Frank Porcelli, chief operating officer of Merrill Lynch Investment Managers Americas, has been tapped to run BlackRock's private client group when the merger between the two firms closes in the third quarter, according to a regulatory filing.

Porcelli, who joined MLIM last year following stints at Putnam, Goldman Sachs and Smith Barney, will report to Barbara Novick, managing director and head of BlackRock's account management group.

The merger, announced in February, would make New York-based BlackRock one of the largest asset managers in the world, with about $1 trillion in assets.

Anne Ackerley, who has headed BlackRock's private client business since 2000, will become the chief operating officer of the group. She will be responsible for driving business across three distribution channels, along with overseeing business analytics and product development and management.

The private client group's distribution efforts in the Merrill Lynch global channel will be headed by Michael Bitterly, while distribution among financial professionals outside the Merrill Lynch channel will be led by John Brett. Mike Saliba, meanwhile, will be responsible for building sub-advisory alliances with investment, insurance and retirement companies.

Dan Dart, COO of MLIM's non-proprietary business since 2002, has decided to retire and will lead his team until the merger is completed.

BlackRock's director of marketing and product management for the private client group, Sheila Lamb, will form a cross-channel marketing team when the transaction closes. 

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