In the wake of moves this month by Ladenburg Thalmann Financial Services Inc. and First Allied Securities Inc. to acquire broker-dealers, more deals for independent-contractor firms are on the horizon, according to industry observers.
One of the broker-dealers in the ING Advisors Network Inc. is on the brink of losing representatives and advisers who generate $21 million in fees and commissions to rival firms.
In the wake of a security breach that affected more than 10,000 clients, LPL Financial has taken several steps to increase data protection.
AIG Advisor Group, continuing to play a game of musical chairs with the executives in charge of its various broker-dealers, has replaced James Cannon with Jeffrey Auld as president and chief executive of both AIG Financial Advisors Inc. of Phoenix and American General Securities Inc. of Houston.
AIG Advisor Group continues to play a game of musical chairs with the heads of its various broker-dealers, this time replacing James Cannon with Jeffrey Auld, who becomes president and chief executive of both AIG Financial Advisors Inc. of Phoenix and American General Securities Inc. of Houston.
Last week's order that Next Financial Group Inc. stop violating privacy regulations when recruiting brokers upended a key tenet of independent-contractor broker-dealers: that independent representatives — and not broker-dealers — are at the center of the relationship with the clients.
Over the past 10 years, the world of independent-contractor broker-dealers has been turned on its ear.
Competition is stiffening among firms that keep assets under custody — and that situation could lead to cheaper, faster and better business for independent registered investment advisers.
LPL Financial, the nation's largest independent-contractor broker-dealer, is on the lookout for plum acquisition candidates, although a top executive says growth through current advisers is the company's prime goal.
Jeff Auld, the president of Berthel Fisher and Company Financial Services Inc., has left the company for personal reasons.
Independent-contractor broker-dealers are gnashing their teeth over the possible consequences of an updated professional code of ethics for certified financial planners, coming this summer.
The nation's top 25 independent-contractor broker-dealers reported a staggering 26.6% increase in gross revenue last year to $13.52 billion, from $10.68 billion in 2006.
Despite a bruising, competitive market that some say is inhospitable to their survival, many small independent-contractor broker-dealers see plenty of opportunity.
Both GunnAllen Financial Inc. and a former top executive are claiming victory after a lengthy arbitration battle that focused on whether the independent broker- dealer had the right to fire David McCoy, its former chief operating officer and national sales director, who was dismissed in 2005.
Broker-dealer executives whose firms clear trades through and use the custody services of Bear Stearns Securities Corp. say that their fears have been calmed for the moment by the deal under which JPMorgan Chase & Co. will acquire parent company The Bear Stearns Cos. Inc.
Last year, National Planning Corp. and its sister broker-dealers shocked the independent-contractor broker-dealer industry with its lucrative recruiting packages to independent representatives.
Advanced Equities Financial Corp., a Chicago-based securities firm that has carved a niche of financing companies backed by venture capital firms, is preparing for an initial public offering.
Financial advisory firms have evolved from home-based businesses, to one-man shows, to full-fledged, thriving enterprises with multiple professionals and sometimes many staff members.
The following is an edited transcript of the round-table discussion.
The SEC's proposed changes to Regulation S-P may slow down recruiting of independent reps, but executives with independent broker-dealers nonetheless are relieved that the agency has given some potential guidance on the issue.
