Two senior figures at Raymond James & Associates, the employee broker/dealer arm of Raymond James, were named as regional directors in the southern division. The appointees were Deborah Cicatelli and Courtland Williams. Cicatelli previously served as a divisional sales manager for RJA’s southern division. In her new role, she leads the division’s north region, which includes RJA branches in Georgia, North Carolina, Virginia and Kentucky. Williams, a former producing complex manager for RJA in Greenville and Spartanburg, South Carolina, oversees the division’s south region, which covers RJA branches throughout Alabama, South Carolina, Mississippi and Tennessee. Both report to Dick Ferguson, southern division director.

Cicatelli joined Raymond James in 2018 as the divisional sales manager for the southern division, working closely with advisors and branch managers to help support and grow their businesses. She also serves as a member of RJA’s executive council, a rotating advisory council made up of a select group of managers and advisors. Cicatelli began her career in financial services in 1995 as a financial advisor trainee with Morgan Stanley.

Williams joined Raymond James as a producing complex manager through the Morgan Keegan acquisition in 2012. He began his financial services career in 2003 at Morgan Keegan and throughout his tenure at the firm, held several positions, including assistant branch manager and branch manager – all while still serving his clients as an advisor.

The duo succeed Jim Hamilton and Van Thompson, who transitioned to new roles at the firm. Hamilton now serves as senior vice president, investments, at Hamilton Wealth Management Group of Raymond James, and Thompson now leads RJA’s Lexington, Kentucky, office as branch manager, senior vice president.

Raymond James welcomed two advisors to its Novi, Michigan office. The advisors - Jon Russell and Ryan Winkler - joined Raymond James & Associates. They previously worked at Merrill Lynch, where they managed $214 million in client assets. Joining them are Michael Hudzik, investment portfolio analyst, and Rebecca Downing, senior client service associate. Together, they operate as Russell Winkler Private Wealth Management of Raymond James.

Raymond James & Associates also brought over advisors James Alioto and Florence Alioto-Prospero in Waukesha, Wisconsin. James Alioto, managing director of investments, and Florence Alioto-Prospero, senior investment portfolio associate, joined RJA from Wells Fargo Advisors where they previously managed over $325 million in client assets. Together, the group operates as father-daughter team Alioto Wealth Management Group of Raymond James. Darlene McGregor, senior registered client service associate, also joined.

Raymond James welcomed former Merrill Lynch wealth management figures Vic Howie, Paige Passerallo and Dustin Lisk to its Raymond James & Associates business. They are based in Charlotte, North Carolina. The office is part of the the Metro North Carolina Complex managed by Rodney Lineberry. Howie, Passerallo and Lisk previously managed $240 million in client assets at Merrill Lynch. Joining them was marketing and business development consultant Mark Passerallo and senior client associate Taylor Racer. Together, the team operates as HPL + Associates Planning and Wealth Management of Raymond James.

Raymond James appointed former Merrill Lynch market executive Jeremy Silvas to join its operations in Dallas, Texas. Silvas had previously worked in the Greater Houston area for Merrill Lynch, and worked in that area for 17 years. 

The firm also welcomed managing director Kimberly Maxey to its employee broker/dealer in Chicago, Illinois, where Mike Townsend is the manager. Maxey, who was previously at Wells Fargo Advisors, was joined by senior registered client service associate Darlene Worthington. The team operates as Maxey Wealth Management of Raymond James. Maxey had more than 20 years of financial services experience at Wells Fargo Advisors. She is a graduate of Eastern Illinois University and holds a master of science from Illinois State University and received her Certified Investment Management AnalystSM certificate from Wharton University Executive Education. Maxey has been featured as a panelist for Jean Chatzky, the financial editor of NBC’s “Today Show,” and as a speaker for Wells Fargo Women’s Summits.

It also hired financial advisor Erik Weiss to join its employee advisor broker/dealer business. He is based in Greenwood, Indiana. Weiss, senior vice president of investments at Weiss Financial Planning of Raymond James and RJA financial advisor, joined from JP Morgan Securities, where he previously managed more than $200 million in client assets. He operates as Weiss Financial Planning of Raymond James. With more than 15 years of financial services experience, Weiss started his career with Charles Schwab and later joined JP Morgan as a financial advisor and senior vice president. A graduate of Indiana University-Purdue University, he earned his bachelor’s degree in finance and economics.

Raymond James welcomed advisor Ariel Bobroff to its advisor broker/dealer. He is based in Beverly Hills, California. Bobroff joined the wealth management team in the Beverly Hills office managed by Andy Waldbaum, a part of the Los Angeles Complex managed by Chris Horner. He joined from Merrill Lynch, where he helped manage over $600 million in client assets. Previously in his career, Bobroff held the positions of senior vice president of wealth management at Merrill Lynch and senior vice president of investments at UBS. He is a graduate of the University of California in Santa Barbara.

