Bank of America Merrill Lynch’s alternative research offering, “Merrill Open Minds,” has expanded to include The NPD Group, Litigation Notes and The 451 Group, bringing to 10 the number of third-party research providers available on the platform.
The new additions have been prompted by increasing demand from investors for more niche research from specialized resources.
Merrill Open Minds also has introduced “On Demand,” through which eight alternative research providers on the platform can be accessed via a monthly or an annual contract.
Merrill Open Minds brings to clients specialized research covering areas such as socially responsible investing, corporate integrity risk, federal legislation and regulation, litigation, healthcare, technology, media, energy and consumer surveys. Further information about each of these services is available through the Merrill Open Minds’ web site.
The NPD Group provides consumer panel and point-of-sale and consumer panel information across a wide range of industries, including, beauty, technology, entertainment, fashion, food & beverage, home, office supplies, software, sports, toys and wireless. Clients, including manufacturers, retailers and the investment community, rely on The NPD Group to help them drive critical business decisions at the global, national, and local market levels.
Litigation Notes was founded more than 15 years ago by Calvert Crary, an attorney with over 30 years of experience analyzing litigation with investment significance for institutional investors. Their focus is situations in which the potential outcome of litigation may factor into an investment decision, such as patent disputes, product liability and mergers & acquisitions.
The 451 Group tracks emerging information technologies applicable to enterprise IT, assessing the technology landscape and identifying key vendors and trends within fast-growing industry sectors.
“The additions of The 451 Group, Litigation Notes and NPD come at a time when institutional investors are increasingly demanding specialized research in their efforts to navigate today’s difficult market environment,” says Michael Lynch, managing director and head of Americas electronic trading and global commission management, Bank of America Merrill Lynch.
“Many investors also want ready access to the alternative providers on an ‘as needed’ basis, which is why we are giving them the option of a monthly contract for eight providers on the platform.”
“We look forward to working with Merrill Open Minds because of the strength and experience of their sales team across the consumer retail landscape,” says Natalie Seidman, president of financial services, NPD.
“We are pleased to introduce our expertise in litigation analysis to Merrill Lynch’s top institutional clients through our relationship with Merrill Open Minds,” says Calvert Crary, founder and director of research, Litigation Notes.
“We chose to associate with Merrill Open Minds because of the size and expertise of the Merrill Lynch high-touch sales teams, particularly their experienced technology specialty sales group, which can effectively ‘translate’ complex messages to technology investors,” says Martin McCarthy, chief executive officer, 451 Group.
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