Wealth management

ING Group NV's announcement last week that it had a deal for CitiStreet LLC, a joint venture between Citigroup Inc. and State Street Corp., was only the latest consolidation move in the retirement services industry.

Prudential Financial Inc.'s group insurance business hired Peter Bandarenko as its advanced markets sales director, a newly created position overseeing universal life, executive carve-out life, retiree life buyouts, pooling, and captive reinsurance sales.

Axa Partners, the life insurance unit of Axa Distributors LLC, promoted Gary Hirschkron to president.

SKBA Capital Management, a San Francisco unit of Convergent Capital Management, named Andrew W. Bischel its chief executive.

State Street Corp. of Boston said it has signed a lease for an office in Krakow, Poland.

Kennebunk Savings Bank's small size ($745.5 million of assets) has not stopped it from adding investment advisory services to its insurance and banking businesses to boost noninterest income during difficult market conditions.

Legg Mason Inc. posted the first quarterly loss in its history Tuesday.

BlackRock Inc.'s deal to buy a portfolio of subprime mortgage debt from UBS AG for $15 billion may have helped set a market-clearing price for such assets.

KBW Inc. said Tuesday that it has formed a real estate investment advisory group and hired three investment bankers from Wachovia Securities LLC to staff it.

For more information on this data, visit Novantas LLC and Market Rates Insight.

Liberty Mutual Group's deal to buy Safeco Corp. is a preview of a consolidation wave that will concentrate market share among the nation's top insurance carriers, experts say.

MetLife Inc. has revamped its variable annuity suite.

Millionaires are downbeat on the economy but expect improvement by this time next year, according to a study from Fidelity Investments.

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Two investment product units of Bank of America Corp. will pay $9.8 million to settle charges they inadequately disclosed potential conflicts of interest to clients, the Securities and Exchange Commission said Thursday.

Northern Trust Corp. of Chicago announced an agreement to provide correspondent services for Ledyard National Bank of Hanover, N.H.

Sixty-eight percent of participants in a survey conducted in March said they believed the United States was heading toward a recession, and 53% were cutting their spending and paying down debt as a result.

Evergreen Investment Management Co. LLC is trying to expand by pulling together its disparate pieces, improving its ability to sell products, and moving into more foreign markets.

State Street Corp. promoted Jay Hooley to president and chief operating officer.