Both former Merrill Lynch head John Thiel and former LPL Financial CEO Mark Casady on Monday said they had taken on new roles in the financial advice industry, with the former announcing he was a co-founder of a new RIA and the latter saying he had taken on a board seat at a technology that focuses on artificial intelligence in the wealth management business.
As the wealth management industry continues to expand and ride the wave of private equity cash aimed at new startups or aggregators focused on bundling financial advisors, it’s no surprise that leading veterans like Thiel and Casady, who oversaw ten of thousands of financial advisors in their prior roles, were actively pursuing such ventures, industry observers noted.
Thiel was head of Merrill Lynch Wealth Management in 2016 when he became vice chair of Bank of America’s Global Wealth Management & Investment Management group. Casady was CEO of LPL Financial through early 2017 when he retired and founded Vestigo Ventures, an early stage venture capital firm focused on fintech.
“Many senior executives who have had illustrious careers, after they retire it’s easy to sit on a board of a charity or invest their own capital,” said Larry Roth, managing partner at RLR Strategic Partners, who is also a former CEO of both Advisor Group, now Osaic Inc., and Cetera Financial Group. “But it’s way more enjoyable to roll up their sleeves and work in these new wealth management businesses.”
“It’s hard for people like a John Thiel or Mark Casady to sit on the sidelines,” Roth said. “They have the skills to run huge companies, so why not focus on a start up? Add in the tailwinds of the wealth management industry, particularly private investors and equity ready to invest. They want the best people.”
Thiel on LinkedIn on Monday said he was co-founder and executive chairman of Indivisible Partners, a privately owned independent advisory firm.
“In advisors we trust, in clients we serve,” the announcement stated. More news will come in January.
Meanwhile, Casady on Monday said on LinkedIn that he was starting a new position as a board member of Domify AI.
“What’s lacking for these RIA aggregators and startups is not financial advisors, but experienced, top people who can manage these advisory businesses,” said another senior industry executive who spoke privately to InvestmentNews. “There’s always been an operations gap in the wealth management industry, but now there’s an unprecedented amount of capital. That means these top executives can run a new firm or work with private equity managers to consolidate them.”
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