In the News

LPL losing a top recruiter

July 14, 2014 By Bruce Kelly, Investment News 

Joseph Line has joined Wells Fargo Advisors; others have also left recently

LPL Financial is losing one of its leading recruiters, Joseph Line, in the wake of three other recruiters resigning in the past year and a half.

A 12-year veteran of LPL, Mr. Line told the firm last week he was resigning, according to two industry recruiters outside LPL.

Mr. Line recruits 40 to 60 advisers to LPL annually, with those advisers producing $10 million to $15 million in annual fees and commissions, known as an adviser’s “trailing 12” in the industry, recruiters said.

Mr. Line’s territories for LPL included Kentucky, Tennessee and Ohio.

The other recruiter aware of Mr.

Securities America buying Dalton Strategic Investment Services

July 8, 2014By Bruce Kelly, Investment News

Trend of small and midsize broker-dealer mergers and acquisitions continues to build

The market for broker-dealer mergers and acquisitions continues to heat up as Securities America Inc. said Tuesday it was acquiring Dalton Strategic Investment Services Inc., a small firm with 60 representatives and advisers.

Located in Knightstown, Ind., Dalton will become a branch of Securities America. Securities America is buying the assets of Dalton, namely its reps, but terms of the asset purchase were not disclosed.

Securities America’s announcement to purchase Dalton’s assets comes one day after LPL Financial said it was buying the assets of Financial Telesis Inc., a midsize broker-dealer with 203 advisers who focus on retirement planning.

What Does First Allied’s New Parent Company Look Like?

June 12, 2014

by Diana Britton, WealthManagement.com

Most people in the industry know Nick Schorsch, CEO of RCAP Holdings, as the head of non-traded REIT sponsor American Realty Capital, which has 51 percent market share in real estate direct investment and $10 billion in capital. So it came as a surprise to many when Schorsch announced his plans to acquire independent broker/dealer First Allied this morning.

“It’s very surprising that it’s that type of firm buying [First Allied],” said Ryan Shanks, CEO and founder of Finetooth Consulting.

Why would Schorsch and his four partners make such a big leap into the IBD space? Quite simply, he believes it’s a good investment and believes in the open architecture of the independent space.