RBC Grabs $472M Merrill Team

RBC Wealth Management has added four Merrill Lynch advisors and opened a new branch in Chester, New Jersey. The advisors have a total of $472 million in client assets, and three are family members.

“Until now, we’ve had a fairly concentrated location offering in North Jersey, with more than 80 advisors in our Florham Park branch alone,” according to Steve Ornstein, director of the firm’s North Jersey complex. “Expanding to a third location in Chester is very exciting for our complex and will help us better serve the needs of clients in these communities.”

Joining RBC from Merrill Lynch are two advisors with more than 30 years of industry experience: Frank M. Taylor, CFP, and Frank Malcolm. The other two advisors — William Taylor, CFP, and Eric Taylor — have seven and five years, respectively, in the business; they are Frank Taylor’s sons.

Frank Taylor cut his teeth in the business at A.G. Edwards, starting in 1988. Malcolm began his career at E.F. Hutton in 1984 and then moved to A.G. Edwards in 1985. Both advisors moved to Merrill in 2009, after A.G. Edwards was bought by Wells Fargo.

“These advisors are experienced, they’re well-known in their community, and they’re ready to bring the strength and resources of our organization to their clients on day one,” Ornstein added.

Two registered client associates and one business associate also moved with the advisors to RBC.

“We’re excited to bring our practice to RBC Wealth Management …,” said Frank Taylor, in a statement. “We’ve seen first-hand a digital approach to recruiting and onboarding, and look forward introducing the Chester community to this fantastic organization.”

RBC Wealth has about $413 billion in total client assets and 2,000 financial advisors.

“During an uncertain time when many people continue to work remotely, we’re grateful to have virtual resources and digital recruiting tools to continue attracting the industry’s top talent to RBC,” Ornstein said.