$13 billion branch office to leave Raymond James

A significant branch office of Raymond James Financial Services Inc. with $12.7 billion in client assets said Tuesday it was leaving the firm to restructure as a multicustodial, hybrid registered investment adviser.

Concurrent Advisors in Tampa, Florida, is currently a branch or office of supervisory jurisdiction for the independent brokerage arm of Raymond James. The firm said in a statement that the changes will take place in phases between now and early 2023. The move will give Concurrent and its adviser affiliates access to a broader range of investment strategies, products and technology, according to the statement.

Concurrent did not list in the statement the new custodians it would work with or the broker-dealer it would also need to register with as a hybrid firm, meaning it is registered both as an investment adviser and broker.

Large branch offices of independent broker-dealers like Concurrent Advisors increasingly are flexing their muscle and either adding on new custodians or spinning off on their own. The more the branches look like pure RIAs, the greater value they may hold in the red-hot mergers and acquisitions market for wealth management firms at the moment.

Concurrent said it recruited 25 financial advisers so far in 2022 representing more than $3.4 billion in managed assets. And having a variety of custodians will open M&A and adviser recruitment opportunities for its advisers, said Concurrent co-founder Mike Hlavek. Concurrent was founded in 2016 and currently works with 145 advisers in 66 offices.

"Raymond James has decided to end its relationship with Concurrent Advisors and is in discussions with the branch owners regarding an orderly dissolution of our relationship," a company spokesperson wrote in an email. "Consistent with Raymond James’ values and commitments, we will support those advisers who want to transition with Concurrent as well as those who wish to remain directly affiliated as independent contractors with Raymond James."