Wealth management

Putnam Investments' chief executive officer says the rehiring of a leader for its institutional sales division last week is another step in the right direction for the Boston fund company's turnaround from its regulatory scandals.

Old National Bancorp in Evansville, Ind., announced Friday that it has agreed to buy J.W.F. Insurance Cos. Inc. of Indianapolis in a deal expected to close early this quarter. Its terms were not disclosed.

GE Insurance Solutions in Kansas City, Mo., has appointed Patrick O'Brien a business leader in its accident and health business unit.

UnumProvident in Chattanooga, Tenn., announced Thursday that it has expanded its online tools to help employers and employees file disability insurance claims.

John Hancock Life Insurance Co. in Boston announced Thursday that it has begun offering a variable universal life insurance product aimed at clients seeking survivorship insurance with growth potential to meet their wealth transfer or business planning needs.

MassMutual Financial Group in Springfield, Mass., said Thursday that it had closed its purchase of the global investment management activities of Baring Asset Management Ltd. from ING Group.

Mellon Financial Corp. announced Wednesday that it had appointed co-chairmen for its Mellon Europe unit.

The combined assets of the nation's mutual funds grew 1.5% in February, according to data released Wednesday by the Investment Company Institute.

MetLife Inc. announced Wednesday that it had sold its One Madison Avenue property in Manhattan to SL Green Realty for $918 million.

Higher CD rates and the negative publicity from regulatory probes of variable annuity sales practices have converged to hamper bank sales of the products, as shown in a bank-annuity sales report of a third straight decline in overall sales during January.

Northern Trust Corp. announced Wednesday that it had been selected to be the global custodian and trustee of the Hiram Walker Canadian Retirement Fund.

ING Investment Management said Wednesday that it had hired Nanette J. Buziak to be head of its U.S. equity trading and separately announced the start-up of a mutual fund.

Assets held in exchange-traded funds grew 0.4% in February, according to data from the Investment Company Institute.

Kelmoore Investment Co. has announced the addition of a socially responsible screening process for its managed accounts.

Benefitdecisions Outsourcing Inc., a subsidiary of Chicago-based Benefitdecisions Inc., said Tuesday that it has bought the New York-based operations of the global human resources consulting and outsourcing firm Black Mountain Management Inc.

Suffolk County National Bank in Riverhead, N.Y., and Independent Financial Marketing Group Inc., a third-party administrator, have announced an agreement for IFMG to support the bank's alternative investment program.

Prudential Financial Inc. in Newark, N.J., said it has introduced an individual long-term-care product, LTC3, issued by its subsidiary Prudential Insurance Co. of America.

After nearly three years at the helm of Scudder Investments, the U.S. retail investment arm of Deutsche Bank AG, Thomas F. Eggers says, he could see the writing on the wall.