Exodus from ‘broken’ wirehouses seen

Expect a continued exodus of financial advisers, wealth managers and client assets from large Wall Street firms as a result of today’s turmoil in the financial markets and the pending sale of New York’s Merrill Lynch & Co, Inc. to Bank of America Corp, of Charlotte, N.C., industry executives say. “There will be massive defections of clients and advisers,” said Liz Nesvold, managing partner of Silver Lane Advisors LLC of New York. “The wirehouse model, which was damaged, is now broken.” Recent events have underscored a “flight to quality” among advisers, wealth managers and clients, said Doug Regan, president of Chicago-based Northern Trust Corp.’s wealth management group. “Institutions with a sound financial footing and a reputation for a conservative approach and quality stand to aggregate assets from this mess,” he said. For the full report, see the upcoming Sept. 22 issue of InvestmentNews.