Manuel Ebner, the former chief executive of Wilen-based BZ Bank, is to join Bank of America/Merrill Lynch at the start of next month as country executive for Switzerland and chief executive of Merrill Lynch’s capital markets unit in the country.

Ebner replaces Christian de Prati, who has left to pursue other opportunities outside the company, BoA said in a statement.

In his new role Ebner will be based in Zurich and will report to Jonathan Moulds, BoA’s president of Europe.

Ebner stepped down as CEO of BZ Bank at the end of April 2009 after three years at the helm; he had been with the bank since 2000, when he joined as an equity analyst.

He left BZ Bank to become a partner in an investment company based in Pfäffikon in the canton of Schwyz. In his prior career he had been a partner at both The Boston Consulting Group and McKinsey.