BofA Creates Global Wealth & Retirement Solutions Division

In the memo, Seig announced he will be heading up GWRS. “By integrating the two groups, we ensure that both clients and advisers will have access to the most comprehensive, relevant and innovative set of products and services in the marketplace,” he wrote. The “streamlined structure” will “better align our businesses with fast-growing market segments and more quickly translate our capabilities and intellectual capital into powerful solutions for our clients,” he added.

Rich Linton will continue to lead GWRS efforts in the small-business market as head of Business Retirement Solutions (BRS) (see “BofA Merrill Lynch Adds Two to Retirement Team”).  He will continue to oversee the Advisor Alliance 401(k) program, as well as other small business retirement products such as SEP & Simple programs.  In addition, he will work with the Consumer Bank and the Business Bank to broaden the wealth advisory capabilities delivered to small businesses. Tom Joseph will join the BRS team, reporting to Linton.

Kevin Crain, previously Head of Institutional Client Relationships, will assume a new role heading Institutional Retirement & Benefit Services (IRBS).  He will lead GWRS efforts in the institutional market, focused on 401(k), equity compensation, defined benefit, and non-qualified deferred compensation programs, as well as the institutional investment consulting business. Significantly, Crain will introduce further segment focus in IRBS, the memo said.   

Steve Ulian will now report to Crain in a new role leading the Large Market Client team, while Joe Mrozek will report to Crain heading the Middle Market Client team. Rick Irace will join IRBS from Technology & Operations and assume Ulian’s current role leading the IRBS product platform. Finally, Tom McAuliffe will continue to lead the Institutional Consulting Group (ICG), and will also report to Crain (see “McAuliffe to Join BofA Merrill Lynch Retirement Services”).

David Tyrie will now head Personal Wealth & Retirement (PWR), a new group that brings together Client Solutions Group (CSG) and Personal Retirement Solutions (PRS) teams (see “BofA Merrill Lynch Hires Head of Personal Retirement Services”).  The integration of these teams will position Tyrie to lead GWRS efforts in the high-net-worth market, with a particular focus on the opportunities associated with demographic shifts and the changing nature of retirement.  This new group will include Insurance & Annuities, IRA and 529 product areas, as well as CSG specialists.  The Personal Wealth & Retirement group went through a restructuring earlier this year as well (see “BofA Merrill Lynch Restructures Personal Retirement Team”).   

Other positions discussed in the memo were:

Barry Lindenbaum will continue to lead Technology & Operations for the Retirement business, working closely with Institutional Clients.  Bill Bridy will continue to lead Operations for Investment Solutions.  Both Barry and Bill will continue as key members of my leadership team, directly reporting to Mark Alexander.

Justin Ferri will head Alternative Investments and Select Client Solutions. In this expanded role, Ferri will continue to lead AI efforts and will focus on the integrated delivery of products and capabilities from across GWRS to the ultra-high-net-worth market.     

Mark Curtis will continue to lead International Investment Solutions. In this role, Curtis will continue to ensure the ongoing delivery of our global investment product platform to clients and Advisors across the international regions.   

Keith Glenfield will serve as the Chief Operating Officer for GWRS, reporting to John Hogarty.   

Reporting directly to Seig will be Lorna Sabbia, who will head the Managed Solutions Group (MSG). In this new role, Sabbia will focus on driving innovation and strategic progress in MSG, particularly through the execution of BofA’s Single Experience Strategy.  Gene Mulligan will remain a senior member of the MSG team, reporting to Sabbia.  In addition, the Global Funds team, led by Pete Thatch, will now report to Sabbia, as will the investment partner relationship management team, headed by John Pavese.

Lisa Shalett will head an expanded Investment Management & Guidance (IMG) group, with Rick Galiardo and the Portfolio Strategies Desk (PSD) joining the IMG team reporting to Shalett. Seig says this realignment will help ensure the strongest coordination of near- and longer-term portfolio views and enable GWRS to leverage most effectively the talent on the PSD team.

BofA also restructured the retirement group in late 2009, when Seig joined the bank (see “BofA Brings in New Heads for Retirement, Wealth Management” and “BofA Merrill Realigns Retirement Executives”).