Deals & People February 26, 2008

Citi, Legg Mason in Overlay Business Deal

Citi and Legg Mason have agreed that Citi Global Wealth Management (GWM) will acquire the overlay and implementation business of Legg Mason Private Portfolio Group (LMPPG).
Reported by

A news release said the deal includes LMPPG’s managed account trading and technology platform.

LMPPG’s Roger Paradiso, President and Chief Investment Officer, and Michael Scotto, Chief Investment Strategist, and their team will join Citi in the transaction, according to the news release. Terms of the transaction were not disclosed.

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The deal brings overlay capability in-house at Citi allowing portfolio construction utilizing SMAs, mutual funds, and ETFs in a single account structure. The announcement said Legg Mason will continue to serve as a sub adviser in Smith Barney’s Fiduciary Services program and in the existing Multi-Discipline Account Products (MDAs) it manages, consistent with current arrangements.

As future programs are built, Legg Mason investment managers may participate in Smith Barney’s fee-based programs in SMA or mutual fund formats.

Deals & People February 26, 2008

Wall Street Access’ Private Wealth Management Group Names New MD

Charles McCollough Wright, CFA, has joined Wall Street Access’ Private Wealth Management Group as Managing Director.
Reported by

Wright will spearhead the sales efforts focused on small financial institutions, family offices, and high-net worth individuals, according to a company announcement. He will focus on new business development in the Private Wealth Management Group, its Advanced Strategies fund of hedge funds, and its separately managed account products.

Wright comes to Wall Street Access from Pax World Management, where he most recently was Managing Director-Regional Sales. He also led the development and marketing of Pax’s various products and played a key role in the launch of three new funds.

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Prior to that Wright served as Vice President-Institutional Sales with H.G. Wellington & Co, a full-service brokerage and asset management firm, and headed the San Francisco office of Standard & Poors Corp.-S&P ComStock. He has also successfully founded and managed two broker/dealer operations, Wright Brothers Co., Inc. and eBond, which were eventually merged and subsequently sold.

“We look forward to having Charles put his innovative approach to sales and marketing as well as his keen sense for anticipating industry trends into practice with us. We believe our institutional and individual clients will benefit tremendously from his experience,’ said Denis P. Kelleher, CEO of Wall Street Access, in the announcement.

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