NEW YORK: UBS Warburg and PaineWebber are merging their communications and marketing functions in the Americas and have tapped PaineWebber SVP Donna Peterman to head the operation.
NEW YORK: UBS Warburg and PaineWebber are merging their communications and marketing functions in the Americas and have tapped PaineWebber SVP Donna Peterman to head the operation.
The news follows the recent acquisition of PaineWebber by UBS Warburg's parent company, UBS Group. Both UBS Warburg and PaineWebber will retain their names in the US. Peterman will report to John Costas, CEO of UBS Warburg, and Joseph Grano Jr., CEO of PaineWebber.
UBS Warburg has 35 PR employees, and PaineWebber has 25. None of the jobs will be cut following the consolidation, according to a spokesperson.
However, UBS Warburg's head of corporate communications, Anthony Zender, did leave the company following the merger.
David Walker, former VP of media relations for PaineWebber, will head up media relations for the Americas. Neil McGarity of UBS Warburg has been appointed co-deputy covering the corporate and institutional communications, while PaineWebber's Paul Marrone has been named co-deputy handling private client businesses.
By combining their PR and marketing functions, the firms hope to build on their strong but highly differentiated brands. PaineWebber is well known in the US as a securities firm, while UBS Warburg is primarily recognized as an investment bank and has a high profile in Europe.
UBS Group's dollars 11.8 billion acquisition of PaineWebber - completed on November 3 - strengthens the company's US position significantly. About 70% of UBS Group's staff is now located in America.
