Under the leadership of Subha Barry, Merrill Lynch received the Securities Industry Association’s (SIA) third annual Diversity Leadership Award at the trade group’s annual meeting held in Boca Raton, FL, on Nov. 5, a press release said.

“The successes we have had to date are the direct result of the way our financial advisers and colleagues across the firm have embraced diversity and its vast potential. This industry award is particularly gratifying in that it recognizes this ongoing commitment,” she said.

This woman of substance left India 20 years ago to study finance at the Rice University in Ho-uston, TX, and after years of steady accomplishments, she now serves as the vice president of the Multicultural and Diversified Business for Merrill Lynch. Barry’s job includes building the company’s presence among the South Asian, Hispanic, African American, Women’s & LGBT (Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual & Transgendered) market.

She joined Merrill Lynch in 1989 and spent 13 years in the company’s branch office system in the U.S. Private Client Group as a successful and best practice financial adviser and branch manager.

Barry serves on the boards of The Cancer Institute of New Jersey and the Princeton HealthCare System Foundation. She has also served on the board of trustees at the Chapin School in Princeton, NJ.

A three-time cancer survivor, she supports and coaches newly-diagnosed patients with coping strategies and work/life balance. In 1997, Barry won the TWIN –– Tribute to Women in Industry –– award as well as the Women’s Fund of New Jersey Award for Outstanding Achievement in Banking and Finance.

(Compiled from news dispatches and press releases by M. Chooki and Priyanka Mehra)