Merrill Loses $2.8-Mln Producer to UBS, $2-Mln Team to Independence
Merrill Lynch has lost a $2.8 million advisor in Louisiana to UBS Wealth Management USA and a $2 million producer in New Jersey who joined with Raymond James Financial’s independent broker channel after 18 years.
Tucker and two associates who moved with him had been generating $2.8 million in fees and commissions on $422 million in client assets, according to a person familiar with his practice.
The advisor, who ranked as a managing director at Merrill and who began his brokerage career 20 years ago at Metlife Securities, did not return a request for comment.
In Wayne, NJ, three advisors left Merrill to launch an independent practice affiliated with Raymond James Financial Services. Led by Michael Topinka, 43, who had worked at Merrill’s Upper Montclair office since June 2002, the team also includes Carl Boomhower, 27. and Daniel Tyburski, 36, both of whom are advisors, and a client associate.
They generated about $2 million in the 12 months prior to their December 3 move, Topinka said, and worked with about $350 million in client assets.
Topinka said he had become increasingly frustrated with Merrill’s push to have advisors cross-sell loans and other products of its parent Bank of America to investment clients and by its imposition of annual account-growth targets tied to compensation payouts.
The changes began gradually after BofA bought Merrill in 2009 in the wake of the financial crisis, but have accelerated in the past three years as the broker has been squeezing revenue from advisors through formulaic methods, Topinka said.
“I’m playing a life-long football game and two-thirds of the way through you throw me a basketball,” he said.
His former partner David Hollenberg made similar complaints last year when he left Merrill after 24 years to join RBC Wealth Management.
Topinka, who worked at the start of his career at firms subsequently expelled from the securities industry, said his move to independence will offer much more autonomy on how to run his practice than those that have employee models (such as RBC). The flexibility even extends to determining whether to meet personally with clients amid the pandemic and to go into their office, he said.
A spokesman for Merrill Lynch did not return a request for comment on Topinka’s remarks.
Complaints about cross-selling bank parent products and services are not unique to Merrrill advisors, but some of those who have left say its growth goals and strictures appear to have accelerated because of its pullback from hiring experienced advisors with substantial books of business.
Rivals Morgan Stanley and UBS also had been on recruiting budgets for more than three years, but each has recently returned to building client assets through hiring from rivals.
UBS last week disclosed the arrival of a $7.5 million team in Philadelphia from Goldman Sachs and two weeks ago recruited a $7.1 million producer in La Jolla, CA, from Bernstein Private Wealth Management.
Morgan Stanley last week hired a 33-year old Merrill broker in California who had won accolades for his growth achievements, capping an aggressive effort of recruiting from wirehouse rivals throughout the pandemic.
Wow, a small market like Baton Rouge losing a producer of that size has to sting. When lifers like that begin to depart you know the ship is sinking.
That market between UBS and ML has been shuffling chairs for years…
Except no one is going to Merrill…
I only open these to read the same people crying in the comments section of every post
Do the existing advisors even try to stop the clients from moving with the advisors? All these large wirehouse guys keep moving but no one ever talks about how much assets move with them. I know they have sign on bonuses based on they assets that move, but what about the great salesman at the old firm who just got a few hundred mil??
The relationships are stronger than any bogus sales pitch to stay behind. Industry average is 85% transition for a reason. The Merrill iceberg is just around the corner.
Reassigned accounts are the best (only?) benefit of the wirehouses. Having received accounts, and having left WF Advisors, I would tell you that if I am friends with the departing broker I do not push it to retain the client. I would call and offer my services at some point, and inform them of their options. If the departing broker was a sh!% then I might call quicker. Industry wide 75% of assets move within a year, and many top advisors are likely at 90%. I found that to be true, and so did many of my cohorts. Also there are some clients you leave behind for “fit” reasons. Clients want trustable advice and service. The firm can help with that, but they can also hurt you in that area. Client’s were relived when we left WFC, as they did not trust the company (nor did we!). Also, some of the accounts I was “gifted” over the years, stayed and paid me well, but at some point WFC stopped paying you full grid on new reassigned accounts. The lack of sales and motivational understanding was staggering. GO work hard for these new people, but don’t get paid much at all. Ugh, WFC was run by idiots.
And run risk of getting sued and arbitration for no pay. Geniuses.
This is a record outflow in assets for Merrill this year. The beatings will continue until morale improves.
