollock was latterly a partner at David Barrett Partners. David Schumer joined Third Street Partners as a principal from David Barrett Partners, where he was a consultant.

Wellesley, MA-based Robert Norberg joined Weston Financial, a division of Washington Trust Wealth Management, as vice president and business development officer. Norberg joined Washington Trust after 18 years at Fidelity Investments, where he most recently served as vice president of client service operations and process improvement for Fidelity’s stock plan services business.

In his new role, Norberg oversees Weston’s corporate relationships and helps companies develop financial planning programs for executives.  

Lia Yaffar-Pena, president at ES Financial Services, the brokerage unit of Miami, FL-based Espirito Santo Bank, left the firm to “pursue other interests”. Yaffar-Pena was also senior vice president and head of the bank’s wealth management division. Lionel Baugh was brought in as president of the brokerage when Yaffar-Pena announced her departure. Baugh joined from Global Strategic Investments, where he worked from 2009 until 2012 as president and chief executive.

HD Vest, the independent broker-dealer focused on tax and financial planning, named Ruth Papazian as chief marketing officer and head of recruiting, and appointed Adi Garg as chief information officer. Specifically, Papazian oversees HD Vest’s advisor recruiting and marketing communication activities. She has over 30 years of experience serving in these types of role, having latterly been executive vice president and chief marketing officer for LPL Financial. Meanwhile, Garg was most recently vice president for Cash America, where he led strategy and infrastructure operations.

United Capital Financial Advisers acquired a Scottsdale, AZ-based wealth management firm called Brotherton Investment Consultants, in a move adding some $150 million in assets under advisement. Brotherton Investment Consultants was founded in 1998 by husband-and-wife Donna and John Brotherton, who have 26 and 32 years of industry experience respectively. They join United Capital as managing directors.

Stephanie Zaffos joined Convergent Wealth Advisors as the firm’s director of trust and estate planning. Zaffos has 15 years of industry experience - at firms including Venable, Proskauer Rose and Katten Muchin Rosenman - and specializes in estate planning for ultra high net worth clients.

Durraj Tase, an experienced capital markets executive, launched a new registered investment advisory firm called DT Investments in New Jersey. Most recently, Tase worked at Deutsche Bank Private Bank as head of the Americas market coverage group. He was also responsible for marketing, sales, regulatory, client relationships and client suitability matters for the private bank brokerage business.

JP Morgan Chase & Co appointed Dana Deasy as chief information officer, responsible for the New York-listed firm’s technology systems and infrastructure across all of its business globally. Mike Ashworth, was named deputy CIO for the company and CIO for the consumer and community banking business. Deasy will join in December from BP, the $400 billion global energy company, where he was chief information officer and group vice president responsible for global IT, procurement and global real estate.

HSBC Global Asset Management, part of the UK/Hong Kong-listed banking group HSBC, appointed Mary Bowers as a senior global high yield fund manager in its global fixed income team, based in New York. Bowers manages the HSBC GIF Global High Yield Bond Fund and the recently-launched HSBC GIF Global Short Duration High Yield Bond Fund. Bowers previously worked at Aberdeen Asset Management/Artio Global Investors (formerly Julius Baer Asset Management) in New York, where she had ten years of experience in global high yield portfolio management.

New York-headquartered Goldman Sachs named Robert Zoellick, former president of the World Bank Group, as chairman of the firm’s 16-strong team of international advisors. Zoellick advises Goldman Sachs on global strategic issues and oversees the work of its international advisors. Zoellick completed his five-year term as president of the World Bank Group in June 2012. Prior to his appointment to the World Bank in 2007, he served for a year as vice chairman, international, at Goldman Sachs.

Two financial advisory teams with a total of $439 million in combined assets under management joined Wells Fargo Advisors’ private client group. John Phillips, Darrell Jones and Scott Dickerson joined the Salt Lake City, UT, branch from UBS. Meanwhile, the Climer Wealth Management Group - comprised of father-son team Michael and Wes Climer - joined in Charlotte, NC, from Merrill Lynch, Pierce, Fenner & Smith. 

US Bank Wealth Management promoted Bryan Benedict to private banking managing director for The Private Client Reserve of US Bank in Minneapolis, while it also hired Kane Phillips as a wealth management consultant for the PCR in Seattle. Benedict leads a team of private bankers serving high net worth individuals and their families. He was previously a commercial banker with Excel Bank and a bank examiner with The Federal Reserve Bank of Minneapolis. In his new role, he works to create connections among prospective and existing clients within the Puget Sound region, US Bank said.

