Operations newsflashes: Advest Names Wellington Head of Operations and Technology, and more

Advest Names Wellington Head of Operations and Technology

John Wellington was named director of operations and technology at Advest Inc. He will assume responsibility for the Hartford, Conn.-based firm's operations and technology areas effective immediately, Advest announced. He also will become a member of Advest's board of directors and executive committee, reporting directly to the president.

Most recently, in an interim position , Wellington lead Advest's conversion to First Clearing. Previously, he was senior vice president, director wealth management and advisory services, at the firm, a subsidiary of AXA Financial.

In his new role, Wellington's responsibilities include the majority of Advest's non-sales and marketing groups, including operations, retail credit, client services, general services, New York Stock Exchange and American trading floors, information technology, telecommunications and facilities management.

Wellington joined Advest in 1997 as a complex manager. He has played key roles in the firm's integration with The MONY Group, the introduction of both PRISM and AdvisorDecide, and the growth of the firm's advisory services capabilities.

Financial Community to Participate in Counterterrorism Exercise

The Securities Industry Association (SIA) and The Bond Market Association (TBMA) will participate in U.S. TOPOFF3, a counterterrorism exercise being conducted this week by the Department of Homeland Security (DHS). The SIA and TBMA will test emergency notification procedures with market participants and regulators.

During the exercise, which is mandated by Congress, market participants will report the status of market infrastructure and activity with regulators, and explore how the simulated terror scenario might affect market operations. Results of the test will be reported back to the DHS.

This is the third congressionally directed, weapons-of-mass-destruction exercise series. However, TOPOFF3 is the first exercise to include a significant number of private sector participants, say SIA and TBMA. Other participants from the financial community include the Securities and Exchange Commission, the U.S. Treasury Department and the Futures Industry Association.

Both the SIA and TBMA will hold a conference call on April 5 to discuss the results of the exercise.