Former LPL executive Derek Bruton has resurfaced as the new chief executive officer at Lucia Capital Group.

Bruton will officially start at the San Diego-based firm on Friday, taking over for founder Ray Lucia Jr., who becomes chairman of the company.

Bruton, formerly the managing director of independent advisor services at LPL Financial, was forced out of LPL in April over what the firm said were “concerns about Mr. Bruton’s interactions with other employees.”

In an interview, Bruton declined to talk about the circumstances that led to his ouster.

“I’ve had the good fortune of being with a number of good organizations in the past [that] have really prepared me to lead a wealth management firm,” he said.

The new role “gets [me] back to my roots” on the wealth management side, Bruton added.

“I’ve known Derek for years, and this is right in his wheelhouse,” Lucia said.

Nevertheless, the new post is a marked change for Bruton, who had been responsible for platform and service development at LPL for its far-flung network of nearly 14,000 advisors. By contrast, Lucia Capital has just two dozen advisor/employees in 16 branch offices scattered across California, Arizona, Nevada, Texas, Oregon, Washington, Florida and Maryland.

Lucia Capital advisors handle $2.1 billion for clients. About 80% of that is traditional commission business.

Bruton said the growth potential of Lucia Capital attracted him.

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