Articles Written by Jon Henschen

The Decline of Insurance-Owned Broker-Dealers

19:59 03 November in Articles Written by Jon Henschen by rafferty

November, 2011 by Jon Henschen and featured in Investment Advisor Conflicts of interest contributed to insurers’ loosening grip From 1990 up until a few years ago, insurance companies dominated broker-dealer acquisitions in order to gain greater control over insurance product distribution. In case you haven’t noticed, there’s been a steady flow of insurance companies getting out of the broker-dealer business and focusing on their core business: insurance products. Broker-Dealer Insurance Company Owner Sold To Vera Vest Securities Allmerica Life Insurance LPL WS Griffith Securities Phoenix Life Ins. LPL Walnut Street Securities General American Life MetLife Waterstone Securities Pacific Life Insurance LPL Mutual Service Corp. Pacific Life Insurance LPL Associated Securities Pacific Life Insurance LPL Jefferson Pilot Securities Jefferson Pilot Life Ins. Lincoln Financial Multi-Financial ING Lightyear Capital Financial Network ING Lightyear Capital Primevest ING Lightyear Capital Great American Securities Great American Life Ins. Lincoln Investment Planning Brecek & Young Advisors Security Benefit Life Securities America Securities America Ameriprise Landenburg Thalmann   To be certain, private equity firms are now the dominant players in broker-dealer acquisitions,...

Top Five Reasons Advisors Change Broker/Dealer

04:01 08 October in Articles Written by Jon Henschen by rafferty

October, 2011 by Jon Henschen and featured in Investment Advisor Culture shock is the top reason advisors look for a new BD Several years ago I wrote about what motivates advisors to change their broker-dealer. Much has changed since then, so it’s time for an update. This time, rather than basing the reasons solely on our own recruiting experiences, we sought out the feedback of various broker-dealers for greater objectivity. Also, this review focuses on the perspective of advisors who are already at an independent broker-dealer and looking for a new one. We didn’t bring wirehouse advisors into the mix, as their criteria for change are somewhat more static and narrowly focused. The Top Five Reasons Advisors Make a Move: Then Unhappiness with their current relationship Seeking better business support services Looking for better technology Need better product...

Making the Case for Midsized Broker-Dealers

00:00 01 April in Articles Written by Jon Henschen by rafferty

April, 2011 by Jonathan Henschen, CFS and featured in AdvisorOne: Over the course of the last year, fraudulent alternative investments have brought down not only small broker-dealers but also midsized firms such as QA3. With press coverage skewed in their favor, larger broker-dealers continue to chant the mantra of “scale gives advisors an advantage.” As a recruiting firm, we’ve found that midsized firms can be somewhat of a sweet spot in the industry—large enough to be financially viable, but not so large that they become a cookie cutter platform saddled with cumbersome bureaucracy. With the pendulum swinging so far in the direction of larger broker-dealers, I thought it only fair to give the medium-sized firms an opportunity to have the spotlight shine on their...