Aggressive growth through mergers and acquisitions, as well as active recruiting, should continue at Advisor Group, a network of independent wealth management firms, despite a drastic industry-wide slowdown in advisor movement that occurred at the end of 2022, according to Greg Cornick, president of advice and wealth management for Advisor Group.

Advisor Group, one of the largest networks of independent wealth management firms in the nation, has an active pipeline of mergers and acquisitions, as well as recruiting, coming up this year, Cornick said in an interview.

“This may be just an Advisor Group perspective, but we are hitting on all cylinders and expect that continue,” Cornick said. “I think the volatility that is disrupting the market has pushed thoughts of moving to the forefront for some advisors.”

Advisor Group added more than 1,800 financial advisors to its network last year, the firm reported today. With the addition of the advisors came $84.2 billion in total new client assets through its strategic growth strategy.

"Our commitment to generating the right type of growth that delivers value to all of the advisors in our network is at the forefront of all we do,” and will be part of the growth strategy going forward, Jamie Price, president and CEO of Advisor Group, said in a statement.

One of the largest acquisitions, that of New York-based American Portfolios Financial Services, which was completed in November, added approximately $33 billion in assets to the network. The deal broadened the firm’s national footprint.

Also in May, the firm acquired Infinex Financial Holdings with more than 750 financial professionals who oversee approximately $30 billion in client assets. Infinex supports more than 230 community-based bank and credit union programs across the U.S. and expands Advisor Group's multi-channel capabilities, Advisor Group said. The acquisition opened up a new avenue of investing and advice for Advisor Group, Cornick said.

In addition to the acquisitions, Advisor Group successfully recruited advisors, Price said. As of December, nearly $21 billion in client assets were added to the firm through recruiting efforts.

"Despite the volatile economic environment, our increasing scale allows us to invest even more into our business to provide best-in-class solutions for our advisors and an elevated service experience for their clients,” Cornick said. "In addition, over the past year, our strategic vision continued to attract to the firm seasoned industry executives who are dedicated to supporting and empowering the best financial advisors in the business."

The largest advisory firms added to the network were Gallagher's Retirement Plan Consulting Practice, with more than $6 billion in assets, The Private Wealth Management Group with more than $1 billion in assets, and Ironbridge Wealth Counsel with more than $800 million in assets.

“2022 was a good year for us and represented the culmination of honing our organic growth strategy,” he added. “The advisors who have joined us are growth centric and many have their eyes on succession planning. We are bullish about 2023 and plan to continue the momentum we have built.”

Advisor Group is one of the largest networks of independent wealth management firms, serving approximately 10,000 financial professionals.