Merrill's Big Plans

Not so, says Krawcheck. These are broker/dealer reps, not investment advisors, and they “put clients first, they’re strong client advocates.” She cautioned a reporter to be careful of rushing to judge that RIAs are “superior.” Part of the Merrill Lynch culture is to “put clients first,” she asserted.

To that end the new ad campaign “help2″ portrays Merrill Lynch helping clients get back to investing: “help2 grow, help2 retire, help2 succeed, help2 cherish, and help2 make it last.”

The Bank of America-Merrill Lynch combination is formidable and they seem to be tackling an area that has long been a thorny issue for financial supermarkets: referrals. Krawcheck notes that for the year-to-date there have been 43,000 referrals from “consumer [banking] into wealth management.” She explains that there is “significant opportunity” to sustain referrals for a long, long time: there are so many affluent consumers banking at Bank of America–those with $250,000 or more to invest–that the consumer bank could refer 25,000 customers a month–into wealth management “for 50 years.”

At the press event, Krawcheck also introduced findings of a Merrill Lynch Affluent Insights Quarterly survey–a phone survey of 1,000 affluent investors with $250,000 or more to invest, nearly half of whom (48%) work with either a Merrill Lynch broker or another advisor. Trust was big issue among survey participants: 81% state that their financial advisor: “Is someone I trust.” A majority of those surveyed, 78%, say their advisor: “Gives me customized advice that addresses the specific needs and challenges I face.” And 77% say that their financial advisor: “Is proactive when it comes to advice and guidance.”