Merrill Adds 4 From Morgan Stanley, Wells Fargo

Bank of America’s Merrill Lynch has capped off the summer with a round of hires from Morgan Stanley and Wells Fargo.

Four advisors with a combined $533 million in assets under management have joined offices from San Mateo, Calif., to Morristown, N.J.

Charles Phelps joined Merrill Lynch’s San Mateo office from Morgan Stanley on August 7^th. He previously managed almost $202 million in assets. Phelps began his career at Lehman Brothers in 1988, according to FINRA records.

Another former Morgan Stanley advisor, Abtin Zarrabi joined in Pinnacle Peak, Ariz., on August 9^th. He previously managed some $192 million in assets from which he produced $1,042,600 in fees and commissions. Zarrabi started his career at Morgan Stanley in 1995, FINRA records show.

The team of Robert Bezzone and Joseph Marotta joined from Wells Fargo. They will help Merrill build out its presence in Morristown, N.J. Together, they managed almost $140 million in assets and produced $1,304,700 in fees and commissions. They were hired on August 23 and report to Jason Weaver, complex director for the Morristown branch.

Bezzone began his career in 1992 at Prudential and Marotta began his career in 2007 at PFS Investments, according to FINRA records.

Overall Merrill Lynch had approximately 14,000 advisors as of the end of June, according to SEC filings.

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