Bill Wivel, fixed-income portfolio manager at Columbia Partners, in Washington, D.C., is retiring effective Dec.14 after 44 years in the investment management business. Wivel says Gary Dickinson, who has been co-manager with Wivel for the last year, will become sole manager of the firm's $600 million taxable fixed-income portfolio. Wivel says he is leaving the business because, at the age of 69, "It's time to enjoy life." He has been at Columbia Partners for five years, coming over from RIMCO, the investment subsidiary of Riggs Bank, also in Washington. Wivel began managing blended fixed-income and equity accounts in 1957, and has focused exclusively on fixed-income since 1970. He says the biggest change to the business came roughly 10 years ago, when Bloomberg machines became a fixture on portfolio managers' desks. The additional information and analytical tools the Bloomberg provides has only marginally improved managers' performance, but has certainly led to greater trading activity and market volatility.
D.C. Manager Hanging It Up