Merrill Recruits Nearly $3 Billion Broker Team -- Street Moves

  By Michael Wursthorn 
 

A big-producing Morgan Stanley team of financial advisers has joined rival Merrill Lynch.

The J.M. Group, led by adviser John Mirsepahi, started at Merrill on Thursday in its Rockefeller Center office in New York, where he and his team are working to transition clients from Morgan Stanley.

In addition to Mr. Mirsepahi, other members of the J.M. group joining Merrill include adviser Matthew Cali, investment analyst Matthew Zamora and client associate Joanne Zaman.

Merrill wouldn't disclose the team's assets under management. But Mr. Mirsepahi is a perennial on the closely followed Barron's top adviser rankings, which showed that he managed $2.9 billion in its most recent rankings. Barron's is published by Dow Jones & Co., which also publishes The Wall Street Journal.

Last year, the team generated more than $3 million in fees and commissions.

A Morgan Stanley spokeswoman confirmed the departure but declined to comment further.

For Mr. Mirsepahi, the move to Merrill is a homecoming of sorts.

He was a Smith Barney veteran since 2005 who joined Morgan Stanley through its acquisition of the brokerage from Citigroup Inc. in 2009. Prior to that, he spent six years as part of Merrill's so-called Thundering Herd.

Advisers who manage billions of dollars in client assets--like Mr. Mirsepahi--are highly sought after by the major brokerages.

His practice is focused on providing investment services to high- and ultrahigh-net-worth clients, a key segment for brokerages like Merrill, Morgan Stanley and UBS.

Each of those firms has refocused efforts to attract clients with $10 million or more to invest. A key part of that strategy has been recruiting teams that cater to these wealthy clients with the hope that most of the assets follow to the new firm.

(Street Moves chronicles the migration of executives on Wall Street, with a particular emphasis on financial advisers with more than $1 million in annual production and those who manage more than $100 million in client assets. Michael Wursthorn can be reached at 212-416-2218 or at [e-mail].)

Subscribe to WSJ: http://online.wsj.com?mod=djnwires