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Janney Montgomery Scott, Advisor Group, Ameriprise, SEC charges and CFP exams

ByEditorial Staff
August 13, 2021 12:58 PM

Janney Montgomery Scott added eight advisors from six teams with $1.4 billion in client assets, among other career moves. Two unregistered advisors face SEC charges for malfeasance. And Dynasty Financial Partners signed up several athletes to its brand. Scroll through for a look at what happened this week in the world of financial advice.

Employee wealth manager Janney Montgomery Scott added eight advisors with $1.4 billion in client assets in recent moves by six different teams. For the year, Janney has recruited 45 advisors with $8.6 billion in client assets. Five of the latest incoming group came from Truist, and Janney has opened three new branches as part of the moves. The other teams left Ameriprise, Raymond James and Wells Fargo Advisors. The new Janney practices are: The Kraft Haigler Group in Morehead City, North Carolina; Walters Wealth Management in Roanoke, Virginia; Andrew Ciappa and Richard Link in Mt. Pleasant, South Carolina; Philip Blumel in Palm Beach Gardens, Florida; Alexander Giles in Columbia, South Carolina and Dedra Brust in Albany, New York.
Former EP Wealth Advisors and Mission Wealth planner Tyler Robuck joined Manhattan West, a Los Angeles-based wealth and asset manager. Robuck managed nearly $100 million in client assets with his prior firm. “As I reflect on my career as a financial advisor, I find myself regularly asking, ‘would my family be proud of my work?’” Robuck said in a statement. “Being a part of the elite team that Manhattan West has assembled is not only a professional accomplishment that my husband, my son and I can be immensely proud of, but I’m also thrilled to offer my clients access to the types of investment opportunities that will truly diversify their portfolios.”
RIA platform Dynasty Financial Partners is making a bet on some up and coming athletes who are projected to be among the future stars in Major League Baseball: Bobby Witt Jr. of the Kansas City Royals, Julio Rodriguez of the Seattle Mariners and Wander Franco of the Tampa Bay Rays. Each are in the the top five prospects in the league. The trio join existing Dynasty endorsement deals with tennis player Danielle Collins, golfer Chase Koepka, and IndyCar driver Sebastien Bourdais. Witt and Rodriguez are clients of one of the practices in Dynasty’s network as well. “Part of this effort is spreading our brand into the mindshare of the end consumer on behalf of our partner firms in a form of ingredient marketing,” Dynasty CEO Shirl Penney said in a statement.
Fee-only RIA The Colony Group has agreed to acquire Calabasas, California-based Legacy Wealth Partners, in a deal that will expand its footprint to 17 offices nationally with 275 advisors and employees managing more than $13 billion in client assets. Founder Brad Levin and partner David Tracy lead the incoming practice, which has $227.6 million in assets under management, according to its latest SEC Form ADV. “We had been looking for a wealth management team to complement our growing multifamily office and business management team in southern California,” Colony CEO Michael Nathanson said in a statement. “We enthusiastically welcome Brad Levin, as well as the talented Legacy Wealth team, as we seek to deliver a comprehensive offering to a growing roster of valued clients, including entertainment industry talent, business owners, professionals, and retirees.”
Financial advisor Rob Schmitt left SC&H Group to join fee-only RIA Verdence Capital Advisors after his 25-year tenure in the industry. Schmitt’s Baltimore-based practice managed $140 million with its prior firm, and he had earlier tenures with Fidelity Investments and T. Rowe Price. “Putting clients first and providing unbiased advice that helps them reach their goals has always been a passion of mine, and I know I share that approach with all of my colleagues at Verdence,” Schmitt said in a statement. “I can’t wait to see what we can accomplish together.”
Independent broker-dealer Arkadios Capital recruited John McKee of Redwood City, California-based Personal Portfolio. The CPA-led practice managed more than $300 million in client assets with its prior broker-dealer, Investment Architects, and RIA, Resource Investment Architects. “We created Arkadios to serve successful advisors like John, who have grown their businesses using the traditional avenues but are in a position to reach the next level with the right partner,” Arkadios CEO David Millican said in a statement. “John and his team talked to several independent broker-dealers, and we are thrilled they chose to move to our growing platform.”
