Advisor moves: $1.3B advisor team joins Wells Fargo FiNet practice in Ohio

A seven-person UBS team overseeing $1.3 billion in client assets has left the wirehouse for Wells Fargo Advisors Financial Network.

The Cullman/Holt Group, based in Dublin, Ohio, is led by managing director Jeff Cullman and senior vice president W. Bruce Holt. Financial advisor Ben Krajnak joins them, along with team administrator and senior registered client associate Connie M. Dennis, registered client associates Sol Gamertsfelder and Shannon Borton, and client associate Conor Holt.

The group joined FiNet through a tuck-in transition, affiliating with Ascend Advisory Group, an already established practice run by chief executive Tony Reilly. Reilly founded Ascend in 2001 with $27 million in assets; by June, the firm said it had passed $2.5 billion in assets under management.

"The move of a team of this size and quality is a reflection of the exceptional platform Tony Reilly and Ascend have created and the access to capabilities and solutions available through the FiNet platform," said John Tyers, president of FiNet.

The hire extends a run of UBS departures to the Wells Fargo independent channel. In April, Touchstone Wealth Partner, a multigenerational team managing more than $2.1 billion in assets, also left UBS to affiliate with FiNet.

LPL adds multigenerational Michigan team from Cambridge

In Ann Arbor, Michigan, Lakewood Wealth Management has moved from Cambridge to LPL's broker-dealer and registered investment advisor platforms.

Comprising founder Harrison Kennard, Charles Dobben and Justin Pandy, the team reported about $170 million in advisory, brokerage and retirement plan assets. Kennard has worked in the industry for nearly 20 years, while Dobben and Pandy have two years of registered experience in the industry each, according to their BrokerCheck records.

The practice serves many multigenerational families, along with healthcare professionals, university faculty and college athletes earning money through name, image and likeness deals.

"We wanted a partner that would allow us to continue operating independently while giving us access to quality technology and resources," Kennard said.

In August, LPL welcomed a third-generation Pennsylvania firm from Cambridge Investment Research: Conte Wealth Advisors, with 24 advisors and $1.6 billion in client assets.

Commonwealth advisor chooses Cetera over LPL

Cetera has signed John Fitzgerald and Fitzgerald Financial Group, a Vineland, New Jersey, practice that came from Commonwealth Financial Network.

The transitionin team includes financial professionals Doug Kramer and Gary Bolno, plus assistant Tatyana Shevchuk. Serving about 400 households with more than 1,300 accounts and overseeing approximately $185 million in assets under administration, the practice joins Cetera's Summit Financial Networks community.

Like many other ex-Commonwealth advisors over the past year, Fitzgerald said LPL's purchase of his former firm prompted him to review his options.

"I didn't choose LPL, so rather than taking the path of least resistance and automatically going wherever the acquisition took us, I spent a lot of time doing due diligence and deciding where I wanted Fitzgerald Financial Group to be for the next 10 to 20 years," Fitzgerald said.

While he plans to keep growing through referrals, he also wants to buy books of business and offer succession options to retiring advisors. The firm recently bought an office building in Mullica Hill, New Jersey, his hometown, and will keep its Vineland office.

"John has built a practice the old-fashioned way, one client relationship at a time," said Tom Halloran, Cetera's advisor channel leader, while also pointing to Fitzgerald's "hands-on, family-style commitment to client service."

Cetera firms managed approximately $688 billion in assets under administration and $330 billion in assets under management as of June 30.