$300m Morgan Stanley int’l advisor joins Bolton

Bolton Global Capital has recruited a senior Morgan Stanley international advisor for its office in Miami, the firm announced Monday.

Ernesto Cucalon joined the independent broker-dealer and RIA earlier this month, where he will cater to ultra-high net worth clients in Mexico and Colombia, according to Bolton.

He spent the past 12 years at Morgan Stanley where he oversaw a client book of more than $300m in assets. Prior to this, he worked at Merrill Lynch as a senior advisor for 14 years.

Joining Cucalon at Bolton is portfolio associate Luisa Muro, who worked alongside him at Morgan Stanley. Muro was at the wirehouse for around 12 years and has also worked at Merrill Lynch and Andersen Consulting.

At Morgan Stanley, Cucalon was part of five-person team that included fellow senior advisor Mauricio Diez as well as client service associates Muro, Natalia Cucalon and Leslie Garcia, according to the firm’s website.

In their new roles, Ernesto Cucalon and Muro will form part of Bolton’s Miami office, which is led by Michael Averett, the group’s head of business development.

‘Recruiting top industry professionals like Ernesto and Luisa is a major win for Bolton Global Capital. Ernesto is an experienced advisor who will undoubtedly continue to grow and enjoy tremendous success at our firm. We are looking forward to working with both of them,’ said Averett.

Bolton is one of the offshore wealth management firms that has been most actively recruiting international advisors from Morgan Stanley over the past few months. The group’s recent recruits include Ivan Palacino in Miami, $100m advisor Sergio Sotolongo, and 17-year industry veteran Eduardo Cadenas.

Since the start of the year, around 30 of Morgan Stanley’s international advisors have left for rivals such as UBS, Insigneo, Bolton and Raymond James, among others.

Among the main reasons for their departure has been recent new client account restrictions imposed by the wirehouse, which includes raising minimum requirements for accounts coming from Panama and Bolivia, among others.