The churn in advisor talent across wirehouses and broker-dealers continued this week, with RBC and Merrill announcing sizeable conversions alongside news of another defection from LPL to Cetera.
In Palm Beach Gardens, Florida, RBC Wealth Management has hired the Thomasco Group from Morgan Stanley, a team overseeing $646 million in client assets.
The group is led by 30-year industry veteran Edward Thomasco, managing director and senior portfolio manager, along with Michele M. Cianfrone, vice president and senior business associate, and senior financial associate Taylor J. Boyle.
Florida complex director Ken Ross said the Thomasco Group sought “direct access to local management and a collaborative culture that values their entrepreneurial spirit.”
The addition strengthens RBC’s presence in South Florida, a hotbed of business for major brokerages and RIAs to compete for affluent and ultrawealthy households.
The Thomasco team follows another trio that recently defected from Morgan Stanley, the Fargo, North Dakota-based McGrath Group, which joined RBC in November.
In another blow to UBS, Merrill has brought on a three-advisor group in Providence, Rhode Island, adding to its high-net-worth coverage in New England.
The team – advisors Robert Procaccianti, Jared Tack, and Doug Bennet – has a combined 75 years of industry experience and oversees $805 million in client assets.
They are supported by registered wealth management client associate Stephanie Mondro and will operate within Merrill’s Suburban Boston and Rhode Island market, led by market executive Allen Jones.
Procaccianti, Tack, and Bennet have consistently appeared on Forbes' best-in-state advisor team rankings for the past three years, and most recently reported over $3.3 million in annual production.
On the independent side, Cetera has added Westport, Connecticut-based advisor Gregory Kearney after 23 years affiliated with LPL, including work with OSJs and bank investment programs aligned with that firm.
Kearney serves individuals, families and small businesses along Connecticut’s Gold Coast, in the greater New York City area and nationwide, with approximately $160 million in assets under administration.
Kearney said he began looking for a new broker-dealer after developments at LPL last year impacted his ability to operate and his relationships with his OSJ and Webster Bank’s investment program.
“After LPL acquisitions and changes that affected how I could run my business, I decided to take the next step,” he said, adding that he is “excited to enter a new phase of growth with Cetera.”
Kearney was previously affiliated with Financial Resources Group, an LPL branch office-turned-OSJ that was the object of an acquisition deal announced in November 2022.
He joins several other LPL-turned-Cetera advisors and teams over the past several months, including Oestriecher Financial Management Services in Louisiana and CarrThaxton Financial Group in Massachusetts.
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Also, Raymond James's employee advisor channel adds breakaways from Wells Fargo and Stifel, while UBS welcomes an ex-Morgan Stanley duo in Indiana.
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