Money Management Executive Latest News

John Hancock Financial Services of Boston has chosen Kathleen Graveline to head the firm's acquisitions group. The move is part of the firm's plan to develop new growth opportunities and seek acquisition targets outside of its existing line of businesses.

Merrill Lynch announced this month that Edward Goldberg, an executive VP who led the firm's efforts to restore business operations after the terrorist attacks of Sept. 11 and fostered preparations for implementing T+3 standards, decimalization and the introduction of the Euro, will retire at the end of this year.

Delaware Investments, a subsidiary of the Lincoln Financial Group, has added a Quant pro to its ranks. The Philadelphia-based firm named David Starer to the post of senior quantitative analyst in charge of improving its quantitative investment models and management techniques.

Charter One Securities has named Tom Ryan, the former COO for ABN AMRO, as its new president, parent company Charter One Financial announced last week.

Bear Stearns & Co. has hired Debra Douglas as its new head of corporate marketing. Douglas will oversee Bear Stearns' marketing, advertising, corporate events and brand development.

In September, Tom Kolbe was named national sales manager of INVESCO after joining the firm in 1999 as its institutional sales manager. Kolbe's quick rise to the top is made more remarkable by the fact that he has just 10 years experience selling financial services. Prior to joining INVESCO, Kolbe sold fixed and variable annuties and life products for Protective Life Insurance in of Texas. His career path was leading him to the position of regional sales manager for the firm when he left to join INVESCO. Mutual Fund Market News caught up with Kolbe and discussed his new role and INVESCO's shift into the advisor channel. An edited version of his conversation with Andrew Greene follows.

In a surprising move, CNA Life of Chicago has hatched an alliance with American Airlines to offer AAdvantage Program airline mile awards to investors of its newly registered variable annuity. This appears to be the first time an annuity sponsor has tagged on such an incentive program.

If fund companies aren't building private wealth management products, they are buying them. A look at some of the recent acquisitions in the fund industry finds that the companies acquired are, in many cases, wealth management firms. And in doing so, mutual funds appear fearful of losing their luster to hedge funds, managed accounts, wrap programs and other wealth products.

Marketocracy Funds has added another fund with the launch of The Masters 100 Fund. Unlike the firm’s three other funds, which invest in medical and tech sectors, the new fund is broadly diversified and will invest in U.S. and foreign firms of any market capitalization.

So far this year, Class A shares of load funds are dominating net sales while Class B shares have decreased significantly from last year, according to a new report from Financial Research Corporation.