Merrill Lynch Adding Office, Staff in Mideast

Merrill Lynch & Co. is expanding its private banking business in the Middle East by beefing up its staff in Lebanon and opening a new office in the United Arab Emirates.

The New York-based brokerage said it planned to increase its staff in Beirut from 25 people to 40 over the next 12 months. Its Beirut office, which opened in 1962, employed 12 people at the end of 1995 and recently moved to larger accommodations.

Merrill also said it plans to open a private banking office in the emirate of Abu Dhabi, to complement its 20-year-old outpost in Dubai, which has 35 private bankers. John Maitland, the manager in charge of the Dubai office, will also have responsibility for Abu Dhabi.

According to Merrill, high-net-worth individuals in the Middle East hold approximately $1 trillion, accounting for 7% of the world's high-net-worth wealth.

Outside the United States, Merrill Lynch employs 1,000 private bankers in 45 countries. Its international private banking group manages more than $47 billion. Merrill manages a total of $850 billion in private clients' assets.

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