Other businesses
Vanderbilt Financial Group, an impact investing organization, promoted Heidi Distante to chief executive, taking over from her husband Steve Distante, who became chairman of the board of directors, stepping away from day-to-day operations. Ms Distante has been at Vanderbilt since 2001, most recently as chief of staff for the past seven years. Prior to joining Vanderbilt, Heidi Distante spent 15 years at Citicorp Retail Services as a relationship manager in its private label credit card division.

Scott Testa joined professional services firm  EisnerAmper as a partner in its personal wealth advisors group. Testa is a 25-year veteran of providing tax, trust, estate, financial, retirement and philanthropic planning for HNWs and corporate executives. He is based at EisnerAmper’s New Jersey office.

Kennedy Lewis Investment Management, a credit manager, appointed Doug Logigian as a partner and its president. Logigian joined from Blackstone where he was a senior managing director. Most recently, he was the head of capital markets and a portfolio manager for GSO Capital Partners, a division of Blackstone. Logigian began his career as a credit trader at Citibank after receiving a BA with honors from Harvard University.

Glenmede, the wealth management house overseeing $40 billion of client money, appointed Mark Hays as director of impact and sustainable investing and John Church as director of endowment and foundation impact portfolio management. Hays leads Glenmede’s impact investing effort, running its development and how it is communicated. Church is responsible for constructing and customizing portfolios for endowment and foundation clients who want to dovetail investments with specific values.

Investment management firm Franklin Resources appointed Jennifer M Johnson as president and chief executive officer, taking over from CEO Gregory E Johnson. Johnson became executive chairman, and remaining as chairman of the board. Prior to this, Johnson was president and chief operating officer. Over the past three decades, she has run major aspects of the business, including investment management, global distribution, customer service, fund administration, global technology, and the company's high net worth business. She joined the firm in 1988 and has served in numerous roles, including chief information officer.

Brother-and-sister team Katherine Forrester Schneewind and Michael Forrester teamed up with Dynasty Financial Partners to form an independent wealth management firm called High Note Wealth, based in Minnetonka, Minnesota. Schneewind and Forrester previously worked at Northwestern Mutual in the Minneapolis area. 

Sports, media and entertainment capital and financial services firm 23 Capital, based in London, named Sreesha Vaman as managing director and capital markets head. Vaman has more than 15 years of experience across the finance, investment banking, sports and entertainment landscape and joined the team’s New York office with a remit to build on 23 Capital’s work in the capital markets division globally. His works with the firm’s origination and structuring teams in the US and Europe. Before joining 23 Capital, Vaman spent seven years as a managing director at Guggenheim Partners, based in New York, across multiple roles.

Apollon Wealth Management, the US financial planning firm, appointed Matthew Jahn as a senior case designer. Jahn, who is a former vice president of insurance product management at Wells Fargo Advisors, brings more than 20 years of life, annuity, long-term care, and disability insurance experience to Apollon. Before starting his financial career, Jahn studied math and physics at the Indianapolis campus of Indiana University where he earned his bachelor’s degree. He has also obtained his Chartered Life Underwriter and Chartered Financial Consultant designations from the American College of Financial Services as well as his Certification in Long-Term Care Planning.

First Bank & Trust Company appointed Christopher T Henry as senior vice president of its wealth management division, First Trust and Wealth Management. Henry has 13 years of experience as a wealth management advisor in financial planning, most recently from Bank of America where he served as vice president and private client associate in the Richmond, Virginia metro area. A former graduate of Virginia Tech, Henry obtained a bachelor of science in business administration and management. He is a Certified Financial Planner, a licensed Virginia Life and Health Insurance provider, and is a board member of the John Marshall Foundation, a member of the Estate Planning Council of Richmond.

William Blair Investment Management appointed a group of NN Investment Partners' figures to build an emerging markets debt team. The joiners are Marcelo Assalin, Marco Ruijer, and a number of others. Assalin reports to Stephanie Braming, partner, global head of William Blair Investment Management, and serves in her leadership team.

Most recently, Assalin was head of the EMD team at NNIP, while Ruijer was lead portfolio manager on their emerging markets debt hard currency strategy. Assalin has been managing such EMD strategies since 1996 and Ruijer has been managing EMD strategies since 2002. The team operates from New York, London, the Netherlands, and Singapore. 

