RIAs

More than half of RIAs are ‘bullish’; large caps and ETFs are top investment choices

Financial advisors are turning their backs on traditional wirehouses, bank brokerages and independent broker-dealers at rapid pace, according to a new report from Charles Schwab, opting instead for a hybrid model that allows them to serve as both an RIA and a registered rep and expand their pool of potential clients.

The company plans to increase payout for advisors with more than $50 million in assets under management.

The country's seventh-largest, fee-only RIA has carved out an exclusive and extremely profitable niche providing full-service investment advice and services to the ultra rich.

The Boston-company attracted assets from 146 breakaway brokers last year as average assets per breakaway increased by nearly 50% from 2009.

The third largest broker-dealer by headcount and the fifth largest by revenue has grown into a powerhouse of a financial services company over the past decade. Its top executive said in an interview Thursday it plans to add at least 400 more this year.

The Palm Beach Gardens, Fla., investment advisory firm bought Weiss Capital Management Inc, an independent registered investment advisory firm.

In an effort to develop jumpstart its exchange-traded fund business, Russell Investments announced Wednesday it plans to buy U.S. One Inc., a registered investment advisor and ETF provider.

Most advisors segment their clients books, but few do so systematically, according to a Schwab practice management expert.

Registered investment advisors’ assets took an $8 trillion hit in 2009, but they’re rebounding this year with $4.6 trillion in gains.