“This is not the death of small RIA firms; they will survive,” Roame said. “With the existing technology, a $50 million RIA firm can do great.”
One area where the industry is lagging is on advancing women and minorities to the point where they are playing a significant role. Two-thirds of Tiburon advisors said there will be movement in the next few years for women and minorities, but it is one aspect of the business “that needs to be fixed,” Roame said.
Mergers and acquisitions, which are already numerous, will increase in years to come. “You will see tons of active managers buying each other in the next year,” he said. “And there will be a lot of consolidation in the independent broker-dealer space.”