Business development

The majority of the top 25 firms boosted their business by double digits in 2018, and five of them reeled in more than 20% growth.

The firm aims for a bigger foothold in a competitive sector with new offerings around tech, service, advisory programs and practice management.

CEO Dan Arnold presented details of the firm's mounting ambition after announcing the acquisition of a brokerage and RIA with $3 billion in client assets.

The IBD network has an inside edge for ensuring advisors are ready if equities suffer a sustained fall, according to its president, Adam Antoniades.

The California firm, backed by Wealth partners, moves into the Pacific Northwest.

The five advisors with $180 million in AUM opted to bolt for the firm launched by a practice once affiliated with Triad Advisors.

The RIA practice with $575 million in AUM joined four teams of similar size who have signed on in the past year.

The 7,500-advisor network agreed to buy certain assets of Foresters Financial’s U.S. BD and RIA.

An upcoming integration with AdvicePay marks the first step in a series of changes to recruiting and service at KMS under Erinn Ford.

Ladenburg Thalmann’s largest IBD also says it recruited more than 300 advisors with $2 billion in AUM in 2018.

Should advisor retention go as planned, Blucora's agreement to purchase the firm would boost its IBD headcount to 4,500 reps.

Commissions and cash-sweep revenue jumped by more than a combined $100 million in 2018 — even as the parent firm’s longtime chairman left the company.

The 12-advisor practice serves clients in a group often neglected by the industry, its managing directors say.

Woodbury Financial Services has added 572 advisors with $22 billion in client assets since the fall of 2017, CEO Rick Fergesen says.

More wealth management pros are joining mastermind groups, driven by the growing realization that the isolation that comes with running a business can hold back the business’s success.

The No. 1 IBD is pitching advisors on the merits of its offerings — but rivals have also added major teams from its ranks.

The CEO said his decision to resign followed a physician’s recommendation in connection with an undisclosed medical problem.

The No. 1 IBD is reaping the benefits of learning the lesson that it “can never move away from the advisor,” according to its head of business development.

Securities Service Network is pitching advisors on its tax offerings, access to management and parent-firm resources.

The past year brought major changes to the IBD network, including the sale of its majority stake and a structural reorganization.