The bidding war among the big wirehouses to recruit financial advisors who manage the assets of the “ultra rich” continues.
High-end U.S. brokers are being offered two to three times the commissions and fees they produced in the previous year, a reflection of how eager big firms are to manage the assets of the very wealthy, who tend to be more loyal to their financial advisors than to the advisors’ firms.
In addition, fees from wealth management, are dependable, while revenue streams from trading and investing are volatile and becoming less profitable under regulatory and market pressures.
The bonuses, which can approach $15 million for some teams over several years, have steadily escalated and include perks such as prime parking spaces and the hiring of brokers’ sales assistants.
Following the financial crisis in 2008, the speculation that the big recruitment bonuses would end has just not happened. All indications are that the big pay-outs will persist because well-connected advisors have access to the assets of the very wealthy, the lifeblood of wealth management companies.
And while brokerage executives may complain about what it takes to move an elite broker, they remain confident that the bonuses will ultimately pay off.