LPL snatches $3.7 billion Exemplar Financial from Cetera

LPL Financial has delivered the latest salvo in its bitter rivalry with Cetera Financial Group by recruiting Exemplar Financial Network, a Crystal Lake, Ill.-based firm that supports $3.7 billion in assets under management. The firm ended its 28-year relationship with Cetera on Friday, moving its broker-dealer affiliation to LPL, according to BrokerCheck. Exemplar, headed by David Hubbard, has 32 employees and was celebrated by Cetera earlier this year when it was recognized by InvestmentNews as one of the 2018 Best Places to Work. Coincidently, the same Cetera announcement also mentioned Carson Wealth, a $4.2 billion affiliate that made news in January 2017 when it left LPL for Cetera. At the time of Carson Wealth's highly publicized departure, founder Ron Carson criticized LPL's outdated technology platform, among other things. Louis Diamond, executive vice president at Diamond Consultants, described the move by Exemplar as "significant." "LPL has made it clear they will pay up for firms coming from Cetera," he said. In terms of making the case for LPL over Cetera, Mr. Diamond summed it up by saying that LPL is a public company that is well-known, "so you know it's going to be around for years." "Cetera, meanwhile, has had multiple owners, and they've got private equity owners," he added. "That's not to suggest that Cetera is unstable, but new ownership is a time for advisers to reevaluate whether they're at the right place." LPL, the nation's largest broker dealer, has suffered a string of high-profile departures, including the April move by Independent Financial Partners, a $9.5 billion firm that went off to start its own broker-dealer. Cetera, LPL and Exemplar did not respond to requests for comment for this story. "There's clearly a war going on between LPL and Cetera, and this is the latest salvo," said industry recruiter Danny Sarch. "There's a lot of ill will between those two firms," Mr. Sarch added. "It almost seems like they are striking back at each other for sake of striking back at each other." Part of that ill will is believed to stem from LPL's decision not to elevate its then-president, Robert Moore, to the CEO position. Mr. Moore subsequently left LPL and was later appointed CEO of Cetera.