Bob Wigley takes his bow from Merrill Lynch
Bob Wigley, Merrill Lynch’s most senior Europe-based banker and one of the best known names in the London market, has stepped down as chairman of the US investment bank’s business in Europe, the Middle East and Africa, ahead of the completion of its merger with Bank of America.
Wigley holds several high-profile board memberships including sitting on the board of LCH.Clearnet and last week published a report for London mayor Boris Johnson on how the city can retain its position as a global financial centre.
He joined Merrill Lynch 12 years to help build the US bank’s nascent European investment banking business. In 2000 he was made co-head of corporate broking and a year later became co-head of UK investment banking.
Two years later, having been promoted to global co-head of telecom and media investment banking, he became chairman of EMEA corporate banking before taking up his current job in December 2004.
Merrill Lynch chairman and chief executive John Thain described Wigley as an “outstanding client banker” in a memo to staff and praised him for his work spearheading the development of the US bank’s European investment banking business.
In addition to his chairmanship of Merrill Lynch’s EMEA business, Wigley holds several major directorships, serving on the Court of Directors of the Bank of England and as part of the Chancellor’s “wise men” group representing major London market institutions.
His name has frequently been linked over the years with a series of top jobs including most recently as a replacement for Clara Furse as chief executive of the London Stock Exchange.
Wigley is respected by investment bank peers as an authority on European market infrastructure and was an outspoken backer of the Mifid trading reforms that allowed the emergence of competition for Europe's largest exchanges when the directive was introduced last year.
Questions had been raised about Wigley’s position following the agreement between Merrill Lynch and Bank of America in September to combine the banks’ European businesses.
Bank of America, which will formally take over Merrill on January 2, is expected to announce a replacement shortly.
In the memo to staff Merrill Lynch said Wigley intended to “focus on the next stage of his career” following a brief hand-over period.
-- Write to Harry Wilson at hwilson@efinancialnews.com and Luke Jeffs at ljeffs@efinancialnews.com
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