A total of 9,615 financial advisors with over three years of industry experience changed firms in 2024, according to the latest tally from Diamond Consultants.
“For those keeping score at home, that means that despite a myriad of headwinds, advisor movement was more or less flat (down less than 1%) versus 2023, [when] 9,674 advisors changed firms,” according to Jason Diamond, executive vice president and lead author of the firm’s 2024 Advisor Transition Report.
The estimated “churn” or movement of experienced advisors last year, Diamond says, was about 6%.
“Advisors are far more likely to move within their channel than to another,” he points out. This “may be why, despite pressure from advisors, none of the other wirehouses (except Wells Fargo) have launched an RIA or independent channel.”
Here’s a look at the major movement by channel.
Independent Firms
The positive net change in this group was the strongest among the four advisor channels (independent, regional, boutique and wirehouse). Independent firms gained a net 689 advisors — with roughly 7,900 moving to independent firms and 7,200 leaving them. In 2023, this channel had a net gain of 563 advisors.
Among the independent firms, LPL Financial had a net jump of 2,923 in 2024; this figure includes movement tied to several acquisitions and its partnership deal with Prudential, which included 1,700 advisors.
“LPL offers a top deal, and a wide array of affiliation options, meaning they have been able to credibly position themselves as a potentially viable home for just about every advisor in the industry,” Diamond said.
Wells Fargo Advisors Financial Network (FiNet) grew by a net 232 advisors last year, Ameriprise Financial by 166, Commonwealth Financial Network by 114, Cambridge by 108, and Raymond James Financial Services by 16. MassMutual had a net loss of 80 advisors, while Cetera’s net loss was 50.
Wirehouses
This channel saw a net loss of 605 advisors last year, with roughly 900 advisors moving to wirehouse firms and nearly 1,500 leaving them. That's a 74% increase from the net loss of 348 advisors in 2023.
Specifically, Wells Fargo Advisors had a net loss of 248 registered reps in 2024, Diamond Consultants reported. Merrill’s net loss was 241 advisors, UBS’ was 61, and Morgan Stanley’s was 55.
“Morgan Stanley chugs right along (in terms of net advisor headcount change) as the major winner in the wirehouse category,” the report stated. “Although Morgan Stanley lost more advisors than they gained, the deals they win tend to be sizable and impactful.”
Regional and Boutique Firms
The regional channel added a net 136 advisors in 2024 versus 41 in 2023. The channel gained about 710 advisors and lost 575.
Raymond James and Associates’ net improvement was 136 advisors last year, while RBC Capital Markets added 48. In contrast, Edward Jones had a net loss of 55 advisors in 2024.
Regional firms “continue to be among the hottest destinations in the industry,” according to Diamond.
Raymond James and RBC, for instance, are attracting advisors who service high-net-worth and ultra-high-net-worth clients “with their flat management structures, boutique cultures, and (in the case of RBC) a robust recruiting deal.”
As for boutique firms, they had a net loss of 220 advisors in 2024 versus 256 in 2023. Diamond notes, though, that this figure could be skewed by data issues tied to the advisor headcount for J.P. Morgan Securities and Chase. Rockefeller Financial had a net gain of 58 advisors in 2024.
The consulting group defines boutiques as "similar to regional firms in that these full-service firms provide strong cultures and nimble management teams."
At the same time, though, the boutique firms are "typically geared toward serving higher-end advisors and more sophisticated clients ... and may look and feel like an RIA but advisors join [them] as W-2 employees," Diamond said.
“Momentum is a critical facet of advisor recruiting,” the consulting firm’s report concludes, “so, it’s no surprise that many of the recruiting ‘winners’ are firms that also appeared on this list in years past.”
Overall, momentum alone “is not a sufficient recruiting strategy,” Diamond pointed out. “All firms need to provide more value to earn advisors’ business, especially in an ever-crowded industry landscape replete with quality choices for advisors.”
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