Deals & People August 13, 2008

Ameriprise Names Froude President of U.S. Advisor Group

Ameriprise Financial, Inc. today announced the acquisition of H&R Block Financial Advisers and named Donald Froude the president of the U.S. Advisor Group.
Reported by

As a member of the company’s Executive Leadership Team, Froude will report to Chairman and CEO Jim Cracchiolo.

Froude will be responsible for leading the company’s approximately 12,000-strong employee and franchisee advisers, as well as their leaders in the field. In addition, Securities America, Inc., the company’s wholly owned independent broker/dealer subsidiary, will report to Froude.

For more stories like this, sign up for the PLANADVISERdash daily newsletter.

Froude joins the company from Legg Mason, Inc., where he was managing director and head of U.S. distribution. In this role, he was responsible for the management of sales, client service, product development, and business development for the entire U.S.

Prior to joining Legg Mason, he was president of Intermediary Distribution for Columbia Management, a division of Bank of America. He has also held positions as president and CEO of Quick & Reilly, where he rebuilt the traditionally discount brokerage into a full-service investment business; in senior roles at Alex Brown/Bankers Trust/Deutsche Bank; and as a broker and office manager at Bache Halsey Stuart/Prudential.

Froude will join the company September 2, working at the New York offices and Minneapolis headquarters.

Ameriprise also announced the acquisition of H&R Block Financial Advisors (HRBFA) for $315 million in cash from H&R Block. The transaction is expected to be accretive to earnings per share and return on equity in early 2010, the company said.

Compliance August 13, 2008

Citigroup to Pay Up in Smith Barney Gender Case

A federal judge today granted final approval to Citigroup Inc.'s $33 million settlement to resolve a gender bias lawsuit against its Smith Barney unit, Reuters reports.
Reported by

The original March 2005 suit was brought by Smith Barney female brokers, who accused the firm of barring women from competing fairly for new accounts, promotions, and pay, as well as not providing equal training and support for women.

According to the report, Judge Phyllis Hamilton of the U.S. District Court in San Francisco signed off on the settlement at a hearing this morning, after granting preliminary approval in April (see Citigroup Settles Gender Discrimination for $33M). The settlement was originally expected to cover about 2,500 current and former female brokers. More than 1,285 submitted claim forms, lawyers for the plaintiffs told Reuters.

Never miss a story — sign up for PLANADVISER newsletters to keep up on the latest retirement plan adviser news.

As part of the settlement, Citigroup agreed to change some business practices and appoint an independent diversity monitor but has denied wrongdoing, according to the news report.

«