LPL Financial president Dan Arnold expects assets under management for independent financial advisors to continue to surpass wirehouses.
“The independent model has appeal,” Arnold said in a general session address at LPL’s annual conference in San Diego. “Independent assets under management last year surpassed wirehouses for the first time. And Cerulli projects that trend to continue.”
Arnold cited trust and hyper-locality as reasons why the independent market is flourishing. To be sure, the availability of technology and service offerings puts independent financial advisors on the same level of capabilities as Wall Street firms. Moreover, in many cases they can better compete on costs. The trend toward advisory (versus brokerage) solutions also makes the independent landscape more competitive and puts the focus on relationships.
Arnold says LPL is leaning on technology to better incorporate planning solutions into processes. An advisor-enabled robo solution will be rolled out in January to all LPL advisors. A no-transaction fee mutual fund solution will be made widely available by year's end, Arnold says. Advisory assets now comprise 70 percent of the firm’s business, according to Arnold.