Fidelity Investments has hired another seasoned trust executive to help develop its business with affluent investors.
Frimette T. Field started work Monday as a vice president in charge of estate planning in Boston-based Fidelity's premium assets group - a division that serves the wealthy. Ms. Field came to Fidelity after several years at BayBanks Inc., where she was executive vice president in the private banking and trust group, and with Bank of New England.
"It's very interesting Fidelity is bringing on someone like Frim to build its business with the wealthy," said Richard G. Scheide, a consultant at David Ross Palmer & Associates. Mr. Scheide, who was Ms. Field's boss at Bank of New England, said she is "action-oriented" and highly regarded by her peers.
Other prominent trust executives who have joined Fidelity this year include Barbara E. Casey and R. Daniel Banis. Ms. Casey joined the premium assets group this summer from Dreyfus Corp., the mutual fund subsidiary of Mellon Bank Corp., while Mr. Banis came from BankAmerica Corp.
Ms. Casey, who is now executive vice president in charge of marketing for the division, was formerly president of Dreyfus Retirement Services. There, she was in charge of marketing Dreyfus mutual funds to corporate clients who sponsor 401(k) plans for their employees. Previously, Ms. Casey had been senior vice president of marketing for Boston Co., a private banking and asset management division of Mellon.
Mr. Banis, meanwhile, was hired to head up Fidelity Management Trust Company of California, a five-month-old subsidiary. At BankAmerica, he had been a vice president in trust administration.
The recruitment of talented executives like Ms. Field and Ms. Casey bodes well for Fidelity's efforts, he said.
"It's key when approaching the high-net-worth market that we put people in front of them that can speak to specific issues, not just products," Mr. Banis said.