Gupta Wealth Management, a seven-strong former UBS financial advisory team, is now a $540 million assets under management registered investment advisor with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The team, led by Ajay Gupta, provides clients with financial and investment strategies including wealth transfer and preservation, business services, retirement strategies and solutions, estate planning strategies, private money management and concentrated stock strategies. Gupta has been a financial advisor for 20 years, with early roots at Merrill Lynch and then UBS.

RBC Wealth Management appointed Ira Mark and Michael Berger as senior vice presidents and financial advisors in Midtown, NY. Mark and Berger joined RBC Wealth Management from Morgan Stanley, where they managed around $1 billion in client assets. Also joining RBC Wealth Management was Nadira Ramnarain, senior registered client associate; Michael Carlin, registered client associate; and Jessica Laurino, registered client associate. RBC also added The DiChiaro-Bourgault Group to its Providence, RI, office. The DiChiaro-Bourgault Group joined from JP Morgan Securities and has some $192 million in assets under management.

New York-listed Genworth Financial Wealth Management established the company's governing board of directors, as it appointed industry veterans Charles Goldman, Hal Strong and Steven Spiegel. Goldman joined as chairman of the board, having previously served as president of custody and clearing at Fidelity Investments. Prior to this, Strong was vice chairman of Russell Investments, having previously served as chief operating officer, chief financial officer, head of alternative investments and head of investment banking. Spiegel is a partner at Aquiline Capital Partners and has significant experience leading asset management firms. He was previously vice chairman of Putnam Investments.

BNY Mellon appointed Helen Nugent to a newly-created role as a managing director of sales to lead business development efforts in BNY Mellon Wealth Management’s Southeast region, as the firm continues to build out this part of its business.

Nugent oversees a team of five sales directors across a six-state region.

Nugent joined BNY Mellon from Northern Trust, where she held a number of leadership roles over a period of 18 years. Most recently, as senior vice president she drove a pilot program serving not-for-profits, endowments and foundations.

Sarah Bewley left her role as a fund analyst at the UK investment manager Quilter Cheviot to take up a similar position at TD Bank in Toronto, Canada.

At Quilter Cheviot, Bewley covered US, Asia and emerging market funds.

Having started in her new role as a senior fund analyst within the portfolio advice and investment research team at TD Bank in September, Bewley will now focus on developing model portfolios for clients, a TD spokesperson said. Relocating to London in 2008, Bewley served as a fund analyst at Morningstar OBSR, where she worked for three years.

Charles Cauthen, executive vice president and chief financial officer at Tampa, FL-based Walter Investment Management, is leaving the firm in early 2014.

The firm said Cauthen joined former parent company, Walter Energy, in November 2000.

Janney Montgomery Scott, the Philadelphia, PA-based wealth management and investment banking firm, took on an eight-strong advisor team in West Hartford, CT.

The team is comprised of Robert Black, Ned Manuel and Ed Blumenthal – all senior vice presidents of wealth management; Bob Borkowski, vice president of wealth management; Malcolm Berman, account executive; Samantha Prokop, private client assistant; Jennifer Roth, a registered private client assistant; and Amy Wells, a private client assistant. The team is latterly of Merrill Lynch. In August, Janney appointed Peter Price as senior vice president/complex manager of the firm’s Maine and New Hampshire complex, while earlier in the month it added former Morgan Stanley senior manager Vincent Crognale to its Greenville, DL, branch office as first vice president/wealth management.

Northern Trust, the New York-listed wealth management firm, named Drake Jackman as managing director of its international wealth advisory team in Miami, FL.

Jackman is charged with growing Northern Trust’s international business in Miami and beyond, while providing ultra high net worth clients across Latin America with wealth management, trust and banking services. Jackman previously worked with Northern Trust clients throughout the Latin American market and has spent time living in Mexico, Central America and Colombia during his career.

AIG Advisor Group, an independent broker-dealer network, promoted Erica McGinnis to serve as president and chief executive. She most recently served as senior vice president and chief compliance officer. Along with the senior leadership team at Advisor Group, she pursues strategies to enhance the service platform to better serve current financial advisors and to attract new registered representatives to the organization. In her previous role, McGinnis oversaw all supervisory activities for Advisor Group.

