Merrill hires Morgan Stanley director to head insurance

Maghini, a nearly three-decade industry veteran, will join Bank of America as a managing director on the company's personal wealth and retirement solutions team.

"When you look at the future of the insurance and annuities space, it's not one of purely a product - it's more of a 'how does it fit into somebody's wealth' strategy," said the team's head, David Tyrie, in an interview on Monday.

Tyrie, who was involved in the hiring of Maghini, said Maghini's varied background in areas of business and platform development, product marketing and strategic planning led to his selection for the role.

"The appeal was the length and depth in areas of his expertise," Tyrie said.

Maghini was previously a director of distribution for Morgan Stanley Smith Barney's annuity and insurance services business, and he had also previously worked for Citigroup, SunAmerica Asset Management and UBS.

In his new role, Maghini will be responsible for product strategy and management of the bank's annuity and life insurance products. He replaces John Mulhall, who left the company at the end of July.

Maghini will begin his new role on October 1 and be based out of the Bank of America tower at One Bryant Park.

Morgan Stanley Smith Barney did not immediately return a request for comment.

(Reporting by Ashley Lau in New York; editing by Andrew Hay)