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When Warren Buffett’s Berkshire Hathaway Inc. invested $5 billion in Bank of America, it capped off a rocky month for the bank and fed speculation that Merrill Lynch financial advisors might seek cover at other firms.
Financial services recruiter Mindy Diamond said she opened this week with about five new multi-million dollar leads on Bank of America Merrill Lynch financial advisors looking to move to another firm.
Now, even after news of Berkshire Hathaway’s investment emerged on Thursday, Diamond said she has not seen that interest subside.
In fact, she spent the first half of the day after the Berkshire Hathaway news broke talking with Merrill Lynch advisors from her Chester, N.J.-based firm, Diamond Consultants.
“From the advisors perspective, their wealth is being eviscerated because a lot of their wealth is tied up in Bank of America stock. There’s been a lot of bad press about the firm and they’re tired of that,” Diamond said. “That volatility is scary. It just makes them feel a loss of control.”
The watch on Bank of America Merrill Lynch’s financial advisors began this month in large part because of the hit the firm took to its stock price, which is also tied to advisors’ compensation.
While Berkshire Hathaway’s injection helped lift...