June 18 (Bloomberg) -- JPMorgan Chase & Co., the largest U.S. bank to repay government capital, hired William Rifkin from Merrill Lynch & Co. to be vice chairman of mergers and acquisitions.

Rifkin will start in September and report to Jimmy Elliott, global head of M&A, New York-based JPMorgan said in a statement today. Rifkin worked on deals including mining company Freeport- McMoRan Corp.’s 2008 acquisition of Phelps Dodge Inc. and Gold Kist Inc.’s sale to chicken producer Pilgrim’s Pride Corp.

“Bill brings more than 30 years of M&A experience, tremendous industry knowledge and deep client relationships to our franchise,” Elliott said in the statement.

Merrill Lynch has lost more than a dozen senior executives since the January acquisition by Bank of America Corp., including Chief Executive Officer John Thain and President Greg Fleming. Investment bankers such as Europe chief Mark Aedy, Americas mergers head Alan Hartman and banker Samuel Chapin, whose clients included Dennis Kozlowski, also have departed.

JPMorgan has worked on $216 billion in announced global deals this year, trailing behind Morgan Stanley and Goldman Sachs Group Inc., according to data compiled by Bloomberg. Bank of America ranked fifth with $156.9 billion. JPMorgan yesterday repaid $25 billion to the U.S. Treasury to exit the Troubled Asset Relief Program.

Rifkin earned a master’s of business administration from Harvard Business School and a bachelor’s degree in economics from Stanford University. He is chairman of the board for the Brooklyn Children’s Museum and a member of the board of the Phoenix House Foundation Inc., a non-profit drug and alcohol treatment center.

JPMorgan spokeswoman Tasha Pelio said Rifkin wasn’t available to comment since he had not started his position.

To contact the reporter on this story: Elizabeth Hester in New York at ehester@bloomberg.net.

Last Updated: June 18, 2009 16:35 EDT