UBS Hires $1.3B Tampa Team from Bank of America Private Bank

By Patrick Donachie Mon, July 27, 2026 at 9:04 AM PDT | 2 min read

A four-advisor team based in Tampa, Florida, managing approximately $1.3 billion in client assets, has joined UBS from Bank of America Private Bank, the Swiss-based wirehouse announced.

The advisors—Jesse Flatt, Lea Ann Drew, Brandon Burns, and Carlos Rodriguez—will join UBS's Greater Florida/Gulf Coast Market under the supervision of Tampa Bay Senior Market Director Jack Heiss.

According to Heiss, the team built their careers around serving ultra-high-net-worth and business-leader clients. UBS Southeast Regional Director Julia Fox noted that the team brings more than 100 years of combined experience and has "spent decades building deep relationships throughout the Tampa community."

As part of UBS, the team will work with client families, individuals, and executives on financial services including:

• Investment management
• Tax needs
• Estate planning
• Asset allocation

Advisor Backgrounds

• Jesse Flatt has nearly 20 years of industry experience, with advisory roles at Invesco, BlackRock, Morgan Stanley, and Merrill Lynch. Before serving as a senior portfolio manager at Bank of America Private Bank, he was a portfolio manager at RBC Rochdale.

• Lea Ann Drew has approximately four decades of industry experience, beginning with Barnett Bank in St. Petersburg, Florida, in 1988. In addition to nearly 15 years with Bank of America Private Bank as a senior trust officer, she previously worked for Wells Fargo Private Bank and SunTrust in similar roles.

• Brandon Burns was a portfolio manager at RBC Rochdale before joining Bank of America Private Bank in 2022. He served as a market investment executive and senior portfolio manager in Central and North Florida, and also mentored other portfolio managers and private wealth advisors.

• Carlos Rodriguez spent 30 years in the industry, including 14 years at SunTrust Bank and the previous 12 at Bank of America Private Bank as a wealth strategies advisor.

UBS Leadership and Strategy

Earlier this year, UBS CEO Sergio Ermotti said the bank is identifying candidates to replace him, as he hopes to step down by spring 2027 at the latest. In a January interview, Ermotti expressed a preference for an internal successor.

Potential internal successor candidates include:

• Beatriz Martin, Chief Operating Officer
• Aleksandar Ivanovic, head of the firm's asset management business
• Iqbal Khan and Ribert Karofsky, wealth management co-leaders

During a conference in May, Ermotti also floated the possibility of acquisitions by the firm's American business as another option to boost growth. Earlier this year, the bank's Americas business recorded client inflows of $5.3 billion for the first three months of the year, following three straight quarters of outflows.

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