Often times we forget what has happened in the past because we are so focused on the now or the next. Merrill Lynch advisors are currently focused on rumors swirling with regard to new policies, client retention teams, and a looming protocol exit. They’ve forgotten the level of failure that has been spearheaded by their current management over the past five years.
Two hundred billion dollars. $200B. With a B. BILLION. That’s the number of client assets that have left with long-tenured Merrill Lynch advisors in 4 1/2 years. A truly stunning number. Amazing on every level. That number is the equivalent of liquidating the entirety of client assets held at Robert W. Baird.
Put it a different way: Merrill Lynch has lost 100 teams that manage $2B in client assets. Or 200 teams managing $1B in client assets.
When one steps back and realizes the carnage here it is stunning. Truly stunning.
We wonder how a guy like Andy Sieg still has a job. He’s presided over one of the worst drawdowns in the history of modern finance. That isn’t hyperbole. It’s just the truth. And yet, Bank of America has decided that their response isn’t to reassign Mr. Sieg but rather make him more visible with scripts that claim that “recruiting losses are seasonal”.
And to be clear – when Merrill Lynch exits the protocol and presents their advisors with a new set of legal paperwork to sign, the exits will heat up even further.
