IBD Elite

Grappling with margin pressure, consolidation and fragmentation, the sector questions its identity.

Wealth management firms should define success by how well their operations perform under pressure, Kestra Financial COO Kris Chester says in an episode of Financial Planning’s podcast.

The basic yet revealing query shows why it’s not just about FINRA registration as a BD and 1099 contractor status for advisors.

For the first time, the ranks of the top 25 firms according to their annual business include single entries for IBD networks.

This interactive tool provides the full collection of data from Financial Planning's 35th annual study of the largest firms in the space.

Median revenue surged by 18% in the sector, but forward-looking companies have already adjusted to a fast-changing industry.

The stark figures show that only about one-sixth or fewer of the sector’s financial advisors are women.

The combined AUM of the top 10 companies has soared by 60% to more than $770 billion over the past five years.

The largest increases came from the only firms in the sector reporting jumps of at least 20% or more in 2018.

Mainstays of the sector like Commonwealth, Cambridge and Northwestern Mutual are contributing to it, but smaller firms are also driving change.