Deals & People July 26, 2013

BofA Re-emphasizes Retirement in Unit Merge

The institutional, personal retirement and preferred segment solutions teams are being folded into one organization at Bank of America, and named retirement and personal wealth solutions.
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According to an internal memo, the restructuring is to maximize capabilities and take “a holistic approach to serving clients and advisers.” David Tyrie, most recently head of personal wealth and retirement, will lead the division. Tyrie has been with Bank of America since early 2010. (See “BofA Merrill Lynch Hires Head of Personal Retirement Services.”) He was originally head of personal retirement services, and has remained in the division through restructurings. (See “B of A Creates Global Wealth and Retirement Solutions Divisions.”)

Kevin Crain moves to the newly created role of senior relationship executive, serving as liaison to select mega-market retirement and benefit plan clients. He will work in partnership with the institutional client relationship team and continue working closely with the global commercial bank, business bank and market president leadership teams, and will also partner with the government relations team on public policy matters related to retirement. He will report to Tyrie.

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Tom Halloran will remain head of the preferred segment solutions team, which is now part of retirement and personal wealth solutions. Steve Ulian, Rick Irace and Joe Mrozek, who are on the retirement and benefits services leadership team, will continue to support clients and the business in their current roles. All report to Tyrie.

Products July 26, 2013

TDA Makes Its Mark on Adviser Tech

TD Ameritrade Institutional brings its brand to technology for advisers, with a new "Veo Integrated logo."
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The branding makes it easy for registered investment advisers (RIAs) to identify technology providers that have built integrations with TD Ameritrade Institutional’s Veo  adviser platform. RIAs who are shopping for technology can look for the logo on marketing materials including websites, brochures and videos from participating technology providers.  One goal is to improve the technology experience for RIAs by integrating common adviser applications with the Veo system.

The “Veo Integrated” logo is part of a larger effort to raise awareness and adoption of the technology integrations that have been delivered to RIAs through the Veo open access initiative. The industry-wide effort kicked off in late 2010 to help advisory firms maximize their technology and streamline day-to-day operations. Since the platform’s inception late in 2010, TD Ameritrade has linked it to a range of products and technology, including iPads and mobile tools. (See “TD Ameritrade Institutional Expands Mobile Tools.”)

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TD Ameritrade Institutional is continuing to expand the list of Veo open-access tech providers and to deepen existing integrations with Veo. Overall adviser adoption of Veo open access integrations is up 104% in 2013. The customized Salesforce CRM app is among the most widely adopted, with more than 1,000 users.

All third-party technology providers that participate in the Veo open access initiative must meet security requirements and deliver a specific quality of service to advisers, according to Jon Patullo, managing director of technology of TD Ameritrade Institutional. “It’s important that firms eligible to display the ‘Veo Integrated’ logo demonstrate a high standard of care and commitment to RIAs,” he said.

Fifty technology providers including customer relationship management, financial planning, portfolio management, rebalancing and document management applications have VEO integration. A list of providers is available here.  

The Veo Integration Analyzer tool helps advisers identify levels of integration between their current applications, or applications they may be considering for purchase. The interactive guide allows advisers to create and compare unique scenarios. More information is here.

 

 

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