Economy

Mitch Cox, head of wealth management in the Americas at Barclays, has left his position to pursue other interests, a spokesperson for the firm confirmed.

The New York Hudson Valley thrift seeks to make wealth management an important core business line and not just a tertiary line.

The dually registered and registered investment advisor channels were the fastest-growing for assets under management from 2010 to 2011, Cerulli Associates reported today -- but the two are still dwarfed by assets in the wirehouse channel.

The firm has promoted Vin Campagnoli to chief information officer as it looks to continue expanding its platforms.

LPL’s highly publicized outsourcing effort will cost the company between $70 million and $75 million over the next three years, but will result in annualized operational savings of $30 million to $35 million beginning in 2015, according to Dan Arnold, its chief financial officer.

The Internal Revenue Service said that budget sequestration would require reductions in refundable credits for certain tax-exempt bonds and the refundable portion of the Small Business Health Care Tax Credit for some small tax-exempt employers.

LPL is launching a new online tool that it says will let its advisors offer offer better visibility to plan sponsors and the millions of LPL clients who are invested in 401(k)s.

Barclays recently announced that it planned to eliminate at least 3,700 jobs in 2013. This was sour news from an industry that had begun to back away from the heavy layoff days of 2011.

“I’m all of 52 years old. I have a baby face. I have four children. I plan to be working for a long time,” Casady said.

LPL is making big changes among its top executives.

The $825 million community bank has selected Infinex Financial Group as its new broker dealer.

Since 2008, U.S. Bank has recruited talent from rival firms to lead various regional units of its business. The investment seems to be paying off, as revenues have inched up over the last year.

Bill Dwyer, a 20-year LPL veteran and its president of national sales, is retiring from the independent broker-dealer, according to sources familiar with the situation.

In its second big recruiting move of the year, HighTower has picked up a former branch manager from Morgan Stanley.

“Wall Street is still in transition, but is slowly adjusting to changes in its economic and regulatory environment,” the state CFO said in a Feb. 26 announcement. “Profits and bonuses rebounded in 2012, but the industry is still restructuring.”

A new North Carolina office helps spur the firm’s push into Southeastern markets.

Five advisors with a combined $500 million in assets have joined Baird from Morgan Stanley and Wells Fargo.

Almost a year after Raymond James purchased Morgan Keegan, the integration has passed its last major milestone, which means the end of the venerable Morgan Keegan brand. The final integration will make Raymond James one of the largest brokerage firms behind the four wirehouses with almost 6,300 advisors in its brokerage, roughly 900 of whom come from Morgan Keegan.

Merrill Lynch Wealth Management has lured five advisors with $619 million in assets and about $2.9 million in production in its latest move in the hunt for advisory talent.

U.S. Bank wants to take the business of serving the ultra-wealthy to a higher, “experiential level.”