State St. Predicts 30%-a-Year Growth For New Money Management Unit

The chairman and chief executive of State Street Boston Corp. has proclaimed a heady growth goal for its sizable money management unit.

Last week, the chairman, Marshall N. Carter, said he expects the new unit that oversees the banking company's institutional money management, personal trust, and defined contribution retirement services "to grow at a rate of 30% annually through the end of the decade."

Mr. Carter made the prediction in a press statement announcing the new unit.

State Street executive vice president Nicholas A. Lopardo, who reports to Mr. Carter, has been appointed to run the new global investment management unit. He acknowledged that Mr. Carter's growth goal was "pretty ambitious."

But, he added, the new unit will give a focus to the businesses that will help the company achieve the objective. He said management change will help by allowing State Street to operate similar money management, personal trust, and retirement services in a more integrated fashion.

This, in turn, will let it do a better job of packaging the services for sale to institutions and wealthy individuals, he said, and will save money by streamlining back office operations and computer systems.

Anchoring the new global investment management unit is State Street Global Advisors, an institutional money manager that ranks as one of the 10 biggest pension fund managers in the country, with $140 billion under management.

Previously, Mr. Lopardo was chairman and chief executive of Global Advisors. He retains this title in the new organization.

The global investment management unit also contains State Street's administration and investment management for 401(k) and other defined- contribution plans, another market where State Street has been ranked among the 10 largest players.

These operations are headed by State Street senior vice president James S. Phalen, who is reporting to Mr. Lopardo. Previously Mr. Phalen reported to A. Edward Allinson, executive vice president of the securities custody division that provides most of State Street's revenues and profits.

The personal trust operation that now falls under the umbrella of the global investment management unit previously was part of State Street's commercial banking division.

The head of the personal trust unit is senior vice president Stephen J. Ridge Jr.

Mr. Lopardo declined to specify the current rate of growth in State Street's global investment management business, except to say it is "substantially in excess" of the industry's aggregate 15% growth rate.

He added that getting strong growth from the global investment management unit is important since the business delivers higher profit margins than State Street's traditional custody business.

Although Mr. Lopardo declined to specify the margins, Ronald I. Mandle, senior research analyst for Sanford C. Bernstein & Co., New York, said money management contributes 15% to 20% of State Street's net income.

Last year, State Street, the country's 34th-largest banking company, reported net income before extraordinary items of $207.4 million.

Adele Langie Heller, a consultant for retirement plan adviser RogersCasey, Darien, Conn., cautioned that State Street could find it hard to get 30% growth in the global investment management area, since the business is getting more competitive.

But, she added, "Marsh Carter is a very intelligent man. I would think that he would not project anything he was not going to reach."

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