Robert McCann, the former head of the brokerage business at Merrill Lynch & Co. Inc.,
will officially take over as the head of UBS AG's wealth management business by the end of the month, according to a source close to him.
A UBS spokeswoman declined to comment, but the source specifically noted that Mr. McCann will likely join the firm during the last week of October.
He settled a suit last week with his former employer, Bank of America Corp. — which acquired Merrill in January shortly before Mr. McCann's exit — that allowed him to pursue another executive-level position at a competing firm. While he offered no specific details on where his next position could be, he said during his trial that he was after a “once in a lifetime” opportunity, according to multiple reports.
Mr. McCann has been in consideration for this spot at UBS since at least July,
as InvestmentNews first reported, along with Sallie Krawcheck — who is now the head of the global wealth and investment management business at Bank of America.
A report on CNBC today noted that Mr. McCann already has plans to lure brokers from Merrill Lynch, who are now overseen by Ms. Krawcheck, ironically.
Mr. McCann's pitch could hinge on recreating Merrill Lynch's fabled culture at UBS, said one Merril adviser, who asked not to be named.
“Could [Mr. McCann] personally call the top 1,000 brokers and say to them, “I'll rebuild Merrill Lynch at UBS,” one veteran Merrill Lynch adviser recently asked
Currently, UBS's wealth management business in the Americas is run by Marten Hoekstra. It's unclear what role he may have once Mr. McCann joins the wirehouse, according to one source familiar with the executive search at UBS.
