Industry News from Financial Planning

Marketing experts suggest alternative ways for firms to promote themselves after a $6 million "gift" received by a former top editor at Forbes was seen as tarnishing the publication's industry awards and rankings.

SER Summit co-founders Vanessa Martinez and Ana Trujillo Limón preview the professional development and networking in store for attendees next week in Denver.

Industry experts say custodial firms' services have largely become "commoditized." The acquisition of Altruist opens the door for Vanguard to have cutting-edge services related to tax planning, cash sorting and more.

More than half of the independent brokerages participating in this year's IBD Elite study declined to disclose the share of women among financial advisors at their firms. Those that did provide data have done more to advance women than many of their rivals in the independent brokerage channel of wealth management.

Recruiter Jeff Nash of Bridgemark Strategies created five calculator tools that aim to help financial advisors understand the key contributors to their revenue, expenses and take-home compensation as they weigh their potential next moves.

Press an "easy button" for an internal succession or go the harder, often more lucrative route of leaving an employee brokerage to sell an independent practice? A new report from one recruiting firm shows which lane most advisors choose.

Rick Simonetti knows it's not easy recruiting private bankers and then moving their clients and assets. That hasn't stopped him from building Fidelis Capital into a $3 billion firm built largely on bankers pulled from Wells Fargo and Bank of America.

Two experts in mergers and M&A sales explained how and why RIA owners need to clean up their data, get a formal valuation and figure out other technical questions before they make a succession deal.

With its Estimated Value Index, the valuation expert FP Transitions seeks to give RIA owners a leg-up in knowing just what their firms can most likely fetch in a sale.

As Vestmark marks 25 years, CEO Karl Roessner explains how the RIA-focused platform grew to $50 billion by leaning into AI while keeping client data in-house.

Industry consultants recommend steps RIAs in Schwab's referral network can take if they're worried about competition for clients.

Over the past decade, the annual revenue gap between LPL and any other independent brokerage has soared to more than 100% from less than 1%. But that doesn't mean that the No. 1 firm can rest on those laurels.

As analysts raise concerns that AI could undermine the economics of generous transition deals, executives at Ameriprise, Stifel and Raymond James wonder if firms are paying too much to recruit advisors.

In a constantly changing industry, clearing and custody fees defy generalizations. The largest independent broker-dealers present financial advisors with the choice of working with a "self-clearing" firm or one that outsources those essential services.

The printable PDF includes rankings based on the firms' 2025 revenue as well as the number of financial advisors, compensation, total client account assets and more.

Women are projected to receive more than $100 trillion in the so-called great wealth transfer. But their planning needs can differ from men's.

Web designer Bonfire Studio asked ChatGPT for advisor recommendations in five metro markets. The results give advisors more reason to tend to their online presence.

A succession merger deal that was nearly 10 years in the making at Nebraska-based Prairie Wealth Advisors offers a lens into the many factors involved with the wealth management industry's looming financial advisor retirements.

Altruist has earned legions of fans among financial advisors for sleek technology and low, clear fees. But its critics question whether that is enough to catch up to the giants that have dominated the business for decades.

An industry recruiter said departing Commonwealth teams tend to stick with brokerages because their objections are less to IBDs and more to LPL. Generous transition deals also help.