Wells Fargo hires ex-Merrill director for Abbot Downing business

Wells Fargo & Co has named former Bank of America Merrill Lynch managing director Paul Cummings as the new Northeast regional managing director for the company's ultra-wealthy Abbot Downing business.

Cummings, who had previously been head of channel management for the managed solutions group at Merrill Lynch, joined Wells Fargo on Friday. He had been with Bank of America since 2006 and also previously led the firm's institutional investments group.

"One of my key drivers for coming over to Abbot Downing is the boutique (culture) and the ability to put the client front and center ... which is really what is needed in this client segment," Cummings said in an interview.

Cummings joined Abbot Downing, the newly branded ultra-high-net-worth wealth management unit Wells launched in April after combining its family wealth unit and Lowry Hill boutique subsidiary.

The unit, a part of Wells' Wealth, Brokerage and Retirement group, caters to individuals and families, their foundations and endowments, with $50 million or more in investable assets and has a total $31 billion in client assets under management.

In his new role, Cummings will oversee asset management, banking, planning, trust and fiduciary, and family dynamics services through dual offices in New York and Philadelphia.

"Our long-term goal is to grow and expand throughout the Northeast region," he said. "It's a critical wealth market."

Prior to working for Bank of America, Cummings was a managing director of the Advisor Wealth Group Services at The Bank of New York, where he spent 14 years. During his time there, Cummings worked in both the private client services and asset management sectors.

(Reporting by Ashley Lau in New York; Editing by Phil Berlowitz)