Fidelity Terminates Transition Management Head

Kevin Byrne, a well-respected industry veteran, lost his job over “failure to supervise,” CIO has learned.

Fidelity Investments has dismissed its head of transition management Kevin Byrne due to his “failure to supervise” junior staff, multiple sources with knowledge of the situation told CIO

According to insiders, a subordinate on Byrne’s team executed an unauthorized transaction on a trader’s unlocked workstation in May, resulting in the immediate dismissal of one Fidelity employee. Byrne was said to be traveling during the incident. 

His nearly five-year tenure at the corporation ended on June 12 with his termination, sources said.

A Fidelity spokesperson would only comment on the current status of the team’s leadership, and the division’s role with the company going forward.  

“John Donahue, the senior vice president and head of equities for Fidelity Capital Markets, is currently serving as the head of the transition management group and we remain committed to this business,” she said.

Byrne led the division as a vice president since August 2010, according to his LinkedIn profile, which still lists him as a Fidelity executive.

Several industry insiders described Byrne as a well-respected transition management professional. 

Prior to joining Fidelity, Byrne spent four and a half years as a managing director with BNY ConvergEx. 

That firm’s transition management business later saw its own controversy. In 2012, well after Byrne had departed, CIO first reported that the firm was charging clients both a commission and a spread on transitions, among other transactions. The former global head of execution has been banned from the securities industry for five years and ConvergEx itself admitted wrongdoing when charged by regulators in 2013. 

Fidelity’s spokesperson would not confirm nor comment on any of the circumstances surrounding Byrne’s departure. “As a matter of policy, we don’t comment on personnel matters,” she said.

Related: 2014 Transition Management Survey; Ex-JPM Transitions Chief Joins New Market Entrant ConvergEx Hit with $150M Fine for Overcharging Clients

Additional reporting by Elizabeth Pfeuti

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