Breakaway & RIA
When wirehouse advisors go independent: who left, where they went, and what it means.
- J.P. Morgan's Scott and Atwood Teams Break Away With $130 Million in Revenue to Launch Latigo Peak
Two inherited First Republic practices producing more than $130 million a year left J.P. Morgan Advisors for a self-funded RIA, the largest wirehouse breakaway of 2026 by reported assets.
- Patrick Rowland & Jacob Sullivan Exit Wells Fargo FiNet, Bring $744M Practice to &Partners
&Partners is systematically pulling established wirehouse and FiNet practices by offering full independence without the infrastructure headaches. If you're eyeing the exit from Wells Fargo's network, this is the template: stage an internal move first, test the independent model, then cut the cord entirely.
- $744M Wells FiNet Team Joins &Partners After 2024 Internal Move
Rowland Sullivan left Wells after a 2024 FiNet staging step; &Partners has now pulled multiple Wells-origin books, including Crown Legacy and this $744M Missouri team.
- Patrick Rowland & Jacob Sullivan's $744M Team Exits Wells Fargo for &Partners, Becoming Firm's 127th Practice
&Partners is systematically harvesting Wells Fargo talent—this is the third significant Missouri-area or Wells-origin team in under a year, signaling a direct pipeline that wirehouse retention teams can no longer ignore.
- Harold 'Red' Le Sage Jr., Jeanette Mattiza & Madison Maggard Launch Le Sage Mattiza Maggard Wealth Management at Raymond James
Raymond James is winning breakaway talent by offering the employee-channel structure wirehouses provide plus the brand flexibility and client-service autonomy that wirehouses can't match — a combination worth evaluating before your next contract renewal.
- NewEdge Lands $3.1B BofA Private Bank Team in Florida
NewEdge is using its employee wealth channel to recruit beyond traditional brokerage teams, adding another multibillion-dollar private-bank group in two weeks.
- Wells Fargo Pulls $17 Billion From Independent Advisors in 2026 Recruiting Surge Backed by $1.5B Revamp
Wells Fargo is no longer a passive bystander in the recruiting wars. Its dual-channel strategy — employee wirehouse plus FiNet's independent model — gives it a competitive angle that pure wirehouses and pure RIAs cannot replicate. If you're fielding calls from their recruiters, the $17B number tells you they have the momentum to back up whatever deal is on the table.
- Crown Legacy Wealth Exits Wells Fargo with $838M, Joining &Partners' Pacific Northwest Blitz
&Partners is executing a systematic extraction of large Wells Fargo teams. If you're managing north of $500M at a wirehouse, your firm's retention desk is already under pressure — and your phone is about to ring.
- Carson Group Acquires $1.8B Wells Fargo FiNet Practice Doyle and Loughman Wealth Management
Wells Fargo's FiNet channel is hemorrhaging multi-billion-dollar practices to aggressive RIA acquirers like Carson Group — if you're in that channel, expect a call soon, and know your leverage before you pick up.
- Federal Judge Blocks Merrill Lynch From Dragging Dynasty Financial Into FINRA Arbitration Over OpenArc Breakaway
Wirehouses can no longer assume FINRA arbitration clauses in advisor contracts automatically bind third-party RIA support platforms like Dynasty. This ruling tilts the playing field toward breakaway teams and their platform partners, making the independent channel marginally safer to land in.
- OneSeven Hits 22-State Footprint with 4-Year USA Today Win Streak, Intensifying Its Pitch to Wirehouse Breakaways
If you're a wirehouse producer weighing independence, OneSeven's pitch has gotten materially stronger: 22-state infrastructure, four consecutive national rankings, AI-driven tech, and a leadership team that has lived the transition themselves. The enterprise-value monetization story is the hook that separates them from simple breakaway custodian platforms.
