Morgan Stanley Snags $700M Merrill Advisor Group

A former Merrill advisor group managing about $700 million in client assets has moved to Morgan Stanley in New York City.
The Zelin Group joined Morgan Stanley’s Fifth Avenue office on Jan. 24 after its lead advisor had spent more than seven years at Bank of America’s Merrill wealth management division.
Jonathan Zelin leads the advisory team, which includes partners James Mengouchian, Colin Obsitnik, Jamie Goldgrub and Shivam Jhingen. The team reports to Nikolas A. Totaro, a managing director and wealth management market executive based in New York.
According to its website, the Zelin Group works with high-net-worth clients, executives, business owners and retirees, among others.
The group also brought over client relationship analyst Christopher Oliveira and business development associate Joseph Marino.
Both Morgan Stanley and Merrill’s wealth divisions recently reported higher revenues in fourth-quarter earnings than the previous year. Merrill cited growth from alternative investment interest, and Morgan Stanley beat its earlier forecast as it managed better than expected through interest rate reductions.
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