Merrill bags $2.2B advisor duo from Morgan Stanley

Merrill Private Wealth Management has expanded its pool of elite advisors as it welcomes a multibillion-dollar team defecting from Morgan Stanley.

Founded in 2007, Merrill's newest advisory group is led by Jim Oberheide and Brandon Schlesinger, who reportedly managed $2.2 billion in client balances at their former firm. Supported by Dana Carbonneau and Kathryn Krauskopf, the team will operate as the Oberheide-Schlesinger Group, serving a clientele that includes Chicago, Illinois and Charlotte, North Carolina.

According to their website, which as of Thursday afternoon still reflected their affiliation with Morgan Stanley, Oberheide and Schlesinger's services include investment advice, active management, sustainable investing, and alternative investments. The two have earned recognition on both Forbes and Barron’s lists of top industry advisors. 

Oberheide has built a lengthy career in the industry going back three decades, which began with a near 15-year affiliation with Sanford C. Bernstein.

Along with the Oberheide-Schlesinger team, Merrill recently welcomed other notable advisors. Richard Marr and Shaheen Soltankhah joined from Wells Fargo with $300 million in client balances. They are based in Merrill’s Kingston, New York office, alongside wealth management specialist Marissa Interrante. In addition, Peter Scudner joined Merrill's Lancaster, Pennsylvania office from Stifel, where he reported overseeing $220 million in client assets.

Earlier in April, Merrill extended its presence in in Palm Beach Gardens, Florida with a $3.5 billion advisor team from JPMorgan Wealth Management. Shortly after in May, it lost a $28 billion powerhouse team to JPMorgan in a recruiting move that was widely regarded as the largest in wealth management history.

Over the past few years, Merrill Lynch has seen a steady decline in advisor attrition. Based on InvestmentNews data, the firm experienced a net loss of 1,043 financial advisors in 2021, a figure that dropped to 703 in 2022 and 445 in 2023. Merrill ended last year with a total of 18,916 client-facing advisors.