As Scandals Keep Coming, Wells Fargo Names New FiNet Managers

As departures continue at Wells Fargo Advisors in the wake of scandals at its parent company and within its own operations, the unit is reworking some of the leadership at its independent advisor channel — WFA Financial Network, or FiNet.

On Monday, FiNet named Tim Boostrom — the former head of national recruiting for the indie channel — as the regional head of FiNet’s Southeast operations. Joe Gianino, who led FiNet’s business development group for nearly five years, was tapped as regional head of the Great Lakes.

“Unless these are new positions, it’s likely that these two posts are being filled due to management exits over frustration with recruiting difficulty in the current environment,” said recruiter Jon Henschen in an interview.

According to Wells Fargo, the ex-head of FiNet in the Southeast — Charles Cornett — left for another firm. But the former Great Lakes manager —  Jason McLaughlin — moved to a leadership role with the Private Client Group in Chicago.

Cornett is now the director of business development for BNY Mellon’s Pershing Advisory Solutions. He left the FiNet role a year ago —  after more than 11 years at Wells Fargo — for a position at HighTower Advisors, according to his LinkedIn profile.

Recruiting Woes

Advisors aren’t likely to join FiNet or other channels of Wells Fargo “until the bad news is flushed out” and Wells Fargo is out of the press, Henschen said. “The market has to perceive that there’s a half-year-plus of no new press and then heal. Until then, the situation is very sketchy.”