Under a cloud at Merrill Lynch, two brokers find new home at giant hybrid

Two brokers who left Merrill Lynch earlier this year — one who was permitted to resign and the other discharged — have landed with Stratos Wealth Network, a hybrid broker and RIA with 284 advisers and $13.3 billion in client assets. Stratos Wealth Network last Thursday said that it recruited Michael Feller and Jason Hostetler, in a press release announcing four teams with close to $1 billion in assets recently joining the network. Mr. Feller was "permitted to resign" from Merrill Lynch in March due to "conduct involving submission of inaccurate business expense reimbursement reports," according to his BrokerCheck report. He spent more than 20 years at Merrill Lynch and is based in Boonville, Ind., and has $170 million in client assets, according to Stratos. Based in Canton, Ohio, Mr. Hostetler was "discharged" from Merrill Lynch in April for "conduct inconsistent with firm standards regarding personal trading, resulting in a loss of management's confidence," according to his BrokerCheck report. Mr. Hostetler and Tina Migge, his partner, have $150 million in client assets, according to Stratos. Neither Mr. Feller nor Mr. Hostetler returned calls seeking comment. Stratos Wealth Network spokesman Chris Clemens responded with an email. "Stratos Wealth Network conducts an extensive and rigorous due diligence process on each adviser that we recruit to our platform, consistent with our expectation that each adviser conduct themselves according to the highest standards of ethics and client service," he wrote. "We thoroughly reviewed the items referenced, and in doing so, concluded these newly-recruited advisers are quality individuals and make a welcome addition to the Stratos Network." In its press release, Stratos Wealth Network said that it recently signed two other firms: Clapboard Hill Private Wealth, led by Thomas Pacilio and Daniel Besse, with $230 million in client assets, based in Westport, Conn., and Riverview Wealth Partners, led by Anthony Pratt and William Baker, with $450 million in client assets, based in Wexford, Penn. The seven advisers are now registered with Stratos Wealth Advisors, a registered investment advisory firm. The Stratos-related companies have $7.7 billion in RIA assets, held with major custodians, and $5.6 billion in brokerage assets with LPL Financial. Meanwhile, Stratos Wealth Network also said last week that Fidelity veteran Lou Camacho was named president of Stratos Wealth Alliance. Mr. Camacho's group will focus on bolstering the overall growth strategy of Stratos by acquiring promising financial advisory practices, according to the company.