Moves, personnel changes and appointments in the North American wealth management sector.

PNC
PNC Asset Management Group (AMG), part of PNC, has named Yung-Yu Ma, PhD, as its chief investment strategist. 

Ma (pictured) brings more than 20 years of financial services and consulting experience to the investment office role.

As chief investment strategist, Ma will develop investment solutions for individual and institutional clients. He will also manage the firm's asset allocation models. Ma will be based in Philadelphia and report to AMG chief investment officer Amanda Agati.

"As we continue to navigate a complex market environment, AMG clients are seeking clear direction and strategies to help them execute on and achieve their financial objectives," Agati said. "I have no doubt that Yung-Yu's exceptional and unique blend of practical, theoretical and strategic investment knowledge will prove to be invaluable to the AMG investment office and AMG clients alike."

Ma most recently served as chief investment officer for BMO Wealth Management where he led asset allocation, market analysis, modeling, and portfolio construction for the firm. From 2009 to 2016, Ma was an assistant professor of finance at Lehigh University, where he taught an intermediate investments' course on equity, fixed income, and derivatives. Ma holds a PhD in finance from the University of Utah and a bachelor of arts degree in economics and political science, magna cum laude, from Williams College.

Confluence Technologies
Confluence Technologies, a technology solutions provider for regulatory, analytics, and investor communications in the investment management industry, has appointed Kathleen Keenan as chief product officer.  

Based in Boston, Keenan will oversee Confluence's product strategy and management, leading the company's product and marketing divisions. 

Most recently, she was vice president of product management for investor communication services at Broadridge. She also led product strategy at GAGNONtax and BISAM, and worked at Thomson Reuters and Nasdaq. 

Keenan will report to Todd Moyer and serve on the company's executive leadership team.

Raymond James
Raymond James has welcomed financial advisor Debi Gregory to its independent advisor channel.

At DG Financial in Puyallup, Washington, Gregory is joined by client service associates Wendi Bertram and Katie Irwin. Gregory has joined from Edward Jones where she managed about $100 million in client assets.

Gregory will be serving as president and CEO of the practice, bringing nearly 15 years of advisory experience gained at her previous firm. She has also earned professional designations as both a Chartered Retirement Planning Counselor™ and an Accredited Asset Management Specialist®. A graduate of Central Washington University, Gregory holds a bachelor of science in business administration.