Drew Watson
Managing Director, Head of Art Services
Drew Watson is an art business executive with 20 years of experience in art finance, auction houses, and arts institutions.
In his current role as Managing Director, Head of Art Services at Bank of America, Drew leads a team delivering a suite of art finance and advisory services— including art lending, art consulting, consignment services, art planning, and arts philanthropic services—to private collectors, families, foundations and institutions.
Drew was previously a Business Manager at Christie’s in New York, where he oversaw strategy, P&L, commercial finance, and cross-functional teams for a portfolio of auction and private sale categories generating over $100 million in annual auction turnover. He began his career as an arts nonprofit manager and consultant for visual and performing arts organizations in North America and Europe.
Drew holds a BA in French and Art History from Columbia University, where he also trained as a classical musician in a joint program with The Juilliard School. He also holds an MBA from INSEAD business school and certificates in Art Market Economics, Modern Art, and Contemporary Art from Christie’s Education.
Drew is a regular media contributor to national news organizations including CNBC, Bloomberg, The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, Barron’s PENTA, Yahoo Finance, The Deloitte Art & Finance Report, Artnet, and The Art Newspaper, among others. He is a regular speaker at the “TEFAF Talks” lecture series at TEFAF New York, and he has guest lectured at the Sotheby’s Institute of Art, UC Berkley School of Law, SDA Bocconi School of Management, and the Courtauld Institute of Art.
Drew serves on the Global Advisory Board of The European Fine Art Foundation (TEFAF) and Board of Trustees of The Julliard School. He also chairs the Governance Committee of the Holt/Smithson Foundation. In recognition for his service to the arts and culture sector, Drew was knighted by Sovereign Hospitaller Order of Saint John of Jerusalem, Knights of Malta in 2025.
Connect with a Merrill Private Wealth Advisor.
The Chief Investment Office (CIO) provides thought leadership on wealth management, investment strategy and global markets; portfolio management solutions; due diligence; and solutions oversight and data analytics. CIO viewpoints are developed for Bank of America Private Bank, a division of Bank of America, N.A., (“Bank of America”) and Merrill Lynch, Pierce, Fenner & Smith Incorporated (“MLPF&S” or “Merrill”), a registered broker-dealer, registered investment adviser and a wholly owned subsidiary of Bank of America Corporation (“BofA Corp.”).
