Mr. Launny Steffens

Launny Steffens, a former vice chairman of Merrill Lynch is also an investor.

"Launny Steffens is a visionary who has played a leading role in shaping Merrill Lynch.
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"In addition to being a brilliant business leader, Launny has long had a passionate interest in private investment.He has expressed a desire to pursue this interest on a full-time basis, and we anticipate many opportunities for our firm and our clients to work in partnership with Launny in his new venture," Mr. Komansky said.
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"My 38 years at Merrill Lynch have been extraordinary," Mr. Steffens said.
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Mr. Steffens, who was instrumental in establishing broad-based private investment funds for Merrill Lynch employees, will continue to serve as a director for those funds.

Mr. Steffens, 59, is widely recognized as the architect of an asset gathering strategy through which private client assets at Merrill Lynch grew from $189 billion in 1985, when he assumed leadership of the company's private client business, to $1.6 trillion today.At various times during his career, he had leadership responsibility for the company's U.S. and international private client and asset management businesses.

Mr. Steffens became Vice Chairman of Merrill Lynch & Co., Inc. in February 2000, with broad oversight responsibilities for the corporation's global business activities.He has served as one of three employee directors on the company's Board.

Mr. Steffens joined Merrill Lynch in 1963 as a member of its Junior Executive Training program.Upon completion, he became an account executive (now financial advisor) in the company's Cleveland office, and subsequently rose through the management ranks of the private client branch office system.

Among his many industry activities, he has served as Chairman of the Securities Industry Association, as National Chairman of the Alliance for Aging Research, and is a trustee of the Committee for Economic Development.

Mr. Steffens graduated from Dartmouth College in 1963 with a B.A. in economics.He attended the Advanced Management Program at the Harvard Business School in 1979.