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In the News

financial advisors

Recruiting Speeds Up

20:05 31 August in In the News by rafferty

By Dan Jamieson August 2017 issue of Financial Advisor Magazine Recruiting activity among independent broker-dealers is regaining momentum now that the DOL rule is back on track. Many advisors have been evaluating their broker-dealer relationships in light of the new requirements the DOL will impose. Big firms like LPL Financial and Raymond James are changing their payout formulas in response to the rule and others are likely to follow. But independent broker-dealer execs say that some recruits in the pipeline held back on making decisions early in the year after President Trump ordered a review of the rule. That gave opponents of the DOL plan—including many B-Ds and independent reps—some hope that the rule would be indefinitely postponed. But the U.S. Labor Department ended up delaying the initial implementation for just 60 days, to June...

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For small B-Ds, becoming part of a branch office of a larger firm is a viable exit strategy

15:45 26 August in In the News by rafferty

August 25, 2017 By Bruce Kelly, Investment News Such deals allow them to get out from under the cost of running a broker-dealer, but preserves their brand and culture LPL Financial's acquisition this month of the National Planning Holdings Inc. network of four broker-dealers with 3,200 reps and advisers certainly has the independent broker-dealer industry abuzz, but transactions involving smaller broker-dealers are also of keen interest, as well as far more common. ​ At the start of the year, brokerage executives pointed to the potential for large firms buying small firms, which are struggling with compliance and technology costs, and absorbing them as branches called offices of supervisory jurisdiction, or OSJs. Two recent deals or mergers stand out. Royal Securities Co. of Grandville, Mich., a 17-person broker-dealer managing $1.1 billion in assets, in July said it...

H.D. Vest Drops First Clearing for Fidelity

21:28 16 August in In the News by rafferty

August 16, 2017 By Diana Britton, WealthManagement.com The independent b/d's 4,400 advisors are expected to make the transition to Fidelity's clearing platform in mid-2018. Tax-centric independent broker/dealer H.D. Vest Financial Services is switching its clearing firm from First Clearing, a division of Wells Fargo, to Fidelity Clearing & Custody Solutions (FCCS), according to a spokesperson for the b/d. The firm is expected to make the transition in mid-2018. An H.D. Vest spokesperson said the firm did a thorough analysis of its clearing, considering technology platform, service and relationship management, governance, analytics and culture. “H.D. Vest and Fidelity share a common philosophy—that creating an exceptional client experience should be at the core of every business decision,” the spokesperson said in a statement. “HD Vest was looking for the clearing provider with the service and technology that...