Two Wells Fargo advisers and one from Edward Jones join Raymond James affiliate Steward Partners

Carl Gravina and Liana Poodiack managed $450 million of client assets at Wells Fargo, and Joshua Houle managed $50 million at Edward Jones

Two financial advisers from Wells Fargo and one from Edward Jones managing a total of $500 million of client assets joined Steward Partners Global Advisory, an independent affiliate of Raymond James.

Carl Gravina and Liana Poodiack managed $450 million of client assets at Wells Fargo, and Joshua Houle managed $50 million of client assets at Edward Jones, where they turned over a combined $3 million in annual revenue, according to a Steward Partners statement. The trio will open a third office in Keene, N.H.

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“Our New England footprint is growing rapidly, and we saw the need for a third location in New Hampshire,” said Steward Partners CEO, Jim Gold, in the statement.

According to the statement, having freedom and flexibility to manage clients’ wealth was a deciding factor for the advisers to join Steward Partners. With growing regulatory scrutiny over recruitment incentives including back-end awards, where large bonuses are tied to the adviser’s performance on hitting sales or asset targets, it can explain the allure of going independent.

“Being able to utilize a wealth management or advisory approach for our clients means their interests come first, not how we get compensated,” said Mr. Gravina in the statement.

“Our clients’ interests were key to our decision to become more independent in our businesses development and expansion, without being overwhelmed with the day-to-day activities of running a company,” said Ms. Poodiack in the statement.

According to BrokerCheck, Mr. Gravina began his career with A.G. Edwards & Sons. Inc., in 2001. The firm was acquired by Wells Fargo Advisors in 2008. Ms. Poodiack followed a similar path, beginning her career at A.G. Edwards in 1999 and then movng to Wells Fargo after the acquisition, according to her BrokerCheck profile. Neither of the advisers have any disputes listed on their profiles.

Mr. Houle began working for Edward Jones in 2011 before his recent move, according to his BrokerCheck profile. He does not have any disputes listed on his profile.

Steward Partners added 40 advisers with close to $35 million in production and over $4.6 billion in client assets over the past year, according to the statement.