Merrill EPA file.JPG

A view of the exterior of the Merrill Lynch offices in New York in 2007. Merrill Edge, a unit of Bank of America, which bought Merrill Lynch in 2009, will host a recruiting session in Jersey City on Wednesday.

(EPA file photo)

Merrill Edge is looking to add financial advisers in the Garden State.

The unit of Bank of America is holding a meet-and-greet recruiting session Wednesday in Jersey City with investment professionals interested in joining the company’s ranks.

The event takes place between 6 p.m. and 8 p.m. in Merrill Lynch’s offices at 15 Exchange Place. In addition to financial advisers, the company is looking to hire investment salespeople, operations staffers and other services.

Most of these new jobs will be based at the company’s Hopewell call center, though there is a chance of being staffed at a Bank of America branch in the region, said Alok Prasad, head of Merrill Edge, in an interview today. Ideal candidates include those with securities licenses, such as Series 7 and Series 66, and experience in the investment area.

Candidates who attend have the chance to speak directly with recruiters, and some may be offered a job on the spot, Prasad said.

“For the right candidate, we are confident about making job offers right there,” he said.

Prasad said he does not have a target number of candidates he expects to hire out of the event, but he said the fast-growing Merrill Edge plans to add about 100 workers in the New Jersey region over the next year.

Merrill Edge has grown to 1,700 workers nationwide, about 850 of whom are based in the New Jersey region, Prasad said. He said the company needs to grow its workforce to keep up with demand for its service.

Opened in June 2010, Merrill Edge's target clientele is the so-called mass affluent , or households that have between $50,000 and $250,000 in investible assets, which it aims to help them meet long-term investing and savings goals, such as retirement and college-savings plans.

The recruiting comes at a time when other parts of the banking and investment sector are paring workers. Bank of America, for example, in March announced plans to lay off 469 workers from a mortgage servicing center in Newark. Other banks are undergoing broad cutbacks as well.

To register for the Jersey City event, call Andrew Zabelka at 312-806-8388 or email him at andrew.zabelka@bankofamerica.com.

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