Wealth management

Whether spurred by the pursuit of innovation and business success or simple greed, financial companies will always be pushing the envelope of good sense and fair competition.

UBS Wealth Management of New York plans to lay off more than 150 rookie financial advisers and cut some support staff next month, according to people familiar with the situation.

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Banc of America Securities-Merrill Lynch Research announced that it has hired Michael Hanson as a senior U.S. economist.

Putnam Investments has launched a suite of target-date funds that integrate target absolute return strategies with traditional mutual funds.

With the anniversary of the collapse of Lehman Brothers in the rearview mirror and the economy improving, industry executives and analysts are questioning whether the wealth management industry still needs to undergo substantial regulatory change, and what changes, if any, could be beneficial.

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Prudential Annuities, the U.S. annuity business of Prudential Financial Inc., has hired Tim Seifert as a vice president and director of national sales.

The fund tracks the performance of the Wells Fargo Hybrid and Preferred Securities Aggregate Index, which includes nonconvertible preferred securities listed on the New York Stock Exchange or the NYSE Arca that have a par amount of $25; are rated investment grade by Moody's Investors Service Inc. or Standard & Poor's; and have had a minimum monthly trading volume during each of the past six months of at least 250,000 trading units.

The U.S. division of Sun Life Financial Inc. of Toronto has hired Sean Woodroffe as head of human resources for the U.S. business.

New York Life Insurance Co. announced it has appointed Paul Pasteris to its executive management committee.

The struggles of U.S. banking companies are providing Harris Private Bank of Chicago with an opportunity to expand its wealth management operations.

With fee income off in many of its business lines, Wall Street may have a new appreciation for the potential of health care banking.

Trust banks such as State Street Corp. and Bank of New York Mellon Corp. may be a safer bet than commercial banks in uncertain times, but low interest rates are one caution Goldman Sachs Group Inc. highlighted Monday.

Mutual fund investors' confidence in the markets appears to be steadily growing, with several fund categories having their biggest inflows of the year last week.

Citigroup Inc. has hired former Merrill Lynch & Co. banker Rodney Tsang as co-head of its China investment banking team, adding firepower to the bank's effort to target China's private-sector companies.

Harris Private Bank in Chicago, a Bank of Montreal unit, announced Monday it acquired Stoker Ostler Wealth Advisors in Phoenix.

Shutterly, the Louisville company's director of investments said the platform generated $20 million of assets under management in its first year — more than twice what he expected it would when it was launched in October 2008.

Laurence Fink, the chairman and chief executive of BlackRock Inc., says the U.S. dollar remains the best currency for investors seeking to protect wealth.

When Boston Private Financial Holdings Inc. sold two more wealth units last week, management painted the transactions as prudent moves to firm up capital.