MOVES-Marsh-owned Mercer names Astolfi wealth manager head for Italy

MILAN, March 20 (Reuters) - New York-listed insurance broker and risk adviser Marsh said on Friday it had named Matteo Astolfi as wealth leader for Italy at its Mercer unit.

Astolfi will report to Marco Valerio Morelli, CEO of Mercer Italy and work closely with Luca De Biasi, CEO of Mercer Italia SIM, to combine Mercer's wealth and asset management operations more closely.

"Institutional asset management and wealth management are evolving profoundly due to changes in financial markets and investor needs, increasing the importance of taylor-made models and dedicated decision-making," Astolfi said after his appointment.

Astolfi previously led Capital Group's activities in Italy and Greece as managing director and head of client group.

After starting his career at consultancy KPMG, he held roles at CreditRolo Gestioni SIM, which later became Pioneer Investments, and M&G Investments, where he was also country head for Italy and Greece.

On Thursday, Mercer announced it had agreed to buy Spain's AltamarCAM, a specialist private markets asset manager with 20 billion euros ($23.14 billion) in assets, including a 40% stake held by private equity firm Permira.

Mercer currently provides advisory services on assets worth around $16 trillion and manages $692 billion in assets.

($1 = 0.8643 euros)