Economy

The firm has poached two industry veterans from HSBC and Barclays as it looks to expand.

Fieldpoint Private, a Greenwich, Conn., based wealth advisory and private banking firm, announced that Susan Hirshman has joined the firm as a managing director and senior adviser.

"We provide all the tools a broker needs to thrive," said Russell Gebhard, president of Sovereign Investment Group in Houston."If the advisor is successful, it's more than likely the clients will be, too."

Merrill Lynch Wealth Management has decided to increase its minimum equity trade fees to $75 from $50 following a year of research on how its pricing fits the market.

Tim Pawlenty, the former Republican governor of Minnesota who criticized Wall Street while running for president last year, is joining the Financial Services Roundtable as president and chief executive officer.

As PenFed moves investment program back to former third-party marketer CFS, it sets sights on previous AUM mark of $250 million.

CFO4LIFE, a Coppell, Texax, financial planning firm with more than $450 million in assets, announced Thursday it is departing from LPL Financial to become an RIA.

UBS AG had a culture that overlooked trading limits and other rules "as long as you were making money," according to Kweku Adoboli's lawyers.

In an effort to bolster its recruiting with financial institution, Securities America announced Thursday it has hired William J. Lavender as regional director of financial institutions.

FSC Securities Corp., an Atlanta-based broker-dealer, announced that Eric Burton and Ron Whittingham and their practice, Megent Financial, have joined FSC from LPL Financial.

Lloyd C. Blankfein, chief executive officer of Goldman Sachs Group Inc., said he would invest in real estate as central banks around the world focus on avoiding deflation.

Wall Street firms turned out in force Tuesday night to celebrate a political development that for some hit close to home: the one-year anniversary of the repeal of the "Don't ask, don't tell" policy for gays serving in the military.

Scott & Stringfellow is looking to leverage its role as the brokerage for BB&T to help build out new offices in Florida and Maryland.

Delaware Valley, which is based in King of Prussia, Pa., has 24 advisors and $500 million in client assets under management.

Viniar, whose 12 years in the role make him the longest- serving CFO on Wall Street, will be succeeded by Harvey M. Schwartz, 48, one of three global co-heads from the sales and trading division, the New York-based bank said in a statement yesterday. Goldman Sachs will add Viniar, 57, as well as some independent directors to the 10-member board, the firm said.

William Steward, a former accountant in product control for UBS AG, said he began looking into trades by Kweku Adoboli in August 2011 after receiving a report of a $3.57 billion discrepancy.

The firm's recent hire of Tina Huyler from Morgan Stanley Smith Barney marks one of the first in a long-term effort to aggressively increase its advisor headcount.

The firm has expanded its Denver office with the addition of industry veteran Tina Huyler.

Robert W. Baird & Co. has hired R. Parker Griffith from Morgan Stanley Smith Barney to manage its Nashville wealth management office and serve as financial advisor.

Radnor Capital Management LLC of Wayne, Pa., has relaunched as an independent investment advisory firm using Dynasty Financial's open-architecture platform of wealth management services and technology.