Wealth management

Raymond James & Associates has hired Eileen Lamchick and Susan Rutrough, both as vice president of investments at its Coral Gables, Fla., operation.

The number of high-net-worth individuals in the top 10 U.S. metropolitan areas rose 17.5% in 2009, the highest growth rate in the last four years, according to the Capgemini 2010 U.S. Metro Wealth Index.

Bank of America Merrill Lynch has hired David Tyrie, formerly with Putnam Investments, as head of personal retirement services.

A survey report from the Institute for Private Investors says high-net-worth investors are using social media more, and other reports say wealth management clients are increasingly using social media to compare notes on advisers, funds, fees, strategies and deals.

MetLife Inc., the largest U.S. life insurer, raised $3.15 billion by selling shares below Monday's closing price to help pay for the acquisition of an American International Group Inc. business unit.

Many women are unhappy with the service they get from wealth managers — and in some cases their attitude, a global study by Boston Consulting Group found.

Union Bank of California's wealth management business has not increased its assets under management for three years, but you wouldn't know it from the unit's overall growth.

Bank of America Merrill Lynch has arranged a $300 million collateralized loan obligation, surprising market participants who, after the worsening of the debt crisis overseas, weren't expecting to see new CLOs for some time.

The number of smaller commercial banks buying leveraged loans rose sharply in the first half of the year and probably will keep rising, and the trend will affect how new deals are structured, market watchers say.

In his personal and professional lives, Hugh S. "Beau" Cummins III, the head of SunTrust's investment bank, is a risk-taker.

Nomura Holdings Inc., Japan's biggest securities firm, offered jobs to 40 students at triple the normal starting salary under a new plan to strengthen its international business, two people involved in the hiring said.

Most affluent individuals still would rather work one on one with a trusted adviser than use online tools for financial planning, a Bank of America Merrill Lynch survey found.

Online financial management tools may have caught the attention of younger investors, but a recent survey by Capstrat-Public Policy Polling suggests the Internet is a long way from gaining everyone else's trust.

Banks that are successful in cross-selling wealth management products are widely admired by their peers.

Warren Buffett's Berkshire Hathaway Inc. is the darling of U.S. millionaires, or at least those in Tiger 21, a peer investment group.

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Bank of America Corp. announced Tuesday it hired Lisa Shalett as chief investment officer of Merrill Lynch Global Wealth Management and head of investment management and guidance.

For Robert Matthews, it was a case of serendipity. Matthews, a 25-year executive with Citigroup and its Smith Barney unit, had left the company in 2008 and was in the early stages of building a high-touch private banking boutique. That's when he stumbled on a shortcut. He discovered Fieldpoint Private Bank and Trust, a two-year-old company that matched his vision, had deep pockets and was looking for leadership.

Daiwa Securities Group Inc., Japan's second-largest brokerage, reported a second-straight quarterly loss as underwriting fees and trading profit slumped.

UBS AG, Switzerland's biggest bank, reported a third consecutive quarterly profit, beating analysts' estimates on higher-than-expected trading revenue.