Raymond James Financial (RJF) Morgan Stanley US Financials, Payments & CRE Conference 2024 summary

Recruiting and advisor growth

• Strong recruiting pipeline across all affiliation channels, driven by a unique value proposition combining scale, resources, and advisor-focused culture.

• Larger advisor teams are increasingly affiliating, with team sizes trending higher over the past five to ten years.

• Employee channel is seeing strong momentum this year, though channel strength varies annually.

• Investments in alternative products and private wealth initiatives are attracting high-net-worth advisors.

Practice repositioning and organic growth

• Some large firms are repositioning, often influenced by private equity activity, which may cause near-term organic growth blips.

• Departing large firms typically have less favorable economics, so their exit has a limited impact on profitability.

• Long-term organic growth target is mid-single digits for net new assets, supported by strong retention and recruiting.

• Private equity trends are expected to reinforce the value of a stable, long-term platform over the next 3-5 years.

RIA platform and multi-channel strategy

• RIA custody platform has grown to $160 billion in assets, focusing on service and integrated technology rather than price.

• Success in managing three affiliation options is attributed to a system of processes, culture, and advisor choice.

• Recent leadership changes aim to further coordinate recruiting across all channels.