Morgan Stanley’s Graystone Consulting appointed Garry Bridgeman as an executive director, financial advisor and institutional consulting director within its wealth management business in Atlanta, GA. Bridgeman provides consulting services to philanthropic organizations, governments, corporations and individuals. He spent over 34 years as a global institutional consultant and private wealth advisor at Merrill Lynch, but most recently worked within the private banking and investment group.

Merrill Lynch Wealth Management hired an advisor team from UBS Private Wealth Management with over $1 billion in assets and over $11 million in production.

The team - comprised of Stephen Ruvituso, Lee Konopka, Robert Matluck and Todd Stankiewicz - joined Merrill’s White Plains, NY, complex. Meanwhile, Robert Brust joined Merrill’s Ponte Verda, FL, office from Wells Fargo.

Chicago, IL-based investment management firm RiverNorth Capital Management bolstered its team with three new appointments. David Gifford joined RiverNorth as an investment analyst. Chris Lakumb is a portfolio specialist and responsible for supporting the investment management team and serving as a liaison between RiverNorth’s portfolio managers and investor base.

Paul Raskin joined as a software developer, responsible for data operations and the development of core infrastructure and proprietary trading systems. Gifford previously worked as a senior trader on the equity desk at Wolverine Trading for 11 years. Lakumb has rejoined RiverNorth after relocating to California to work for EverBank as a wealth management specialist. Raskin has spent more than five years writing financial software, and most recently wrote futures and options trading applications as a software developer for RJ O’Brien & Associates.

Raymond James recruited a team of advisors operating as TSD Capital Group - an independent firm in Athens, GA - to Raymond James Financial Services, the firm’s independent broker-dealer. The team includes Bill Schroth, senior investment advisor and TSD managing partner; Joseph Taylor, senior investment advisor and TSD managing director; Kip Dominy, senior investment advisor and TSD partner; financial advisors Bruce Kelly and Ken Hyatt; senior registered administrative assistant Leigh Anne Kane; and senior administrative assistant Anna Richardson.

The team came to Raymond James from Wells Fargo Financial Advisors Network.

Howard Altman, co-chief executive and principal-in-charge of Rothstein Kass’ financial services group, was named as treasurer of the Managed Funds Association.

Altman will also serve for one year as a member of the MFA’s board of directors.

Manulife Asset Management hired Richard Bonzagni as a managing director within the firm’s global consultant relations team. He spent the last 13 years with Cadence Capital Management, a Boston-based boutique investment manager - most recently as a principal with consultant relations, sales and client service responsibilities.

Kansas-based Mariner Wealth Advisors, the independent wealth advisory firm, brought in Robert Swift as senior vice president of trust and estate planning.

Swift has 25 years of industry experience and joins Mariner from Colorado State Bank and Trust, where he most recently served as senior vice president and trust manager.  

BNY Mellon Wealth Management hired Peter Balesano as senior director for business development in Westborough, MA. Balesano has 25 years of investment management. Prior to joining BNY Mellon, he was manager of the wealth management group for People’s United Bank.

Deutsche Asset & Wealth Management made four hires to its real estate investment business in the Americas. Matthew Jaffe joined as a director and alternative investment specialist in the global client group. Jaffe previously served as director in the global markets team at Societe Generale, responsible for marketing across the Eastern US. Peter Mette joined as a director in the real estate transactions team to focus on acquisitions in Southern California.

Mette has over 20 years of industry experience, having most recently been a senior vice president, and director of acquisitions and dispositions, at KBS Realty Advisors. Meanwhile, joining as vice president in the real estate asset management team, Cheryl Charnas will be based in Chicago, IL. Charnas has around 20 years of experience in commercial real estate and most recently worked as a project director of transitional assets, and vice president of asset management at Inland American Business Manager & Advisor. Lastly, Emily Zagorski was named vice president to lead product development across the real estate investment platform. Zagorski is latterly of JP Morgan Global Wealth Management.

Wells Fargo Advisors hired a New York-based team of financial advisors with more than $1 billion in client assets and a combined production of $5.8 million.

The Alpert Group joined Wells Fargo in Woodbury, NY after leaving Morgan Stanley Wealth Management. The team includes Robert Alpert, Charles Ladenheim, Robert Fusaro and Michael Montuori. Five client associates - Lisa Alpert, Ann-Marie Iovino, Mary Anne Leap, Kathleen LoBello and Caroline Roman - complete the Alpert Group team.