Osaic Touts Advisor Addition Amid Commonwealth Talent Rush

A win is a win, no matter how small.

In the ongoing battle for Commonwealth advisors, competition is heating up and firms are touting victories to lure wealth managers away from LPL. Osaic added Brent Bridenback and Bridenback Wealth Management, which oversees $90 million in assets, to its network of financial advisors this week. While one advisor might not seem like a major deal coming from a firm with more than $700 billion in assets under administration, Osaic used it as an opportunity to highlight the firm’s attractiveness to Commonwealth advisors who might be on the fence about going to LPL Financial. 

“It feels like firms are operating with such a level of urgency, more than I’ve ever seen before,” said Stacey Frank, executive vice president of sales at recruitment consultant Elite Partners. “It’s like a fire drill.”

Get Over Here

LPL announced its $2.7 billion acquisition of Commonwealth at the end of March with the goal of retaining 90% of its roughly 2,900 advisors. LPL executive Scott Posner said the firm was on track to meet that goal despite best efforts from rivals like Cetera and Raymond James to poach talent, in an interview with Barron’s at the end of May.

However, Frank sees 90% as a lofty target, and said the Commonwealth advisors she’s currently working with are a mixed bag of those who are enthusiastic about moving to LPL and those possibly seeking an alternative, citing Commonwealth’s unique culture as something they don’t want to lose.

“They had certain agreements with discretion and how they operated with their clients,” Frank told Advisor Upside. “Other firms may not be so comfortable doing it, so they’re going to miss some of that ease of doing business.”

The Choice Is Yours. Whether Commonwealth advisors stick with LPL or go elsewhere, Frank said the decision should not be made hastily. “The one question I always ask advisors: If the acquisition was not in play, would you feel like you were in the driver’s seat to go to that firm?” she said. “If the answer is ‘I’m not sure,’ then there’s a conversation to be had.”