FINRA: Broker numbers up for first time in years
May 4, 2023 By Dan Shaw, Financial Planning The number of people joining the brokerage industry increased for the first time in several years in 2022, driven by wealth managers joining both pure-play broker-dealer firms and hybrid outfits with an advisory arm. That's according to the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority's latest industry snapshot, released on Thursday. The number of registered representatives at brokerages rose to 620,882 in 2022, up from 612,435 the previous year. Although that was only a modest 1% increase and the 2022 total came in below the 629,475 registered reps recorded in 2018, it still marked the first time the figure had climbed in at least the five previous years. Increases were seen in both the number of firms registered solely with FINRA, the broker-dealer industry's self-regulator, and so-called hybrid outfits with advisory arms...