By Michael Wursthorn
Merrill Lynch Wealth Management lost two more financial advisers
this week, including one from its ultra-wealthy client team.
James Hulburd, a high-net-worth adviser who managed more than
$1.5 billion, left Merrill Lynch for UBS Wealth Management
Americas, while John Van Donge, a $600-million adviser that worked
with similar clients, as well as smaller ones, resigned to join
Stifel Financial Corp.
A Merrill Lynch spokeswoman confirmed the departures, but
declined to comment further.
Mr. Hulburd, who had been at Merrill Lynch since 2001 and was a
member of its elite private-banking and investment group, wasn't
available for comment.
Mr. Van Donge said the decision to move was simple: It's better
for his clients.
"[Lower] fees are definitely a part of it," Mr. Van Donge said
in an interview. "But what came down to it for me was that Stifel
cares more about the client than Bank of America does."
Mr. Van Donge believes Stifel allows its advisers to tailor
their services to the needs of the client as opposed to taking
broad approaches to situations.
The 17-year Merrill Lynch veteran also said his former firm had
benefited from its purchase by Bank of America in areas such as
lending and the ongoing rollout of a new adviser platform, Merrill
Lynch One. But he noted that clients, overall, lost something in
the process.
"I think Merrill Lynch has become Bank of America," Mr. Van
Donge said. "The downside is that they look at clients as
customers."
Mr. Hulburd and Mr. Van Donge, both of whom work in California,
weren't the only Merrill Lynch defections this week. Bank of
America Corp.'s wealth management unit also lost Douglas Twohill, a
33-year veteran, and five-year Merrill Lynch adviser Steven Scalici
to UBS. Together, those two had more than $300 million in assets
and nearly $3 million in production.
Brokerage firms' advisers who serve the ultra-wealthy are some
of the most sought after professionals in the industry, making
retention a priority. For its part, Merrill Lynch has managed to
attract more assets than it has lost this year in both the
high-net-worth space (clients with $1 million or more in assets)
and the ultra-high-net-worth segment (clients with $10 million or
more in assets), a person with knowledge of the matter said.
Most recently, the firm recruited a trio of advisers from UBS
that serve ultra-high-net-worth clients last month. Together, they
oversaw $500 million in assets and had nearly $5 million in
production.
The firm's headcount has been growing. Its parent reported last
month that 155 new advisers joined the firm in the third quarter to
bring its total headcount to 14,000, with the vast majority of
those hires coming in through Merrill Lynch's training program.
(Street Moves chronicles the migration of executives on Wall
Street, with a particular emphasis on financial advisers with more
than $1 million in annual production and those who manage more than
$100 million in client assets. Michael Wursthorn can be reached at
212-416-2218 or at michael.wursthorn@wsj.com.)
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