(29 June 2010 – Australia) In an effort to climb the M&A ladder Australia’s fourth ranked arranger of takeovers this year, Bank of America Merril Lynch, has appointed Don Argus to lead its advisory team.The ex-BHP Billiton Ltd. Chairman will be joined by BHP director David Crawford, Ian Harper, a professor at the University of Melbourne, and Megan Clark, head of Australia’s National Science Agency.
Craig Drummond, chief executive officer of Bank of America, said in March he would endeavour to return the investment bank to a place in the top three.
The bank currently sits behind JPMorgan Chase & Co., Deutsche Bank AG and Nomura Holdings Inc.
The establishment of an Australia advisory board is a significant step forward, the bank said in an internal memo that was sent to Bloomberg News.