- UBS vs. LPL: The Wirehouse Recruiting War Heating Up in Mid-2025 as Both Firms Accelerate Advisor Acquisition
If you're being recruited by both UBS and LPL simultaneously — which is increasingly common — understand that these firms are fishing in the same pond with fundamentally different rods. UBS is offering structured team infrastructure and a global HNW brand; LPL is offering equity-like economics and independence. The gap between those two value propositions is where your negotiating leverage lives.
- Morgan Stanley Loses $350M NYC Team to Sanctuary Wealth in LGBTQ+-Focused Breakaway
Morgan Stanley's New York City client base just lost a $350M team to a hybrid RIA with a sharper niche value proposition—proof that specialized service models and equity ownership are pulling experienced wirehouse advisors out faster than retention packages can hold them.
- The Breakaway Dream Is Becoming What Advisors Fled: RIA Roll-Ups Now Mirror Wirehouse Controls
Before signing with any RIA aggregator, demand line-by-line clarity on non-competes, non-solicits, technology lock-ins, and equity liquidity terms—because the independence pitch may be masking a wirehouse in different clothing.
- Dynasty-Backed DayMark Poaches $820M Morgan Stanley Team, Pushing Ohio RIA Past $6B
A four-person team just handed a five-year-old RIA the credibility of $6 billion in AUM — proof that Dynasty's infrastructure play is making the independent channel a credible destination for large wirehouse books, not just a refuge for solo breakaways.
- $1.2B Breakaway, $7.8B Acquisition, And AI: The 3 Forces Dominating Advisor Mindshare In May
The stories your peers couldn't stop reading in May are a blueprint for the competitive pressure bearing down on your book — breakaways are getting bigger, RIA consolidators are getting bolder, and AI is giving independents a scalability edge that wirehouses haven't fully matched.
- Morgan Stanley Loses $820M Ohio Team to Dynasty-Backed DayMark, Pushing RIA Past $6B
Another eight-figure wirehouse team just proved the Ohio Midwest is a live recruiting battleground. If you're at Morgan Stanley and your clients prioritize multigenerational legacy work, your competition is no longer down the street—it's an RIA with $6 billion, a Dynasty backbone, and a very compelling ownership story.
- RBC Poaches Back Osaic's Recruiting Chief Kristen Kimmell After 4-Year Independent Detour
RBC is re-arming its recruiting operation with an executive who spent four years learning how the independent channel hunts advisors—that's a direct threat to every IBD and wirehouse competing for the same talent pool.
- LPL Financial Closes $2.4 Billion Advisor Acquisition From Prudential Channel
LPL Financial completed a $2.4B advisory practice acquisition from Prudential's network, adding 18 advisors in its latest consolidation move.
- Private Equity Firms Pour $15 Billion Into Wealth Management M&A in Record Year
PE-backed aggregators are reshaping the advisory industry through unprecedented acquisition activity.
- Private Equity Now Controls 73.6% of All RIA Deals as Consolidation Accelerates
PE-backed firms now control 73.6% of all RIA deals, up from 45% three years ago, as institutional capital reshapes wealth management.
- $1.4 Billion Ameriprise Team Defects to NewEdge Wealth in Tennessee
A $1.4B Ameriprise team defected to NewEdge Wealth in Tennessee, citing dramatically higher payouts in the independent channel.
- Corient Acquires $767 Million Palo Alto Wealth Advisors in First Deal of 2026
Corient's acquisition of a Silicon Valley RIA underscores the continued private equity appetite for technology-market wealth practices as consolidation accelerates.
- RIA M&A Hits Record: 322 Deals and $1.22 Trillion in Transacted Assets in 2025
RIA M&A hit a record 322 deals with $1.22 trillion in transacted assets in 2025, driven by PE firms deploying massive capital.
- $1.3 Billion UBS Team Breaks Away to Launch Harbor View Private Wealth in Atlanta
Elevation Point continues to attract large UBS breakaway teams, with Harbor View Private Wealth becoming the firm's latest $1 billion-plus partnership in the Atlanta market.