Peter Kettle was appointed by Ameriprise Financial Services as a financial advisor. He joined from Iron Birch Advisors®, a private wealth advisory practice of Ameriprise Financial Services. He is based in New York City. Kettle graduated with an undergraduate degree from the University of Oxford in the UK, and gained his MBA in finance at New York University. He has 28 years of experience in the financial services industry.

Impax Asset Management’s founder and chief executive Ian Simm joined the board of the Institutional Investors Group on Climate Change. The IIGCC announced his appointment along with four other sustainability business leaders at its AGM in London.

Integrated Partners, the US financial planning and advisory group, brought a $200 million Seattle-based business, Konvergent Wealth Partners, under its roof. Konvergent is led by partners Homer Smith and Dave Stuehling, advisors who had spent most of their careers at Ameriprise. The business was formerly known as Hearthstone Wealth Management. Smith assumed responsibility for the Integrated Business Alliance’s western operations.

Commonwealth Financial Network added Michigan-based Center for Wealth Management to its network. Center for Wealth Management used to be affiliated with MML Investors Services. The team, which brought over $220 million in account assets, included associates Robert J Moore, Justin M Williamson and Jeffrey R Steele. The group focuses on pre-retirees and retirees, but has also developed a niche business looking after engineers and young professionals.

Cresset, the US wealth management group, appointed industry figure Dave Jackson as its first chief experience offer. Separately, it named Michael Costabile as chief financial officer of Cresset Asset Management, a registered investment advisor. Jackson’s role involves leading “Cresset’s efforts in helping to ensure positive experiences for clients”, the firm said. Before this, he was principal with Evanston Advisors, a multi-family-office wealth management firm that Cresset acquired in 2019. Costabile, meanwhile, recently served as CFO of Moneta Group, the RIA with more than $20 billion in assets under management.

A new registered investment advisor firm, Mattern Wealth Management, was launched. Formed by David Mattern, the firm, based in Lawrence, Kansas, also includes Kyle Cross and Marcus Mattern, both financial advisors. David Mattern, who has 25 years of experience in the sector, previously worked at Wells Fargo Advisors.

United Capital, recently acquired by Goldman Sachs, appointed Rachel Schnoll to lead FinLife CX, an ensemble of tools built for independent advisors to guide clients. Schnoll, who previously headed retail product strategy for Goldman Sachs Asset Management, focuses on accelerating business growth. Development includes access to Goldman Sachs products. Schnoll, who has been at Goldman Sachs since 1999, works with Mike Capelle, United Capital’s chief platform officer, and his expanded team of 200 developers.

Fiduciary Trust Company International appointed Freda Lam Zietlow to join its business in Northern California as senior portfolio manager and managing director. Zietlow works from Fiduciary Trust’s San Mateo office as well as its new location in San Francisco. She brought more than 20 years of experience in private wealth and institutional investment management to her new role at Fiduciary Trust. Prior to joining Fiduciary Trust, Zietlow founded and was managing principal of Peridot Capital Partners, an independent registered investment advisor serving ultra-high net worth and HNW clients. She previously served as portfolio and wealth management director at Bingham Osborn & Scarborough. 

Eisner Amper, the US-based professional services firm, appointed Brent Lipschultz - re-joining the firm - as a partner in its personal wealth advisors group. Lipschultz has more than 25 years of experience serving high net worth executives, family offices, board members of Fortune 100 companies, global investors, privately held business owners, celebrities and professional athletes. He specializes in domestic and international income tax planning, executive compensation, estate and gift tax planning, charitable planning and wealth preservation strategies. He is based in New York.

GCW Global Customized Wealth, the international firm with offices in the US and other locations, appointed Ramy Goldstein as senior advisor. He is based in London. GCW, which has personnel in London, California and New York, works with international clients and invests globally. Goldstein is a pioneer of data-driven businesses in finance. In 2003 he co-founded IVC, an early example of a European high-frequency trading business, and ran it for a decade. Previously, Goldstein was vice chairman at UBS in London where he founded UBS' global equity derivatives division. He has held various senior positions at UBS and at CSFB in New York, Tokyo and London. 

BNY Mellon Wealth Management named Shaun Skeris as a senior client strategist in Newport Beach, California. Skeris is responsible for acquiring and advising high net worth and family office clients, reporting directly to regional president Carla Furuno. With more than 20 years of experience in the wealth management industry, Skeris was previously managing director at Umpqua Wealth Advisory, serving as chairman of the investment committee and leading the development of Umpqua's investment strategy, portfolio recommendations and portfolio implementation. 

Truvalue Labs, which provides environmental, social and governance data via artificial intelligence technology, added former Goldman Sachs senior manager Adam Salvatori to its ranks. In the new role of global head of client solutions, Salvatori is part of the executive leadership team reporting to the chief executive, Hendrik Bartel.