$6 billion hybrid RIA group leaves LPL for Cetera

A group of advisers with roughly $6 billion in retirement plan assets has left LPL Financial for Cetera Advisor Networks, according to a source with knowledge of the move. The three advisers belong to Alliant Retirement Consulting, a hybrid registered investment adviser specializing in retirement plans such as defined contribution, pension and nonqualified plans. In total, Alliant Retirement Consulting has four advisers servicing around 500 clients and $10 billion in retirement-plan assets. The other $4 billion in brokerage and advisory assets were already held with Cetera, by a firm formerly called T&H Group in New York, according to the source. That group is now part of Alliant Retirement Consulting following an acquisition by Alliant Insurance Group, the firm's parent company. The defecting adviser group comprises James Laschinger, national practice leader, based in Alpharetta, GA; Sean Waggoner, based in Houston, TX; and Sarah Keibler, in Seattle, WA. Mr. Laschinger and Mr. Waggoner have been registered with Cetera since July 10 and June 8, respectively, according to their BrokerCheck records; Ms. Keibler is still listed as being registered with LPL, the nation's largest independent broker-dealer. Mr. Laschinger declined comment on the move. LPL and Cetera spokespeople weren't immediately available for comment. (More: $4 billion hybrid RIA to leave LPL) LPL lost nearly 100 advisers in the second quarter of 2017, reducing its head count of brokers and advisers to 14,256. Those departures were anticipated and previously discussed, executives said. CEO Dan Arnold indicated that "uncertainty" regarding the regulatory outlook, specifically the Labor Department's fiduciary rule, played a role in lower adviser recruiting stats. Cetera has nabbed a few advisers defecting from LPL over the past few months, perhaps most notably Ron Carson, owner of Carson Wealth Management, who'd been holding $2.6 billion of the firm's $7.4 billion in client assets at LPL. Robert Moore, who was named CEO of Cetera Financial Group Inc. last year, is the former president of LPL Financial. He'd resigned from LPL in 2015.