Women’s superpower: Investing

Watch our experts share ways to tap into your ability to build a more secure financial future.

Watch now

Women’s superpower: Investing

Watch our experts share ways to tap into your ability to build a more secure financial future.

Watch now

The Russo Rosenstein Group

Learn more about an advisor's background on
FINRA's BrokerCheck

Merrill Lynch
Wealth Management

For successful professionals and wealthy families,
we offer a sophisticated suite of financial strategies
commensurate with the opportunities and challenges they face.

Welcome

At The Russo Rosenstein Group, we operate under a basic premise – that so much in clients’ lives revolves around money. Accounting for clients’ ambitions, situations and desires to make wise financial decisions, we are motivated by the belief that our performance plays a critical role in enhancing and enriching the complex financial lives of those we serve.

True to our mission, we deliver a boutique level of personal service and attention that extends beyond that of most financial advisors. By educating and coaching our clients at every opportunity, our highly credentialed and industry-recognized advisors are able to ensure that clients follow the integrated strategies we formulate on their behalf.

To build lasting and meaningful advisory relationships, we choose to work with a finite number of clients – and do more for each of them. We also understand that – despite surface similarities between investors – their unique planning needs should drive every recommendation. Having honed our planning-based approach over many years, we are well equipped to help clients explore and prioritize their goals for themselves, their families and their communities.

Additionally, because our clients’ business and personal lives often intersect financially, we assist with both – and in many cases, provide assistance to business owners for their individual and corporate 401k and defined benefit plans. In fact, we provide plan design and implementation for more than 100 business owners.

Over the years, we’ve developed the rich experience and demonstrated ability to manage high concentrations of wealth for our affluent, nationwide clientele – including many individuals who’ve been referred to us. We are fully invested in supporting these clients and welcome the opportunity to serve you, as well.

An Impressive Clientele

At The Russo Rosenstein Group, we don’t define clients by the value of their assets – but instead, by their personalities, priorities and aspirations. Our clients span life stages and the wealth continuum – from individuals entering peak earning years, to those nearing retirement, to others who’ve already traded their seat in a boardroom for one on a golf cart.

While diverse in their achievements, the vast majority of our high-net-worth and ultra-high-net-worth clients are financially astute and well educated. In fact, clients’ intellect and curiosity often drive the most productive meetings we have with them.  

Residing throughout New York, New Jersey, and more than 20 other states, these successful men and women include senior-level corporate executives, private business owners and entrepreneurs, partners at law firms, and generations of their families.

More often than not, clients come to us for a more sophisticated level of knowledge and know-how than they enjoyed previously. Some are experiencing significant life or career transitions. Many others don’t have the time or inclination to invest on their own or chart an informed financial course. 

With no cookie-cutter clients, we don’t employ cookie-cutter strategies. To serve those who demand an uncompromised measure of acumen and attention, we concentrate collectively on each client’s most significant goals for family, business and philanthropy. 

We believe that clients appreciate our ability to:

  • Get out in front of their financial needs. As proactive advisors, we help clients plan and prepare for what’s next – selling an enterprise, purchasing real estate, retiring early, or creating a legacy.
  • Handle a wide range of financial matters for them – from risk-managed investing, to efficient tax-minimization and estate-planning strategies, to providing ready access to residential lending and other customized solutions through Bank of America, N.A.
  • Present and communicate our rationales in an uncomplicated manner. We are here to help – not show clients how much we know.

The Complexities of Wealth

At The Russo Rosenstein Group, we serve clients with “plenty on their plates.” Most are leading a company, managing multiple ventures, planning an exit, or caring for elderly parents and children. Given their everyday challenges, we strive to help them achieve what dollars and cents alone cannot – the emotional satisfaction of having wealth and knowing we are well equipped to help manage it.

Like us, our clients recognize the significance of planning – rather being transactional and trading stocks, for example. Accordingly, we proactively help them “see around corners” for opportunities and circumstances that need to be addressed thoughtfully, not emotionally. 

Perhaps most important, we take a highly strategic and analytical approach in examining each client’s overall financial picture – investments, liabilities, trusts (or lack thereof), tax situations and consequences, real estate and business holdings, and protective components including insurance. Building fundamental pillars of financial strength is critical to our efforts – and the success of our clientele.

With decades of rich experience, we know that our multi-faceted efforts must also be multi-generational. Calling upon internal trust professionals, we carefully review documents and make recommendations that can save clients time and money working with their own attorneys. When helpful, we also can create net-worth statements, 

As a team, we believe clients know we’re looking out for them – up to and through a rewarding retirement lifestyle. We don’t “set and forget” anything – not their strategy or portfolio. By doing our jobs well, we help clients who work and play hard, rest easily.

In talking with clients about their families, we remind them that part of our job is helping them leave memories, not just money – finding joy along the way without compromising long-term goals.

In addition to our own insights, we allow clients to benefit from others we’ve assisted in similar positions. We feel fortunate to have long memories and relationships. The referrals we receive tell us we’re proficient in assisting a wide range of clients – from those with straightforward financial to others whose complex financial lives demand sophisticated strategies and tactics.

What You Can Expect

At The Russo Rosenstein Group, our vision of providing superior wealth management is predicated on having a genuine, ongoing appreciation of you – what keeps you up at night, and what gets you up each morning. 

If you’re like most of our clients, you want enough money to support your lifestyle in retirement – without having to make changes you don’t anticipate. Ours is a heartfelt commitment to provide high caliber intelligence and insight. 

