Wealth management

Phoenix Cos. Inc. said it had unveiled a universal life insurance product to help affluent clients address estate tax uncertainty, meet future income needs, or provide for continuation of a family business.

GlobalBridge Inc., a Minneapolis supplier of managed account platforms for affluent individual and institutional clients of middle-market trust banks, announced Thursday that it has completed the interface of its Open Custody managed account system with Infovisa's trust accounting system.

Genworth Financial in Richmond, Va., has made permanent its appointment of Mark W. Griffin as chief investment officer.

Sales of exchange-traded funds have grown rapidly as banks look to amplify their open architecture and private-client wealth offerings, according to Barclays Global Investors, whose ETF assets under management in the bank channel rose 110%, to $16.2 billion, in the 12 months through August.

Evergreen Investments, the investment management unit of Wachovia Corp., introduced a small- to mid-cap growth fund for institutional clients Wednesday.

Sun Life Financial announced Wednesday the introduction of Sun Value Single Premium Universal Life Insurance into its portfolio of universal life insurance products.

PNC Financial Services Group Inc. said Wednesday that it had closed its purchase of Harris Williams & Co., a Richmond, Va., mergers and acquisitions adviser to middle-market companies. The deal's terms were not disclosed.

In a move to satisfy baby boomers concerned about outliving their retirement assets, Hartford Financial Services Group Inc. says it will add an optional lifetime income guarantee to nearly all its investment products in the next few years.

Columbia Management, Bank of America Corp.'s investment management arm, said Wednesday that it had hired Frederick Copper to be head of its international equities team.

Buying Jefferson-Pilot Corp. would make Lincoln National Corp. one of the country's largest public life insurance companies, but an analyst said it would not make Lincoln a top 10 annuity provider in the bank channel.

Alliance Bankshares Corp., a community banking company in Chantilly, Va., announced a deal Friday to buy Danaher Insurance Agency in Annandale, Va., and merge it with its Alliance Insurance Corp. subsidiary.

Massachusetts Mutual Life Insurance Co. has introduced an enhanced guaranteed minimum accumulation benefit for its MassMutual Evolution variable annuity contract.

An army of advisers, brokers, and wealth managers is lining up to serve the wave of baby boomers expected to retire in the next few years.

Dow Jones Indexes said Thursday that its Dow Jones U.S. Select Dividend Index will be used as the basis for an exchange-traded fund that was expected to be introduced today on the Frankfurt Stock Exchange.

Vanguard Group has announced that it changed the benchmark for its socially responsible fund.

More than 60% of New England employers are considering offering a health savings account by 2007, according to research released Thursday by the New England Employee Benefits Council.

Commerzbank AG in Frankfurt has announced a partnership with PlusFunds Group Inc. to offer the New York company's hedge fund platform.

Old Mutual Asset Management, the Boston asset management subsidiary of London-based Old Mutual PLC, has announced a deal for a majority interest in ForstmannLeff, a New York investment management firm specializing in domestic equity strategies.

Wachovia Corporate and Institutional Trust said Thursday that it had hired Dama Stephenson to be the managing director of sales for institutional trust.