A turnkey insurance network for fee-only RIAs called DPL Financial Partners and one of the largest technology firms in wealth management, SS&C Technologies Holdings, teamed up to launch the SS&C Advent Insurance Marketplace Powered by DPL on the Black Diamond Wealth Platform. The strategic partnership will allow advisors access to annuities, life insurance, long-term personal care and disability products from firms like Allianz Life Insurance, Great American Life Insurance, Security Benefit Life Insurance and Midland National Life Insurance, as well as the consulting services of DPL’s team. "We are excited to partner with DPL in their mission to connect advisors with accessible insurance products," Steve Leivent, co-general manager of SS&C Advent, said in a statement. "The integration between SS&C's portfolio and accounting offerings and DPL's insurance technology provides advisors with a unique solution to successfully meet their client's full financial life needs."
Ameriprise picked up two ex-wirehouse advisors for its employee channel in respective moves by financial advisors Marc Gendell and Chris Thompson. The two advisors managed nearly a combined $442 million in client assets with their prior firms, UBS and Wells Fargo Advisors. Gendell joined Ameriprise’s branch in Atlanta, while Thompson is the associate branch manager of the firm’s office in Jacksonville, Florida. Each has more than two decades of experience in the industry. They cited the flexibility and resources of Ameriprise as the motivation for their decisions.
Financial advisor Everett Ice of Cameron, Missouri-based Ice Capital Management dropped the Wells Fargo Advisors Financial Network to go to LPL Financial. The practice, which also includes the Army veteran’s wife and business partner Pam, managed $135 million in client assets with its former broker-dealer. “After going through an extensive due diligence process and interviewing fellow advisors, we saw the switch to LPL as an obvious choice,” Ice said in a statement. “LPL provides the flexibility, scale and resources needed to help us elevate the service experience for our clients. 
Advisor Group picked up two solo practitioners who left rivals to affiliate with major offices of supervisory jurisdiction with the independent broker-dealer network’s Securities America subsidiary. Financial advisors Robert “Bob” Batick and Norman “Todd” Coates managed a combined $376 million with their respective prior firms, LPL Financial and Westport Capital Markets. Guilford, Connecticut-based Batick aligned with Patriot Financial Group as his OSJ and Tyler, Texas-based Coates went to Navigation Financial Group. Their moves are part of a recruiting uptick across Advisor Group through July 9: The network has added 268 advisors with $7.8 billion in assets under administration, which is 17 more advisors and a 37% growth in recruited assets from the same span a year ago. “Our commitment to finding new ways to support our financial advisors as they serve their clients is the ultimate reason behind our success, and we are happy to stand in their corner as they pursue their growth goals,” Advisor Group President of Advice & Wealth Management Greg Cornick said in a statement.
Unregistered financial advisor Christopher A. Parris pleaded guilty in federal court on Aug. 10 to charges alleging he conducted a Ponzi scheme that has left investors with tens of millions of dollars in unpaid losses and sold people N95 masks without ever delivering them. A conspirator in the alleged Ponzi scheme that lasted more than a decade, Perry Santillo, has already pleaded guilty. Investigators say that Parris, 41, later attempted to defraud the U.S. Veterans Affairs Administration and eight companies by selling personal protective equipment during the pandemic when he knew that his company, Atlanta-based ncore Health Group, didn’t have the capacity to do so. Parris faces a potential sentence of more than a decade behind bars at his sentencing in December. “The fraud schemes at issue here, including the purported sales of personal protective equipment that the defendant could not actually provide, are particularly egregious,” Acting Assistant Attorney General Brian Boynton of the Justice Department’s Civil Division said in a statement. “The Department of Justice is committed to prosecuting anyone who would try to profit through this kind of conduct.”
Another unregistered financial advisor named Evarist C. Amah faces SEC charges alleging he bilked members of his obscure religion named the Grail Movement for $700,000 between April 2016 and July 2019. Investigators allege he made misleading statements and false account statements while telling the clients of his Westchester, New York-based firm, ECA Capital, that their investments had garnered modest returns. In fact, their accounts lost 97% of their value, according to the SEC. A German man who called himself the Messiah, Oskar Ernst Bernhardt, started the Grail Movement in the 1920s with the publication of “In the light of truth” under the pen name Abd-ru-shin. Investigators say Amah, 54, stole from at least nine fellow members of the same religion.
