If you are a financial advisor looking to grow your business, or if you are thinking of retirement and want to sell your practice, Cambridge Investment Research is launching a succession planning venture, under the name Continuity Partners Group, for 23 advisory firms in the Fairfield, Iowa broker-dealer network.

I note this because it’s an interesting concept ; not only will an advisory firm be able to take out a loan from Continuity in order to buy out another firm, but also a junior advisor can get funding to buy out a practice from a senior advisor.

The biggest issue with succession planning and continuity planning for advisors has always been financing because it costs so much to fund a buyout. The deal is that Cambridge will provide funds by selling stakes in Continuity, in exchange for 20% of annual earnings. The genius behind this concept is Eric Schwartz, CEO of Cambridge who also was the pioneer of the fee-based advisory business model.

So, you might have to take a look at it and ask yourself…in another 15 years is this going to be the “norm” and should I jump on it now? Is this another “visionary?”