Adviser recruiting stays cold while breakaway RIAs heat up

Advisory industry recruiting activity has still only partially rebounded from its pandemic standstill, according to an analysis of the latest Advisers on the Move data.

Total moves of experienced advisers were up 10% year over year through the first three quarters of 2021, according to the data. But the roughly 12,600 moves tracked through September remain 10% below their pre-pandemic level.

That includes recruitment of advisers already working in the industry and excludes transitions between related firms or those arising from a merger or acquisition.

The logistics of networking and actually transitioning offices were complicated by social distancing, and the pace of industry recruiting activity appears to be following the only partial return of live events and in-person work. According to a midyear survey by InvestmentNews Research, 41% of offices with multiple employees planned to continue at least partially remote operations indefinitely.

Still, the prevailing trend of advisers going independent has only gathered steam.

The RIA channel gained 1,274 advisers from other channels on net through September, up 43% year over year and 31% over 2019. Net gains for independent broker-dealers were up 15% year over year but lagged their pre-Covid level.

Wirehouses, which have backed away from the expensive task of recruiting from competitors in recent years, lost 1,749 advisers on net, more than any other comparable period since the 2009 financial crisis.

In the third quarter, LPL Financial, Fidelity Brokerage Services and PNC Investments led in gains, each bringing on more than 100 advisers on net.

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