I cannot imagine being an entrepreneur-minded advisor at the highest level and putting up with ML directives and “goals” for “their” business. Because it’s not yours. You are an employee. Add FINRA, W2s, one size fits all mentality, and it makes little sense. I bet they exit protocol in 2021 as it becomes an even larger mass exodus. Get out while you are still under protocol!
I hope other firms are paying attention. So many firms are penalizing advisors for small accounts, demanding cross selling & a lot of what Merrill is doing …. but somehow they think they can recruit people away from ML? Why would the imbeciles running these companies think that is a sustainable idea?
Reminds me so much of Smith Barney. CityGroup, the bank that owned Smith Barney, was so ingenious with their hurdles and pay cuts that 1/3 of all advisors left the firm in 2007. Citigroup’s CEO Charles Prince got fired and the firm got sold only 10 years after being acquired. I believe BofA is outsmarting everyone in a similar fashion.
After deferred comp pays next March – I would be willing to bet that close to 5% of the “actual” advisors doing over $900K leaves in the following quarter. I left 4 years ago and my conversations with previous advisors is over the top negative. If a ML advisor is serious about putting their clients first – it is time and soon the ability to leave will be most difficult. A good advisor will bring 75% to 95%. It is so sad the downfall of what was once a great firm. Komansky should never have recommended O’neal. His emphasis on competing with GS proved to be the beginning of the end.
O’Neal destroyed the company financially. Sieg destroyed the culture.
The Thundering Herd is now the Blundering
Happy New Year to all !! I hope you had a great Holiday season. If you want to hear a great success story of departure for independence go and listen to the podcast on Mindy Diamond website from the team who left and started their own firm. The former RD who was VERY well connected to SR ML leadership figured it out with their team and is doing laps around the old ML model. She and Mindy nail the ML problem but more importantly this is an industry problem……not exclusive to ML. If you are dealing with clients who need large credit relationships or who are married to some defunct Wall Street name then that is ok and maybe you need a MS or UBS. If you are a client centered team and your wealthy clients are relying on your advice then why stay at a big firm and be a pawn of Andy or Jimmidie at MS. I don’t get it having transitioned very successfully but that is for others to figure out. I am friendly with at least 4 other ML advisors all doing very nicely who have become independent in last 4 years and not one would consider anything else. Thanks to technology and open platform the clients gain by dealing with a true Fiduciary model. We on our team are batting 1000 in client acquisition when competing for business against the large brokerage firms one of whom we were employed by for so many years. There is no doubt the larger firms are stifling the entrepreneurial spirit and the cultures are disintegrating. The guys on Tryon street are counting the days til ML goes salary bonus and turns the ML model into the same profit margin as UST. Unfortunately too many of my former colleagues are so busy meeting sales goals and are spending time trying to adhere to BAC policy directives they are too busy to look up and see the future. There happens to be some idiot on here from time to time, and I use that term very judiciously, who portends that all these people are calling ML to come back. . I would wonder why I would leave a 70% margin business where I control the culture and the experience and the relationships to go back to a 45% W2 business listening to people who don’t have my client’s best interest at heart…….but who want to manage my compensation. All I can say is if you are successful at ML and you are not departing soon you are either nervous, lazy, too comfortable or not so willing to take control of your and your client’s destiny. And so the stock still stinks. Management will keep you so busy in policy dictum you will never be able to make a good decision and they will high five over beers at Quail Ridge or Myers Park. Happy New Year again. I hope you and your family are safe and healthy.
I laugh sometimes at the RIA jabs when you call me uninspired or lazy. Yes, I am the ML lifer cashing my $3.5 myn income, and in February will get my yearly $600k stock bonus while directing my half million $ staff paid by the firm to invest in portfolios that are best in class for clients that are introduced to me by other advisors or bankers across the country. You may have a point, your 70 % may be a better payout than my all in 58%. But don’t forget I am not nor is my clients paying that extra 25 to 40 basis points on those SMA or TAMP fees. But I am sure you are telling your clients about those internal fees from your funds you so carefully pick. Right? That’s why I bat a 1000 when going up against you. Don’t be so judgmental and self righteous. By the way, when you are ready to have an liquidity event, the bubble will have popped and 7-12 multiples will be long gone and long term gains will be taxed at 30%. Just another small business looking for an exit savior or the next PPP program.
