The Toronto-based bank's U.S. subsidiary has taken in $15 billion in asset inflows in the past two years.

Like 2023, 2024 has been good to Edward Jones. The St. Louis-based firm finished the first quarter with higher revenues and more financial advisors on its payroll.

Executives at the Zurich-based bank say $27B in net new assets for the first quarter put the firm well on its way to its wealth management goals.

Industry experts who track comings and goings at large firms say the advisor staff figures often obscure more than they reveal.

Higher expenses from the record headcount of financial advisors and a continuous stream of recruits and acquisitions are investing in the firm's future earnings, though.

In the first three months of 2024, both profits and client assets reached new heights at RayJay's Private Client Group.

After a mixed quarter for the firm's wealth unit, CEO Ron Kruszewski predicted that the Fed may cut rates zero or just once or even hike them in 2024.

The number of experienced financial advisor recruits fell in the first quarter, but Ameriprise's overall headcount and its profits are on the rise.

During first-quarter earnings calls, top executives of mega firms like Goldman Sachs, Morgan Stanley and Citigroup talked about how they're testing AI and high-tech tools.

The Providence, Rhode Island, company is having discussions with private wealth management teams elsewhere as it seeks to expand its fledgling private bank. In just three months, private banking deposits doubled to $2.4 billion.

Pershing reported higher revenue in Q1 after a rough last year when clients fled due to First Republic's failure. Parent BNY Mellon's CEO Robin Vince said he feels 'very good' about Pershing.

The Bank of America wealth management subsidiary joins Morgan Stanley and Wells Fargo in no longer divulging how many financial planners it has on the payroll.

Morgan Stanley CEO Ted Pick downplayed the importance of government investigations into potential money laundering issues involving wealth management clients. "We've been focused on our client on-boarding and monitoring processes for a good while," he said.

The firm's wealth management business saw strong new assets inflows in the first quarter, particularly from its business catering to family offices.

The New York megabank is working to deploy artificial intelligence as it seeks to make its own operations more efficient. Solomon also sees an "unprecedented" opportunity in financing clients' needs as they invest in AI.

Executives say the results show the wisdom of the firm's deliberate decision to focus on high net worth clients.

The first three months of 2024 were hard on Wells Fargo — particularly for its wealth management division.

The banking giant nonetheless saw strong growth in net new assets in the first quarter and a 14% jump in returns from asset management fees.

Citigroup reported lower first quarter earnings within its wealth unit compared to a year ago. But earnings overall have improved from the fourth quarter, when it took significant losses as it finishes a major organizational restructuring.

FP's annual ranking displays the impact of big one-time awards for four executives and a look at which chiefs netted the biggest increases and decreases in 2023.