Career advancement

Edward Jones meanwhile reshuffles its leadership ranks amid its push to become a full-service financial planning firm, and Rockefeller picks up big teams from Merrill.

The choice of brokerage or RIA firm involves any number of factors and a range of timelines. Here's what the numbers and experts suggest are the main drivers.

In a big week for industry recruiting, Stifel lands practices managing $2.9 billion at Merrill, Merrill recruits a $1.9 billion team from Raymond James and Rockefeller pulls part of a $2.3 billion team from UBS.

Modern Wealth also takes on $1B in AUM through two acquisitions, and LPL hires a chief data, AI officer from JPMorgan.

The M&A flow may suggest that only the giants of wealth management will be able to navigate the business, but that dominating narrative is wrong.

Also this week, Raymond James recruits from Morgan Stanley, and Mercer Advisors and EP Wealth Advisors make big M&A deals.

Experts say those survey results simply reflect successful and experienced teams, but the alphabet soup of certifications presents tough choices for current and aspiring professionals.

Also this week, Ameriprise CEO James Cracchiolo sees a 12% bump in compensation in 2024 and new LPL CEO Rich Steinmeier also sees a hefty pay bump.

Citi's proxy statement praises its head of wealth for bringing in net new assets and talent.

Stifel pulls a $1.35 billion team from Raymond James, while LPL draws from Edward Jones and Wells Fargo, in advisor moves this week.