Financial institution of the united states names Sieg as new wealth control head

Andy Sieg could be the subsequent head of financial institution of the usa Corp's (BAC.N) wealth control unit on the quit of the 12 months, whilst John Thiel steps down, the bank said on Thursday.

Sieg, forty nine, is presently head of worldwide wealth and retirement solutions and is a 20-year veteran of the Charlotte, N.C.-based financial institution's Merrill Lynch business.

He additionally manages the chief investment workplace crew for the financial institution's global wealth and funding management commercial enterprise, alongside Keith Banks, a function Sieg will keep inside the close to term.

Thiel, who has been at Merrill for 26 years, will take at the role of vp of global wealth and funding management starting Jan. 1.

The trade comes because the enterprise faces a new regulation, referred to as the fiduciary rule, that addresses conflicts of hobby while customers are cautioned on retirement.

implementing the guideline, exceeded down by way of the U.S. branch of exertions, is predicted to be costly and complex for large brokerages.

Wealth managers also are managing extended opposition from conventional opponents, in addition to startups providing low-cost, robo alternatives for clients.

Thiel, fifty six, had approached Terry Laughlin, financial institution of america's vice president and head of worldwide wealth and investment control, about a yr in the past with his selection to step down, a supply with know-how of the transition said.

Laughlin asked Thiel to live on as vice president to supervise the wealth enterprise's transition to conform with the hard work department's rule, the source said.

Thiel took over the wealth enterprise from Sallie Krawcheck in 2011. all through his tenure, he released Merrill Lynch One, an investment platform that fees clients a unmarried price for all services they acquire, in place of costs for each transaction.

broadly seen as the financial institution's answer to complying with the fiduciary rule, 61 percent of advisers have at least 1/2 of their patron belongings at the platform as of this month, the bank said.

Thiel's tenure turned into additionally described with the aid of the cultural shift following the bank's 2009 acquisition of Merrill Lynch, where the firm modified from Wall avenue's "thundering herd" to a small slice of a large commercial bank. a few agents chafed as financial institution of america raised new consumer account minimums to $250,000 really worth of property and prodded them to refer enterprise to other parts of the bank.

Thiel's non-public focus on well-being additionally bled into the wider company, with health gurus leading brokers in aerobics sporting activities and urging healthy consuming.

bank of the usa leader govt Brian Moynihan has praised Thiel's management of Merrill Lynch in quarterly profits calls, as the global wealth and funding control commercial enterprise's pre-tax profit margins rose from nine.nine percentage inside the fourth region of 2011 to 26 percentage inside the 2nd sector this yr.