At the Bell

Morgan Keegan makes acquisitions

WealthTrust Inc., a startup money-management holding company backed by Morgan Keegan & Co., a regional brokerage house in Memphis,Tenn., has acquired stakes in two regional separate-account managers.

The new affiliates are Wilbanks Smith & Thomas Investment Management LLC of Norfolk, Va., which manages $1.2 billion in assets, and Duncker Streett & Co. of St. Louis, which manages $300 million. WealthTrust affiliates run a combined $2 billion in assets.

Big Board begins trading its first ETF

The New York Stock Exchange on Friday began trading its first exchange-traded fund – the iShares S&P Global 100 ETF, which tracks the Standard & Poor’s Global 100 index. At a press conference, NYSE chairman Richard Grasso said the exchange would unveil a new ETF next year.

Bond group’s chief to resign in May

Heather Ruth plans to resign as president and chief executive officer of the Bond Market Association in May. Micah Green, 43, chief operating officer, has been named president by the association’s board of directors. Ms. Ruth, 56, has been the head of BMA for 18 years. During her tenure, the association grew from six employees to nearly 80, and now actively lobbies for legislation and regulations affecting U.S. bond markets. In a press release, she said she wanted to turn her attention to new challenges.

Ex-chief of Pru set to head Nasdaq

The Nasdaq Stock Market Inc. will have a new boss Feb. 1. Hardwick Simmons, the president and CEO of Prudential Securities Inc. until October, was tapped to replace the Nasdaq’s current chief executive, Frank Zarb.

Mr. Zarb, who said at a press conference he was not retiring, will stay on as the Nasdaq chairman for up to a year. “You can bet I’m going to have another career,” Mr. Zarb said.

CFP Board extends hunt for president

The Certified Financial Planner Board of Standards said Friday that its search for a new president would take longer than originally expected.

The Denver-based CFP Board now hopes to present a short list of candidates to its board of governors in the spring, rather than next month as first expected.

The CFP Board also said it has hired headhunter Heidrick & Struggles in Chicago.

Rule to be drawn on analyst conflicts

Analysts who make stock recommendations in print or on television will have to disclose any conflicts of interest under rules that the National Association of Securities Dealers will develop.

The NASD board of governors last week approved a resolution supporting such disclosures and directing NASD Regulation Inc. to develop the rule.

Arthur Levitt, chairman of the Securities and Exchange Commission, commended the NASD and said the SEC would develop its own rules.

Conseco farms out fund management

Conseco Capital Management Inc. has farmed out management of its stock mutual funds, ending a bid to recruit in-house managers after its equity team left in October (InvestmentNews, Nov. 13).

According to regulatory filings, Conseco turned over management of its Equity, Large-Cap and Balanced funds to Chicago Equity Partners LLC.

Oak Associates Ltd., of Akron, Ohio, is running the Conseco 20 and Science & Technology funds.

Correction

Incorrect information in the database of Competitive Media Reporting caused the parent company of OppenheimerFunds Inc. to be misidentified in a chart. It accompanied a Nov. 27 article about mutual fund advertising. The correct company is MassMutual Financial Group, based in Springfield, Mass.