Raymond James grabs 12-person Wells Fargo team

A 12-person advisory team from Wells Fargo has bolted the bank and joined Raymond James, the most recent defection from Wells to the independent broker-dealer.

Twice as many Wells Fargo advisors this year compared to last year have been departing, often for regional IBDs, in the wake of the bank's ongoing wave of scandals that burst into public view two years ago, according to hiring announcement data analyzed by On Wall Street earlier this year.

• Going independent
• Raymond James Financial
• Career moves
• Dynasty Financial Partners
• Merrill Lynch
• Stifel Financial
• Recruiting
• Wirehouse advisors
• Wells Fargo Advisors
• RIAs

Advisors on the move: 71 of biggest, most recent jumps

Dynasty, Raymond James and Stifel are among the biggest beneficiaries of recent advisor moves.

By Andrew Welsch

1 Min Read

Advisors from Financial Services & Investment Strategies Group in Mountain Home, Arkansas, declined a request for an interview. At Wells, the group managed $560 million in client assets, according to a release.

“We spent a great deal of time researching opportunities for the best fit for our clients and our growing practice,” Jackson Rhoades, a principal of the group and its branch manager, said in the release. "We are excited about reshaping and rejuvenating our business here at Raymond James."

John Blair

Wells has paid well over $1 billion in regulatory fines due to various scandals since admitting it opened as many as 3.5 million fake accounts under clients' names in 2016. Earlier this year, it paid $114 million to wealth management customers it may have overcharged, contributing to a 37% drop in the group's second-quarter profit. And in response to requests from various federal agencies, Wells initiated internal investigations of its wealth management group, whose reputation has taken a hit, according to John Shrewsberry, Wells' CFO.

In the first six months of this year, more than 120 brokers left the wirehouse, On Wall Street found.

Of departing wirehouse advisors, industrywide, who moved smaller regional firms in that time, about 60% came from Wells Fargo, according to the On Wall Street analysis. That's nearly double the percentage for the first six months of 2017.

Advisors on the Arkansas team include Rhoades, the group's client contact manager; Jan Schmeski, client contact manager; Mike Stockton, client events manager; David Matty, new client manager; Logan Stone, client financial plan manager; and Steve Bettenhausen. The team includes a support staff of six.