Wachovia Wealth Management Names Trafton To Oversee Private Banking Efforts In Florida

Jacksonville, Fla.—Wachovia, the fifth largest U.S. wealth manager, has named Maria Juantorena Trafton, a senior executive with more than 25 years of experience, as Private Banking director for Florida. Trafton, a senior vice president, will be based in Jacksonville and report to Morrison Creech, managing executive of Private Banking.


Trafton will have responsibility for leading teams of Private Banking relationship managers to greater sales execution. She will partner closely with leaders in Florida from Wachovia’s General Bank, Capital Management Group and Wachovia Securities to grow revenue and increase client acquisition.

“I’m excited to join the Private Banking team,” Trafton said. “Wachovia Wealth Management has a clear vision for the future that includes the expansion of its Private Banking business. This is a great opportunity for me to be a part of the group’s growth in this important region by building out Private Banking to better serve the needs of our clients.”

Trafton, a native of Cuba, previously served as Wachovia Wealth Management director for the Georgia, Mid-South and Texas region. She also worked as a managing director in Philadelphia, where she led one of the largest and most productive teams in Wachovia Wealth Management. Prior to joining Wachovia in 1993, Trafton worked with Bankers Trust and Bank One. She earned a bachelor’s degree in business from the University of Texas, graduating summa cum laude. She also earned her master’s of science, graduating magna cum laude from Tulane University.

Private Banking, a new division of Wachovia Wealth Management previously known as the Private Advisory Group, has announced plans to more than double its 240 relationship managers over the next three years. Hiring is targeted in high-growth markets throughout the Wachovia footprint, including Florida, California, Texas and New York. Private Banking relationship managers will partner with the 1,300 financial advisors in the Investment Services Group of Wachovia Securities to serve the investment needs of the affluent market. Growth in the number of American households with $250,000 to $5 million in investable assets is projected to increase 30 percent from 14 million in 2005 to 18 million by 2010.

“With the significant transfer of wealth under way and the increasing number of affluent individuals, Wachovia Wealth Management and our Private Banking teams want to be well-positioned to grow and deliver our robust suite of wealth products and services across a broader client base throughout our Florida region,” said Creech. “Maria will lead our efforts to be on the ground and fully-staffed in the markets where these potential clients are located.”

Creech said that bringing in clients who are new to Wachovia will continue to be a primary focus of the group. Since 2004, the Private Advisory Group has added 30,000 new clients, reporting double-digit growth in loans, deposits, revenue and investment revenue each year. In addition, Private Banking will work closely with Wachovia bankers to serve the personal financial needs of business owners and executives whose firms generate up to $15 million in annual revenue. Wachovia serves nearly 1 million of these firms.

Wachovia’s Private Banking clients are typically working professionals, such as executives, doctors, lawyers and business owners. “These are busy people with complex lives who need advice to simplify their finances,” Creech said. “We know more about their needs than ever before, and Maria and her teams will help us to not only meet, but to exceed their expectations.”

Beginning Jan. 1, 2008, with Private Banking in place to serve affluent clients, the threshold for new Wachovia Wealth Management clients will move up from $2 million to $5 million or more in investable assets. Wachovia will continue to serve Wealth Management clients with its Advantage investment platform, including a full range of traditional investment strategies, such as domestic and international equities and fixed income, as well as a wide range of alternative strategies for high-net-worth investors. Alternative strategies include hedge funds, commodities, real estate and private equity.