Cetera taps former TD Ameritrade exec to lead data strategy

Cetera Financial Group is bolstering its C-suite with a new technology-focused role.

Cetera has appointed Keyur Desai as chief data and analytics officer, a newly created role aimed at accelerating the firm’s data strategy across its multi-channel Wealth Hub platform.

Desai, who brings senior leadership experience from TD Ameritrade – which was acquired by Schwab in a 2020 megamerger, with the TD platform ultimately getting fully integrated just last year – will report to Christian Mitchell, chief solutions officer.

In his new position, Desai will be responsible for developing and scaling Cetera’s enterprise-wide data and analytics initiatives.

His mandate includes advancing the firm’s capabilities in AI, advisor intelligence and business insights – all areas seen as central to Cetera’s push to modernize its advisor platform and deliver more actionable, real-time information.

"Keyur's leadership marks a critical next step in our journey to unlock data as a strategic asset for advisors and the enterprise," Mike Durbin, CEO of Cetera, said in a statement Thursday.

The move comes as Cetera continues to build out its Wealth Hub strategy, which seeks to offer advisors a holistic suite of tools for practice management, client engagement and business growth.

Desai will lead efforts to embed analytics across the advisor lifecycle, from prospecting and onboarding to business optimization and succession planning.

Desai’s responsibilities will span Cetera’s five-channel model, which serves advisors across independent, institutional, tax and RIA segments. His work is expected to help unify data across business units and support Cetera’s community-led approach to advisor support.

"Keyur's expertise will help us unify data across the enterprise, fueling smarter growth decisions and delivering real-time value to the advisors we serve," said Mitchell.

Cetera said Desai's appointment comes in the wake of recent technology advancements at the firm, which include AI-assisted growth tools, enhancements to business intelligence capabilities, and a unified digital experience designed to give advisors deeper visibility into their practice metrics.

The hybrid RIA firm made other changes to its leadership in recent weeks, appointing John Lefferts as head of Cetera Investors earlier this month and promoting Clint Brookshire to community leader of Avantax around the tail end of April. 

Home to approximately 12,000 financial professionals and institutions, Cetera reported more than $554 billion in assets under administration and $246 billion in assets under management as of March 31.