Eric Payne

Top Wealth + Best-in-State · rank 3 · Indianapolis, Indiana · listed firm: Merrill Wealth Management

Identity & firm

• Firm — Merrill Wealth Management (Payne & Mencias Group) (high)
  • “MERRILL LYNCH, PIERCE, FENNER & SMITH INCORPORATED” — sec_finra_regulatory
  • “At the Payne & Mencias Group, we bring together our” — firm_official
• Parent company — Bank of America (high)
  • “Access to Bank of America Private Bank trust/fiduciary services” — firm_official
• Firm type — wirehouse (high)
  • “MERRILL LYNCH, PIERCE, FENNER & SMITH INCORPORATED” — sec_finra_regulatory
• Team name — Payne & Mencias Group (high)
  • “At the Payne & Mencias Group, we bring together our” — firm_official
• Team size — 16 (high)
  • “With access to our 16-member team with cumulative Merrill tenure of over 260 years and Merrill's investment insights, we work together to create an approach designed to help you move forward with clarity and purpose.” — firm_official
• CRD — 2757783 (high)
  • “2757783 ERIC SCOTT PAYNE” — sec_finra_regulatory
• Years experience — 26 (medium)
  • “MERRILL LYNCH, PIERCE, FENNER & SMITH INCORPORATED 7691 1/2/2000” — sec_finra_regulatory
• Designations — CFP (high)
  • “Eric Payne, CFP® - Managing Director, Wealth Management Advisor” — firm_official

Book of business

• Team AUM ($M) — 3500 (high)
  • “"Team Assets (Custodied)":"$3.5B"” — forbes_shook
  • “Our team is proud that clients have entrusted us with over $4 billion in assets and liabilities, as of March 2026.” — firm_official
• Account minimum ($M) — 1 (high)
  • “"Minimum account size for new business":"$1M"” — forbes_shook
• Typical client net worth ($M) — 15 (high)
  • “"Typical Net Worth of Relationships":"$10-20M"” — forbes_shook
• Client niche — generalist (medium)
  • “We work with clients locally and across the country, and believe every client deserves the same level of personalized care and attention.” — firm_official
• Custodians — gap: not_applicable
• Fee model — fee_plus_commission (medium)
  • “MERRILL LYNCH, PIERCE, FENNER & SMITH INCORPORATED” — sec_finra_regulatory

Positioning & marketing

• Website url — https://advisor.ml.com/sites/in/indiana-pmw/payne_mencias (high)
  • “At the Payne & Mencias Group, we bring together our” — firm_official
• Value proposition (verbatim) — We believe financial planning works best when it is practical, intentional, and flexible enough to evolve with your life. That's why we focus on understanding the key moments and decisions that matter — from planning for education or health care needs to navigating major purchases, business transitions, or legacy goals. (high)
  • “We believe financial planning works best when it is practical, intentional, and flexible enough to evolve with your life. That's why we focus on understanding the key moments and decisions that matter — from planning for” — firm_official
• Differentiators — 16-member team with cumulative Merrill tenure of over 260 years, Over $4 billion in client assets and liabilities as of March 2026, Every relationship starts with a conversation about goals and family, Clear, approachable financial conversations so clients feel informed and at ease, National client base served with the same personalized care as local clients (high)
  • “With access to our 16-member team with cumulative Merrill tenure of over 260 years and Merrill's investment insights, we work together to create an approach designed to help you move forward with clarity and purpose.” — firm_official
  • “Every relationship starts with a conversation. As a team, we take the time to get to know what's important to you — your goals, your family, and the choices you're considering.” — firm_official
• Content marketing — occasional (medium)
  • “alt="2026 midyear outlook"” — firm_official
• Has podcast — no (medium)
  • “At the Payne & Mencias Group, we bring together our” — firm_official
• Books published — 0 (low)
  • “Eric Payne, CFP® - Managing Director, Wealth Management Advisor” — firm_official
• Linkedin url — https://www.linkedin.com/in/eric-payne-cfp%C2%AE-a0725586/ (medium)
  • “Eric Payne, CFP® - Merrill Lynch Wealth Management | LinkedIn” — social_or_third_party_db
• Social presence — linkedin_active (low)
  • “Eric Payne, CFP® - Merrill Lynch Wealth Management | LinkedIn” — social_or_third_party_db
• Press awards — Barron's "Top 250 Private Wealth Management Teams", 2025-2026, Barron's "Top 1,200 Financial Advisors", 2009-2025, On Wall Street "Top 40 Advisors Under 40", 2013-2016, Indianapolis Business Journal Forty Under 40, 2015 (high)
  • “Barron's "Top 250 Private Wealth Management Teams", 2025-2026 (Published annually in May. Years pre-dating 2024, published as Barron's "Top 100 Private Wealth Management Teams" list annually March - April. Rankings based” — firm_official
  • “2015 Forty Under 40: Eric Payne – Indianapolis Business Journal” — professional_press

Visual brand

• Has distinct logo — no (medium)
  • “” — firm_official
• Logo url — gap: not_found_after_search
• Visual brand notes — Merrill corporate template: navy and white with sans-serif type; full-bleed team and market-outlook photography; no team-specific mark or palette. (medium)
  • “<img style="object-fit:cover;object-position:center;width:100%;aspect-ratio:3390 / 1130" src="https://dyn.mktgcdn.com/p/zOWCy2JbbfJ-C9CXCMZSabovqq1RQFQDfWmFroTt0Mo/width=500,height=500"” — firm_official

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