The U.S. wealth management industry is being reshaped as thousands of advisors change firms each year, according to research released this week by ISS Market Intelligence.
"What we continue to see across the U.S. wealth landscape is steady migration toward independence, with advisors and reps increasingly moving to a more fragmented RIA market," ISS MI vice president Alan Hess said in a statement.
"These dynamics make it more important than ever for firms to understand where advisors are moving and how to effectively engage them."
In 2025, 39,171 advisors moved to another firm, a year-over-year increase of nearly 4,000, one of the highest levels of representative mobility in the past decade.
Most movement continues to occur within existing channels, the research showed, as advisors seek improved opportunities without changing business models. However, longer-term trends indicate an ongoing migration toward independence.
The retail RIA channel recorded a net gain of 9,525 representatives over the past five years, while independent broker-dealer channels brought in the second-most new reps over the same period.
ISS MI said this shift is adding to complexity across intermediary distribution and requiring both asset and wealth managers to reconsider how they identify and engage advisors in a more dispersed marketplace.
At present, nearly 35,000 RIA firms employ five or fewer representatives, pointing to intense fragmentation within the channel, according to the report.
The LPL Juggernaut
Despite high fragmentation in some parts of the market, the report shows concentrated gains among a few firms that are capturing a disproportionate share of advisor movement.
Many wealth management firms benefit from increased interest in independence, but certain platforms have consistently outpaced the broader market in net advisor gains.
LPL Financial is the most notable example. Between 2021 and 2025, it recorded 7,234 net advisor additions, the highest among all firms and greater than the net gain of the broader independent channel during the same period.
LPL's scale reflects aggressive recruitment strategies, flexible transition support and continued investment in technology and advisor platform capabilities, the report said.
One major source of headcount gains was LPL's acquisition of Commonwealth Financial Network, which had 2,900 advisors and $285 billion in assets under management, in 2025. Nearly 700 Commonwealth advisors left the firm before year-end, according to AdvizorPro and Muriel Consulting, but LPL says it's on track to retain 90% of Commonwealth's AUM.
Here are other firms that have recorded the highest net gain of new representatives over the past five years:
— Raymond James & Associates (traditional), 1,120
— Cambridge Investment Research (independent), 745
— Cetera Wealth Services (independent), 635
— Empower Financial Services (insurance), 635
— Raymond James Financial Services (independent), 590
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