Merrill Lynch nabs $3.1M producer from Morgan Stanley

Merrill Lynch picked up a Morgan Stanley adviser who oversaw $288 million in client assets, according to his new employer.

Leon Friedlander, an international adviser specializing in Latin American clients, joined Merrill’s office in Aventura, Florida last week.

Chris Ratcliffe/Bloomberg

He had been with Morgan Stanley and its predecessor firm, Smith Barney, since 2006, according to FINRA BrokerCheck records. He’s been in the industry since starting his career at Portfolio Resources in 2002. Friedlander studied international relations and economics at Brown University and earned an MBA from Babson College.

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Advisers on the move: Merrill Lynch loses 6 teams over fiduciary changes

The advisers oversaw nearly $900 million in combined AUM, and moved to Morgan Stanley, Raymond James and HighTower.

By Jane Yi Zhang

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Friendlander’s teammate, Johanna Trujilo, a client associate, also joined the wirehouse.

A spokeswoman for Morgan Stanley confirmed Friedlander’s departure with no further comment.

Merrill has been expanding its Latin America focus lately. Last month, a $200 million international adviser who specialized in Brazilian market had joined the wirehouse from BTG Pactual, a Brazilian wealth management firm.

The wirehouse has also picked up several wirehouse recruits recently, including an $800 million team from Wells Fargo and a $343 million team from Morgan.