Raymond James recruiting sweep nets nearly $2B in new hires

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Raymond James recruiting efforts have netted the firm advisors managing nearly $2 billion in client assets, according to company announcements.

The newest additions further the company’s aggressive hiring streak and in some cases will open new branches.

Among the latest hiresare a former UBS team that managed approximately $1.2 billion. Advisors Jared Stricklin, Darryl Dunn and Robert Meeder joined Raymond James’ employee channel in Kansas City where they staff a newly opened office. Each advisor had been with UBS for a decade or more, according to FINRA BrokerCheck records.

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Billion-dollar teams are voting with their feet. Here’s where they are going.

June 29

The team includes financial planning consultants Alin Frentzen and Lucas Harris and senior registered sales associates Deborah Doss and Wendy Jennings. The group caters to medical professionals, engineers, business owners and executives.

“This foundation, along with Raymond James’ broad resources, will allow us to continue providing our clients with high quality service,” Dunn said in a statement.

Also departing UBS for Raymond James are advisors Michael Brown, Tammy Brown and Adam Brown. They are based in Clayton, Missouri and now operate on the independent side of Raymond James. The team previously oversaw about $300 million and are joined by director of communications Victoria Viefhaus and RJFS director of client services Suzanne Markus.

Mike Brown pointed to Raymond James’ technology as one reason for making the move. “Transitioning during a pandemic presents its unique challenges, but having the best technology we’ve seen and the support offered made our move go as smoothly as possible, despite doing everything remotely,” he said in a statement.

Staffing a new Raymond James office in Albuquerque, New Mexico is advisor Edwin Lamberty. He previously oversaw more than $126 millionwith Wells Fargo Advisors, according to his new employer.

Lamberty, who had been with Wells Fargo since 2011, says he was impressed and chose Raymond James after participating in virtual meetings with company staff and leaders.

Advisors John Cleary and Renee Rossi left Merrill Lynch to join a Raymond James employee branch office in West Hartford, Connecticut. They previously oversaw $108 million, according to Raymond James.

Cleary and Rossi are industry veterans, having started their financial services careers in 1996 and 1981, respectively.

In Atlanta, Raymond James’ independent BD picked up a former Wells Fargo advisor, Kimberly Evans, who oversaw more than $190 million. Anne Serianni, relationship manager, also made the move. They are partnering with Avenue Wealth Management Group, a Raymond James-affiliated team based in Athens, Georgia. Evans has more than two decades of experience in the industry.

Raymond James fields approximately 8,200 independent and employee advisors, according to the firm. The company has $877 billion in client assets.

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