RIAs

The acquisition increases Atlanta Capital’s AUM to $950 million

For Wells Fargo Advisors Financial Network, offering financial advisors more choice in terms of how they want to practice helped propel the business to a record year in recruiting in 2012.

A new addition has helped Focus Financial Partners, the largest partnership of independent wealth management firms, further develop its New York presence.

Senior editor Ann Marsh wrote that more new RIAs were hanging onto commission income rather than choosing a pure fiduciary role. Investment advisor Tom Brakke weighed in on Twitter: “I wanna be called an RIA but I sure like that commission income.” What’s your opinion? Weigh in with your comments below.…

With the new office, the Ric Edelman-owned wealth management firm now has 32 offices in 13 states.

While the number and size of RIA mergers and acquisitions stayed relatively constant last year, the players shifted sharply, according to a new report released Monday by Schwab Advisor Services.

Aspiriant, the industry’s third largest RIA, promoted Michael Kossman, the firm’s chief finance officer, to chief operating officer and hired Bret Magpiong as CFO.

The RIA market continues to grow, but it wound up in second place last year.

This year, Duran said the company plans to aggressively expand its business model, and its brand -- aiming to look more like Starbucks and less like rivals HighTower and Dynasty Financial.

As the RIA industry grows and reshapes itself, advisors need to keep an eye on the shifting competitive landscape. In our annual RIA Leaders report, in addition to identifying the top 50 firms by AUM and by growth, Financial Planning ran the numbers to find 50 emerging fee-only RIA firms to watch.