Cerulli Associates

The 1,778-advisor firm constitutes the largest privately held IBD, underscoring the growing appeal of boutique-like models.

Mark Mobius will step down after more than three decades with the firm.

The RIA aggregator inked another big-figure deal after netting more than two dozen firms last year.

Consolidators are doubling and tripling RIAs' five-year performance.

Smart beta growth, fee wars and more attention to risk-management are key trends to watch, say six experts surveyed by Money Management Executive.

Advisors are jumping to firms with established infrastructure.

The funds will classify stocks using artificial intelligence.

The firm aims to maximize its value to advisors, but observers caution that it faces big challenges.

Research into the point system for ranking funds questions whether the metric is valid in gauging future performance.

The firms dominate the space, but they face headwinds in a changing industry, Cerulli says.