The latest senior moves in the North American wealth management sector.

Bank of America
Bank of America has appointed Julia Shin as the products and platforms – ESG integration and innovation executive for Merrill Lynch Wealth Management. 

In this newly-defined role, Shin leads integration of the chief investment office’s ESG framework across core investment solutions. 

Previously, Shin was managing director of impact investing at Enterprise Community Partners, a national non-profit organization. She brings over 26 years of experience in corporate and investment banking, new product structuring, and sustainable investing. She reports to Keith Glenfield, managing director and head of investment solutions group products.

Shin will be partnering with the sustainable and impact investing team (SII) of Merrill and Bank of America Private Bank, where Anna Snider leads due diligence and ESG strategy areas. 

Earlier this year, Sarah Norman assumed the role of head of chief investment office ESG thought leadership. 

Raymond James
Raymond James has welcomed financial advisors Steven Schmitt and Terence Belfor to Raymond James & Associates (RJA) – the firm’s employee advisor channel – in New York and Beverly Hills, California.

The Schmitt Group of Raymond James, focus on the LGBTQ community as well as a wider group of professionals and corporate executives. They previously managed about $365 million in client assets at Morgan Stanley. 

Joining the advisor duo are senior investment portfolio analyst Valerie Vinbaytel, with 12 years of industry experience, practice business manager Cassandra Biehl, with three years of experience and practice marketing associate Anthony Corcella.

Schmitt has an extensive knowledge of retirement planning, investment strategy and estate planning for LGBTQ clients that he earned over two decades working in the financial services industry. Early in his career, Schmitt worked the trading floor at Virginia Power and served as an energy analyst at Merrill Lynch. He later spent 12 years as a financial advisor at Wells Fargo Advisors before transitioning to Morgan Stanley in 2016. 

A native of New York, Belfor has been helping clients achieve financial independence since 2016 with a personalized approach that leverages his legal background and disciplined wealth management strategies. Belfor began his career in wealth management at Morgan Stanley, where he spent over six years as a financial advisor.