BlackRock has hired Michael H. Lewers to head its U.S. private client business.

Lewers will join BlackRock on September 4 from Nuveen Investments, where he spent 10 years as national sales manager in charge of distributing mutual funds, closed-end funds and separately managed accounts at large wirehouses, regional brokers and banks.

A spokesperson for Nuveen told the MFWirethat Lou Holland, a managing director with Nuveen, will be taking over Lewers' responsibilities in the interim.

A spokesperson for BlackRock was not immediately able to provide further details.

At BlackRock, Lewers will be responsible for driving sales of BlackRock investment products through national wirehouse brokers (excluding Merrill Lynch), as well as through regional broker-dealers throughout the country. He will report to Frank M. Porcelli, managing director and head of BlackRock's private client group.

"We are fortunate to be able to bring someone of Mike's caliber on board in the critical role of building out our U.S. Private Client distribution," Porcelli said in a news release.

Lewers joined Nuveen when it acquired Rittenhouse Asset Management in 1997, where he had spent several years in sales and sales management. In June, Chicago-based Nuveen announced it has agreed to be acquired by a group of private equity investors led by Madison Dearborn Partners, LLC. The transaction is expected to close in the fourth quarter.  

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