Fee-only advisor Neal Watson dropped his own RIA to affiliate with Arbor Point Advisors, a multi-custodian corporate RIA operated by Advisor Group’s Securities America. His Marietta, Ohio-based practice manages $110 million in client assets, and Watson aligned with Commonwealth Financial Services as his office of supervisory jurisdiction. He had previously been affiliated with Securities America from 1996 to 2004 in the course of more than 25 years in the industry. Advisor Group, Arbor Point and Commonwealth “offer a powerful combination of infrastructure, technology, support services and expertise that I can leverage to take my client-service capabilities to the next level,” Watson said in a statement. “I’m excited for what the future will bring as I take the next step in my career.”
Stifel Financial added two advisors with $192 million in combined client assets to its respective branches in O’Fallon, Illinois, and Great Falls, Montana. Michelle Sabo left Wells Fargo Advisors for Stifel, while Brenda Robertson left D.A. Davidson for her new broker-dealer.
RIA aggregator Savant Wealth Management has reached an agreement to acquire its second firm this summer, Greenwood, Indiana-based Treybourne Wealth Planners. Founding Principal Martin Armbruster and Principal Stephanie Willison lead a team managing $321 million in client assets. “We have been working for several years to identify the best possible business succession plan — one that would allow us to provide the highest and best level of service to our clients and provide an amazing opportunity for our team,” Armbruster said in a statement. “Once we started working with the team at Savant, we knew we had found the best partner to meet all our needs.” The parties agreed to the deal of an undisclosed price on July 15 ahead of an expected closing by the end of this month. Savant has more than 220 advisors and employees with $11 billion in client assets.
The oldest international organization focusing on investor protection, the North American Securities Administrators Association, will have a new president when it meets for its annual conference in late September. Melanie Senter Lubin, Maryland’s securities commissioner, is succeeding NASAA’s current president, West Virginia Senior Deputy Securities Commissioner Lisa Hopkins. The position has a one-year term. “Melanie’s years of exceptional service in support of investor protection has provided her with the experience and leadership skills to advance NASAA’s mission,” Hopkins said in a statement. “We look forward to her contributions, as well as those of the new board members, in support of NASAA’s mission of investor protection and market integrity.”
Former Kansas State University professor and past president of the Financial Therapy Association Sonya Lutter joined the wealth management consulting firm Herbers & Company. Lutter, a CFP and PhD who has served as the head of the university’s Applied Human Sciences Department, is the consultancy’s director of institutional research and education. In the position, she’ll develop training programs and provide research on consumer behavior to the firm’s clients. “She is an accomplished theory-to-practice academic on staffing and recruiting; and career tracks, among other areas,” Herbers & Company Managing Partner Angie Herbers said in a statement. “Her expertise will dramatically expand our research capabilities to benefit the financial advisory profession growth track, service-driven employee cultures, and advisor training programs.”
The next CFP exam is slated for Nov. 2 through 9, according to the CFP Board, which notes that, after its July tests, the number of CFPs nationwide has topped 90,000. The pass rate last month was 62%, which is roughly the same as the 63% share for the exam in March. The pass rate has remained between 56% and 66% for the past five years. Discounted early registration for the next round of exams is available through Sept. 7 ahead of the Oct. 19 deadline to register. The next round will be the last exams before the key topics covered by the certifying test change slightly next year.
Financial advisor Ken South dropped Oppenheimer & Co. to go independent with LPL Financial’s Strategic Wealth Services breakaway channel. South and COO Steve Arcos launched Tower 68 Financial Advisors in Newport Beach, California. The team managed $550 million in client assets with its former firm. The practice’s name comes from South’s job as a teenager. “As a former lifeguard, no one knew that beach as well as I did. It was my job to protect people and keep them from harm’s way,” South said in a statement. “That’s what we do as advisors — we take care of our clients and do what’s right for their financial futures.” The newly independent practice is the 11th to join the channel launched last year by LPL for advisors exiting from employee wealth managers.
The next CFP exam is slated for Nov. 2 through 9, according to the CFP Board, which notes that, after its July tests, the number of CFPs nationwide has topped 90,000. The pass rate last month was 62%, which is roughly the same as the 63% share for the exam in March. The pass rate has remained between 56% and 66% for the past five years. Discounted early registration for the next round of exams is available through Sept. 7 ahead of the Oct. 19 deadline to register. The next round will be the last exams before the key topics covered by the certifying test change slightly next year.
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