Articles / Resources

Schorsch Scores Another IBD

22:45 14 August in In the News by rafferty

August 14, 2014 By Diana Britton, Wealth Management.com   Just a week after announcing its acquisition of VSR Financial, Nicholas Schorsch's RCS Capital Corp. (RCAP) reached an agreement to buy independent broker/dealer Girard Securities, a San Diego, Calif.-based firm with 250 advisors and over $10 billion in assets under administration. The two acquisitions bring RCAP’s independent advice empire to over 9,700 advisors and about $200 billion in assets across 11 b/ds. The deal terms were not disclosed. “We view Girard, along with our recently announced agreement to acquire VSR Group, as another example of an exciting accretive ‘tuck-in’ acquisition for our retail investment advice platform,” said Larry Roth, CEO of Cetera Financial Group. Nicholas Schorsch, executive chairman of RCAP, made his initial foray into the IBD space when he purchased First Allied and The Legend Group in June 2013. He’s...

Ladenburg Thalmann to Acquire KMS Financial Services

16:37 12 August in In the News by rafferty

August 11, 2014 By Emily Zulz, ThinkAdvisor   Newest deal to add more than $14 billion in client assets, nearly 325 independent financial advisors, $84 million in revenue Ladenburg Thalmann Financial Services Inc. (LTS) continues to grow its network of independent brokerage and advisory firms with its latest acquisition of KMS Financial Services Inc., a Seattle-based independent broker-dealer and investment advisor. Ladenburg announced on Monday that it had signed a definitive agreement to acquire KMS, which brings with it nearly 325 independent financial advisors with more than $14 billion in client assets and revenues of approximately $84 million for the 12 months ended June 30. The deal is expected to close later this year. Ladenburg will pay approximately $24 million — $11 million of cash, $8 million of four-year notes and 1,440,922 shares of Ladenburg common...

Consolidation 2014: Ladenburg to Buy KMS Financial for $24 Million

18:02 11 August in In the News by rafferty

August 11, 2014 By Diana Britton, Wealth Management.com   Ladenburg Thalmann (NYSE MKT: LTS) said it would acquire KMS Financial Services, a Seattle-based independent broker/dealer with about 325 advisors and $14 billion in assets, for $24 million in cash and stock. After the purchase, Ladenburg will have 3,500 advisors with $110 billion in client assets, and $1 billion in revenue across the firm. As of 1 p.m. eastern time, Ladenburg’s stock was up 5.8 percent. Ladenburg has agreed to pay $11 million in cash, $8 million in four-year notes and about 1.4 million shares of company stock. “Any time there’s some kind of a change, sometimes there’s the trepidation over creation of a lot of disequilibrium, and really we see this quite the opposite—as serving and enhancing the cause of our own continuity out into...

The Ten to Watch 2015: Errin Ford

17:48 11 August in In the News by rafferty

August 8, 2014 By Diana Britton, Wealth Management.com   The Successor Name: Erinn Ford Age: 44 Position: President, Cetera Advisors Location: Seattle; Denver Education: B.A., University of Washington; Series 7, 24, 65, 63 In early 2012, independent broker/dealer Pacific West Securities was hit with a $2.1 million arbitration award over sales of tenant-in-common (TIC) real estate investments—a situation where more than one entity owns a piece of property. The firm, already struggling with thinning profits, decided it was time to close its doors and move its reps (240 at the time) to Cetera Advisors. Erinn Ford, then Pacific West’s chief operating officer and head of marketing, handled the situation gracefully, by all accounts. Ford was recently named president of Cetera Advisors. Earlier this year, the entire Cetera network was purchased by RCS Capital Corp., run by Nicholas Schorsch, one of REP.’s...