Advisor head count at Merrill grew 3 percent year over year to 19,238, which includes bank brokers. Total client balances grew to $2.75 trillion, which includes $162 billion in loans and leases.
The bump-up in advisor numbers came primarily from trainee numbers, company officials said.
Moynihan said Merrill hasn’t changed its decision to remain in the recruitment protocol.
Morgan Stanley, which withdrew from the protocol in early November, ended the year with 15,712 advisors, down slightly from 15,763 a year ago. Total client assets were $2.37 trillion.
Gorman got no questions about the protocol Thursday during the conference call.