Quite often, we are surprised by the expectations of new clients. Most have only an inkling of the breadth and depth of our offering. As our client, you can expect that we will:

  • Examine your full financial picture, to help optimize your financial strength and stability. We will scrutinize your liabilities (including mortgages, other loans and credit card debt), insurance coverage, Social Security, long-term-care issues, and estate planning documents. 
  • Use the firm’s award-winning investment research and input from our Chief Investment Office to formulate a diversified portfolio with stocks, bonds, ETFs, mutual funds, and, often, alternative investments* – and when desirable, ESG (environmental, social and governance) investments.
  • Beyond our strong investing competence, we will also focus on helping you achieve tax efficiencies (throughout the year, not just at tax time).
  • Work closely with you and spouse, your grown children and others you designate – on matters related to wealth transfer, trust and estates. In fact, we will do everything possible to help you pass along wisdom, along with your wealth – so that the next generation can become responsible financial stewards, when the time comes.
  • Strive to prevent you from making bad financial decisions, at the wrong time. Through frequent conversation and emails, we will try to “accompany you” through periods of volatility and personal difficulty. At all times, we are straightforward, unbiased and willing to act as a buffer in challenging family situations, or when emotion could drive impulsive decisions.
  • Draw upon the vast resources of Bank of America, N.A. and Merrill. Whether you’re looking to purchase a home, a car, refinance a mortgage, consolidate your banking, or meet with a trust specialist, we will coordinate matters on your behalf. We will also meet with your attorney to align an estate planning strategy, or simply to discuss the titling of documents.  
  • Encourage you to see us as a “first call” and us a “go-to” resource.” We are quick to respond and provide a thoughtful perspective.


We’ve earned our stripes providing a superior wealth management experience to clients. It would be our pleasure to assist you with the same measure of passion and professionalism.


*Some or all alternative investment programs may not be in the best interest of certain investors. No assurance can be given that any alternative investment’s investment objectives will be achieved.
*Impact investing and/or Environmental Social Governance (ESG) investing has certain risks based on the fact that ESG criteria excludes securities of certain issuers for nonfinancial reasons and therefore, investors may forgo some market opportunities and the universe of investments available will be smaller.
*Global Wealth & Investment Management (GWIM) is a division of Bank of America Corporation. The Chief Investment Office, which provides investment strategies, due diligence, portfolio construction guidance and wealth management solutions for GWIM clients, is part of the Investment Solutions Group (ISG) of GWIM.
*Institutional Investor magazine announced BofA Global Research as one of the Top Global Research Firms in 2021 based on surveys held throughout the year. The magazine creates rankings of the top research analysts in a wide variety of specializations, drawn from the choices of portfolio managers and other investment professionals at more than 1,000 firms. BofA Global Research is research produced by BofA Securities, Inc. (“BofAS”) and/or one or more of its affiliates. BofAS is a registered broker-dealer, Member SIPC, and wholly owned subsidiary of Bank of America Corporation. For more information, visit Institutional Investor. Rankings and recognition from Institutional Investor are no guarantee of future investment success and do not ensure that a current or prospective client will experience a higher level of performance results and such rankings should not be construed as an endorsement.

Meet Our Team

Supported by the global resources of Merrill, our team is comprised of talented and experienced individuals committed to building strong client relationships based on trust and personalized service.

Additional Resources

The following specialists do not make securities recommendations. Please contact your Merrill Lynch Wealth Management Advisor if you have questions about how a specialist might be able to assist you.

John Ardito

Wealth Management Banking Specialist

Merrill

Don Romano

Senior Wealth Management Lending Officer

Bank of America, N.A.

NMLS #4023

Staying on Track

We understand that both your life and the financial markets can change over time. By checking in to discuss changes in your life and revisiting your financial approach, our goal is to help you stay on track to achieve what's most important to you.



Reviews to help you
stay on track

We’ll meet with you to review your goals and the progress you’ve made toward reaching them. We’ll also discuss any adjustments needed to your financial approach to help you stay on course.



    Changes in your life
    and to your goals

    Your life and goals change. As these changes occur, we can update your approach to reflect them.

    #DigitalMerrill

    MyMerrill is your online destination for access to your financial information, secure communications, and a robust offering of tools and capabilities.

    Your advisor is a click away within our site or mobile apps

    You can manage account security with our customizable security capabilities such as touch ID, one time passcode, and other security features

    Access to your complete financial life is available with My Financial Picture, Merrill’s asset aggregation tool

      Let’s Have a Conversation

      Helping you reach your goals starts with getting to know you personally. Through understanding what matters most to you, together we can help you create a financial approach that reflects your personality. Only then can we offer an approach that is built around your life priorities and the advice you need to help you address fluctuations in the market and changes in your life. Let’s work together to help you achieve your goals.

      Why Merrill?

      As Merrill Lynch Wealth Management Advisors, we will sort through the financial complexities of your life, helping you build a customized investment approach to address your needs and pursue your goals.


      MLBrochure.png

      We put you first, every day.
      Learn more about the dedicated one-on-one relationship you can have with a Merrill Lynch Wealth Management Advisor.

      Anthem video thumb.jpg 
      Transcript of Video 

      No question too big or moment too small
      For every question you have, every decision you make and every answer you need, we are with you to listen and help guide you along the many paths your life can take. Watch this video to see some questions we can address together.


      The Power of the Right Advisor®
      Working with a dedicated Merrill advisor means you get personalized investment strategies from Merrill plus access to comprehensive financial solutions only Bank of America can deliver.

      Personalized advice from a dedicated financial advisor.

      We get to know you and your family, your financial situation and what matters most to you.

      A comprehensive approach, built around your life’s priorities.

      Drawing from our experience and the best thinking of Merrill, together we will design an approach that reflects your unique needs, priorities and financial situation.

      Adjusting your investment approach as your life and the markets change.

      We will work to help you stay on track, regardless of what the markets are doing.