Morgan Stanley taps new international wealth management boss

Morgan Stanley (MS), owner of the world’s largest retail brokerage, named Charlie Mak president of the firm’s international wealth-management unit. Mak, previously head of the Morgan Stanley Smith Barney unit in Asia, will report to Greg Fleming, president of global wealth management, according to an internal memo today from Fleming. Jim Wiggins, a spokesman for New York-based Morgan Stanley, confirmed the memo’s contents. Fleming, 48, said in April that he asked Michael Armstrong, who headed international wealth management, to focus on his role as head of capital markets for the brokerage. The wealth- management group had $10 billion in international client inflows in 2010, compared with $12.9 billion from domestic customers. James Jesse, chief operating officer of the capital markets unit, will become COO of Morgan Stanley International Wealth Management, according to the memo. Jesse will relocate from New York to Hong Kong, Fleming said in the memo. Chris Van Aeken will lead the brokerage’s international- banking and lending efforts, in addition to his role as chairman of the firm’s Swiss private bank, according to the memo. --Bloomberg