Wealth management

Piper Jaffray Cos. swung to a fourth-quarter net loss — its fourth-straight quarterly deficit — on $146.3 million in charges related to its capital-markets business and severance costs.

Assets in long-term mutual funds rose $3.99 billion in the week that ended Jan. 21, led by an increase in equity fund assets, according to the Investment Company Institute.

Wilmington Trust Corp. of Delaware announced that it swung to a quarterly loss, as its loan-loss provision swelled and securities losses reached $98.4 million during the fourth quarter.

Charles Schwab Corp. said it plans to cut 500 to 600 jobs this quarter in its effort to contain costs.

American International Group Inc. promoted Anastasia D. Kelly to vice chairman.

Money market funds posted inflows of $13.39 billion for the week that ended Tuesday, as seven-day yields on taxable funds fell below 0.5% for the first time, according to Informa PLC's iMoneyNet.

T. Rowe Price Group Inc. said its fourth-quarter net income declined 87% from a year earlier, to $24.3 million, or 9 cents a share.

A "toxic" Southern California residential and construction loan portfolio hampered Boston Private Financial Holdings Inc. last year and forced it to cut expenses this year, and analysts said it must learn from its mistakes before expanding into another region.

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State Street Corp. said assets under administration serviced by its private-equity fund team increased 60% last year.

State Street Global Advisors, State Street Corp.'s investment arm, launched two ETFs.

New York Life Insurance Co. "dusted off" an old product in 2005 when it reintroduced its immediate annuities to the market, and it has paid dividends as conservative investors seek products that can provide a steady stream of income in retirement.

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The shakeout in the exchange-traded fund business continued with Northern Trust Corp.'s announcement that it will close its ETF business on Feb. 20.

Health savings account balances and health investment account balances declined in the third quarter, with the latter falling sharply, according to Canopy Financial.

Global investor confidence rose 12.1 points in January, to 60.3, from a month earlier, according to State Street Global Markets, State Street Corp.'s investment research and trading arm.

Northern Trust Corp. of Chicago announced Tuesday that it has hired Robert P. Browne as the chief investment officer of Northern Trust Global Investments.

Van Kampen Funds Inc. of Chicago, a unit of Van Kampen Investments Inc., has unveiled six equity mutual funds that will be subadvised by O'Shaughnessy Asset Management.

UMB Healthcare Services, a division of UMB Financial Corp. of Kansas City, Mo., bought the health spending accounts of Benefit Administrators, a third-party administration division of E.G. Lee & Co. Insurance Services Inc. in Lafayette, Calif.