UBS lands top-ranked Merrill Lynch advisor

UBS hired a top-ranked advisor from Merrill Lynch, making him the latest elite wirehouse advisor to switch firms.

Brandon Sobel had been with Merrill since 2016, according to FINRA BrokerCheck records. He was recently named a Forbes best in state wealth advisor for 2021, and was listed as overseeing more than $650 million in client assets.

Prior to Merrill Lynch, Sobel had stints with firms such as Morgan Stanley, JPMorgan and Fahnestock & Co., according to BrokerCheck.

Also moving with Sobel are junior advisors Hamish Grason and Nicholas Gonzalez as well as Wilson Lee, team business manager.

In recent weeks, several other top brokers at Merrill Lynch have departed for new employers. Rockefeller Capital Management, for example, picked up two ex-Merrill teams to staff new locations in Cincinnati and San Antonio. The Cincinnati team, known as the Hambleton Fieler Group, includes advisorRoss Hambleton, who recently ranked as a Forbes best in state advisor and who was listed as having $1 billion in team assets.

A Merrill Lynch spokesperson was unavailable for immediate comment.

Although UBS reduced recruiting efforts several years ago, it continues to hire top talent from its competitors. In February, the wirehouse picked up a team from First Republic that oversaw more than $900 million in client assets.

The firm’s Americas wealth management unit fields 6,305 advisors who oversee approximately $1.6 trillion in assets, according to the company’s fourth quarter earnings report.