Wealth management

Money Management Executive

The investment banking firm Seattle-Northwest Securities Corp. has agreed to purchase Regional Financial Advisors Inc., a Portland, Ore., firm that provides advisory services in Oregon and Washington.

Merrill Lynch & Co. Inc. said the deal to sell its insurance units to Aegon NV would allow Merrill to exit the less profitable business of manufacturing variable annuities while retaining some revenue from a distribution arrangement with the Dutch insurer.

Morgan Keegan & Co., the securities brokerage arm of Regions Financial Corp., said it has hired Michael J. Tierney to be the managing director in its New York investment banking office.

Citigroup Inc. announced it named Catherine Weir chief executive officer of its global wealth management in Europe, the Middle East, and Africa.

Pershing LLC, a Jersey City unit of Bank of New York Mellon Corp., introduced Talent Connect, a program designed to offer broker-dealers solutions for attracting and retaining top talent.

William Blair & Co. LLC in Chicago announced that Patrick J. Sheppard will join the firm Sept. 4 as chief operating officer of William Blair Investment Management.

Comerica Inc. has merged its two fiduciary services units into a single division and plans to expand its nationwide operation.

AIG private-client group, a division of American International Group Inc., has expanded its hurricane protection unit to serve policyholders in Suffolk County on New York's Long Island.

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Goldman Sachs Group Inc., the second-largest hedge fund manager, will invest about $2 billion to bail out its Global Equity Opportunities Fund after a 28% decline this month.

The new president of U.S. Bancorp's wealth management group says that realigning its wealth management and securities servicing units into a single division should generate double-digit annual growth in assets under management for the next few years at the Minneapolis company.

The Securities and Exchange Commission announced Monday that it has distributed $55.6 million to more than 200,000 investors harmed by market timing in Banc One's One Group Funds.

West Coast Bancorp's trust unit has promoted Tim Whalen to vice president and client services manager of asset management and retirement services.

The London-based banking company said Thursday that it hired Craig McDonough to be a senior vice president of international sales trading. He was a pan-European sales trader at Kelper Equities, covering U.S. institutional accounts. Previously, he was a sales trader at Commerzbank Securities, UBS Warburg, and Dreyfus Corp.

U.S. Bancorp said Friday that it has combined its wealth management and securities services units into a single division.

BNY Mellon Asset Servicing, a unit of Bank of New York Mellon Corp., has signed a five-year extension of its outsourcing agreement with TCW Group Inc., a Los Angeles asset management firm.

Enthrust Financial Services Inc., the parent of the investment banking company Rodman & Renshaw Holding LLC, has hired Michael Lacovara, Sandler O'Neill & Partners LP's co-chief operating officer and general counsel as its next chief executive.