FYI. I aplogize at the interpretaion of lazy or uninspired. And I aplogize if I insult you or anyone. That is not my intent. Having had my experience I just dont see how so many truly hard working entrepreneurial teams can stay in a big firm. I struggle with that admittedly. The same guy as you who owns an RIA doing same level of revenue is flyin in a jet share or they have taken accelerated depreciation , if large enough , and own their own plane. End of discussion. Your best clients are wealthy business owners or execs. What do you think an RIA principal of a firm doing 10 million or more in revenue is? Fact is ML , MS , UBS, etc. have some great people. So do the small firms. These advisors are doing quite nicely and many are my friends and former colleagues I traveled with for decades. I apprecaite the amazing experience I gained at a big firm. Admittedly I needed that experience to be where we are now. But my BIG firm that I loved
melted away in policy and HR and silly banking goals. I sat where you are exactly for 27 yrs. until one day we saw a light and recognized the risk 4 years out. I came VERY close to a small firm deal. Unfortunately thanks to crummy mgmt that 600k stock bonus I got and you got should be 1.5 …. but who is counting? Assuming you can tolerate the constraint and management nonsense from above in a big company you should stay the course. I am not in any way judgemental at all nor holyer than thou. I am likely the most humble person you have ever met. I have the good fortune of having been on both sides and believe me friend there is no comparison …. and my experience offers a broader perspective. But I do admire your loyalty and I am sure you will continue to be quite successful. But let’s be clear and give yourself the credit. YOU are successful because of YOU and your team….not the LOGO you are forced to present. You and I bat 1000 because of who you are…. not where you work. As far as multiples go who knows where that will be but it will certainly be considerably better than a CTP or whatever the brokers choose to call it. If you hired the right people and really did an analysis and your clients are portable….. they would do well with YOU as their guide and you would increase your net by 20 to 30% within three years with no risk of being fired for an incorrect expense report … and many, many other advantages. That is a fact not for debate….. ask your CPA. Larger successful RIAs manage money in house not “TAMPED “out. Its not rocket science as most “ broker ports “ directed by the home office dont beat a benchmark anyway. Best of luck to you , Friend. I admire what you have accomplished. Why share it in EPS of a public corp who could care less about you. And if you want to understand or discuss more….and if you are serious about executing for your clients and for yourself……. email me for some honest feedback at byebyebac.com. I am sure we would be friends. A real discussion is not suitable in this forum. I have counseled 8 advisors / teams in departure over last 2 years and all have been successful thanks to their hard work. Best to you and. Happy New Year. WA.
I completely agree with Wiser Advisor after being at the wire for 24 yrs and being a RIA for the past 1 1/2 years. And, the referrals from entrepnuers and CPAs are so much bigger. Because we have CFPs, CPAs (only for strategic planning, not returns) JDs, CFAs all in house. You can’t deliver this at the wires–and yet you are the advisor. And don’t get me started on owning your own business and never doing anything but what is best for your clients and firm–no NY nonsense and useless niddle men and noise. 100% focus on clients with NO interaction with seat fillers setting “the firm’s” goals for your business and yet don’t have any clients.
Congrats to the other side but it’s not really the other side. The vast majority of advisors at merrill make 1/10 of what this person is talking about. As a matter of fact the numbers above might get you on the Barron’s top 100. Of course that list is dominated by Morgan Stanley, so maybe there is a better firm “best in class”(what ever that means) than merrill.
There are Big Advisors still at ML who have huge books, and work hard, but no where near potential. These FA’s are pretty fat and happy, well taken care of by ML mgmt as FA’s depart. These are older pros who clip $200k+ a month in comp. Why take the risk and stress to move at this late stage?…they will sunset into CTP. The majority of the others are afraid of change, or just afraid, and all justified, as moving is very hard. However….it is so worth it! RIA space is incredible! Completely client focused, 1099 abilities, funding pensions with hundreds of thousands of dollars a year tax defrred, and once you get through the move, just so damn more fun as it is all about the clients, the practice and the team members. Every member has doubled their income since ML of just a few years ago. Yeah… I’ll say it….you big FA’ staying at ML are kinda lazy! I know because I was one of you. You work hard all day, but nothing like when you got started! Otherwise, you’d be doubling your practice every few years (without managers giving you the assets of departing FA’s….most of what has become your growth strategies! HaHa). And you are certainly not willing to risk moving to independence. Even though our payout is greater than 85%! You are coasting home. Only Guys like Scott get it, and aren’t done working hard and up to their potential. If the big FA’s staying really wanted to work hard, they would also go independent. But why risk that hard life now? You could not pay us to go back to ML. 85%+ payout and each new client, or asset market growth….is 100% payout. Think about that! When you bring in your next $100 million, what will you make from it and what will ML? And what will ML do for that 65% they take of YOUR revenue growth? Nada! In our RIA, we make 100% of the revenue of our next $100 million as our expenses are fairly fixed. Own your business! Not a pawn of Andy. Think about it, the main reason branch or regional managers are fired is because they can’t retain the solid FA’s. So how does Andy still have a job? That should tell you a lot about BAC’s strategy for the future. NOT FA centric!
