U.S. Trust Corp. has capped a week of hirings of current and former Citigroup Inc. executives by naming Frances Aldrich Sevilla-Sacasa its president, and she said in an interview that she wants to expand distribution and offer more products.
"U.S. Trust has the perfect foundation to build and expand the business from," said Ms. Sevilla-Sacasa, the new president of the banking subsidiary of Charles Schwab Corp. She joined U.S. Trust from Citigroup Private Bank, where she worked for five years, most recently as president of Latin America private banking and head of its global wealth structuring business.
"We will be focusing on making sure [U.S. Trust] becomes a dominant wealth management firm," she said. "It will probably be a combination of expanding distribution and offering more product."
Ms. Sevilla-Sacasa, 49, was named to the newly created post on Friday. As president, she will oversee the firm's wealth management business in its more than 30 client offices nationally.
Her recruitment was one of a series of high-level hirings by U.S. Trust in the past six months, and one of several from Citigroup.
In May, U.S. Trust hired Peter K. Scaturro to be chief executive officer. He had been chief executive officer of Citigroup's global private bank and a member of the parent corporation's management committee.
Last Tuesday U.S. Trust appointed Peter A. White vice chairman. In the newly created post, Mr. White is to advise U.S. Trust clients and be a company spokesman on issues related to the personal side of wealth. He was a managing director of the family advisory practice at Citigroup's private bank from 1999 through this July.
And U.S. Trust announced Oct. 31 that Miriam Esteve had been appointed executive vice president and head of operations, technology, and project management. She was the head of operations and technology in Citigroup's global wealth management group.
Ms. Sevilla-Sacasa said she plans to expand distribution both by increasing wallet share through U.S. Trust's existing customers and developing new customer relationships nationally and internationally. U.S. Trust will look to develop customers and increase distribution from its hubs in New York, California, and Florida, she said.
"Those will be three important centers from which to leverage our resources and provide a comprehensive array of capabilities," she said. "From there, we will reach to select ultra-high-net-worth clients in Latin America, Europe, and Asia."
The company will open an office in Miami next year, she said. U.S. Trust opened an office in Sarasota, Fla., in January. It entered Florida in 1982 when it opened an office in Palm Beach. Since then, it has started offices in Naples in 1993, Boca Raton in 1994, and Vero Beach in 2000.
"There will be other offices," she said. "We want to make sure that we choose locations and client segments where we can focus our resources and become a dominant player." She said it is still too early to determine where these new offices will be.
Before joining Citigroup, she was a managing director of Deutsche Bank's Latin American private banking group and president of Bankers Trust International Private Banking Corp. Previously, she also worked in the securities industry at Lehman Brothers, where she developed and managed relationships with high-net-worth clients from Latin America and the United States.
In her new role, Ms. Sevilla-Sacasa was appointed to Schwab's executive committee.
U.S. Trust also appointed Leo P. Grohowski to be chief investment officer on Oct. 3. He succeeded Timothy J. Leach, who was named head of U.S. Trust's business in the West. Mr. Grohowski was chief investment officer of Deutsche Asset Management Americas and Scudder Investments.
Ms. Sevilla-Sacasa said Mr. Grohowski will help spearhead the development of products to increase wallet share. She said she expects U.S. Trust will look to add alternative investment capabilities.
"Leo is looking at all of the investment capabilities we have and looking at the tools that clients need in this complex environment," she said. "He is looking into capital markets tools and hedging strategies for our clients."