And we DO NOT use SMA’s! We use Institutional Fund Classes and ETF’s with razor thin fees, and we own individual stocks and bonds with ZERO commissions or hidden fees. Clients just pay our modest fee, which we were able to lower a lot from what they paid at ML, because our profit margin was so much higher in an RIA platform, we shared that benefit for our clients!
I’m a broker at Chase where Andy’s brother Phil “works”. I am emailing a few of my top clients at Chase cause Chase is even worse and this article will help to explain why I’m about to leave. Chase bank Brokerage is pathetic for clients. Advisors are asked to do everything but give investment advice. We push “one chase” which is another term for cross sell and are told to just gather assets into managed accounts that underperform. It’s going to be so easy to take my clients. And what’s this new thing about logging my days off. I have a cell phone and laptop at home, I’m never off anymore. Not doing that silliness. Pushing me into the office in the midst of a pandemic? So bush league that place
I hope you updated that lead from identified to working. Lol. JPM chase is a joke now. Honestly I feel bad for the managers because all they get to do is repeat what they here from above. Bunch of robots. At least as an advisor I can call out the stupidity to my clients. Literally everyday I bring it up. Not to mention how underpaid and under appreciated the bankers are. But I don’t stress, I laugh it off and do my own thing. Managers have to stress, advisors don’t. Just do business and yes them and do whatever you want. And what’s this vacation BS? Ridiculous place to work, but all their stupidity is great cause when I explain it to my clients they all agree it’s a disaster and they are grateful for ME.
So just pay lip service and relax.
There is no perfect solution for everyone, folks. Some people are better off being employees and some find much greater satisfaction being business owners, whether being affiliated with an independent broker/dealer or as an RIA. Either way, if you are contemplating making a move, be sure to seek the guidance of someone who can help you avoid stepping on the landmines.
One day there will no longer be any wire houses left . That day is not tomorrow but if you close your eyes and open them back up in 10-15 years it will all be over. The business model is slowly going the way of the dodo bird . When that day come there will be just 1-800 numbers and websites . Maybe the independent advisors will have an extra 5-10 years more than the wire houses advisors. But once the wires die there will be no more “stock brokers” left to to to the independent side. The days of building a “book” from scratch and charging commission is going away. You can tell yourself your “fee biased”and your not charging a commission sales person all you want. Clients don’t need to pay for your advise anymore. And yes some people are still willing to pay for something they can get for free but they won’t forever . The answer to the problem is not going to to he independent side . You can’t stop history . The big firms are making all these changes because they already see the future . My dad used to say lie to me but never lie to yourself. My advice is to save save and be prepared to ride off to the sunset or be able to find another source of income. If you can take a “ check” go for it . The end is coming. There where 50,000 wire house advisors 25 years ago. Today we have less than half that number. The banks don’t need or want us and the clients won’t want or need us as well.
I couldn’t disagree more with your outlook on advice. I work with people that sell companies or transition into wealth. We deal with everything around estate, financial, tax, and investment management. We are RIAs with a very deep bench of experts. Advise for issues around real wealth will never go away. I feel for those just offering investment management lending.
Wells is a land mine and you have led people there, no thanks.
Your comment is inane. I came to Wells 14 months ago and while it is not perfect, it’s far superior to both UBS and Merrill Lynch.
UBS and ML set a very low bar! You have worked at the WORST firms. I’ve been at 2 of those dumps. Good luck.
The major firms have managed to pit us against one another so that we argue among ourselves instead of working together against policies that harm us and our clients. What we need is a union or at least a trade association! We are the revenue generators not the overpaid executives!
nah man, what you need to do is go indy.
A union is laughable in this industry. Just get away from other people affecting your business, clients, and life.
If we remain unorganized, the only people laughing are the executives who are busy dreaming up the next level “innovations” to steal our pay, steal our clients and destroy our profession.
Blake says, “If you don’t like it, leave.”
Other than that, it appears that some commenters could benefit from therapy.
Moved and Happy- where did you move from where you thinks Wells is paradise? Stratton Oakmont?
You should really consider getting a life.
Wiser Adviser:
I went to bye bye bac.com, and nothing came up.
You offered to connect, what is the email address?
Some People are Stupid- look in the mirror, you are.