On the Toxic Model of the Wirehouse Advisor

I’ll let the elite RIA breakaways from the TD conference say what I’ve already said on this site and in my book, emphasis mine:

Gordon said as an RIA it is nice to not have a conflict of interest.  Butt agreed, noting he did not feel comfortable being forced to use proprietary products in his past.

Doglione called his previous job at a wirehouse “toxic,” but explained how wirehouse advisors can get caught up in compensation and not realize what is the right thing to do.

He said he left a lot of compensation on the table when he left, but in talking about the wirehouse model, he said, “You can’t run a business against the people you are trying to help and expect it to last forever.”

This is is the essence of why these large Wall Street “wealth management” firms are destined to crumble, why they’re already teetering.  There are only two possible outcomes left:

1. Go full-on fee-only fiduciary and stop selling schlock

…or

2. Die.

I’m not the only one who feels that way.

Source:

The Secrets Behind Becoming (and Remaining) an Elite Advisor (Financial Planner)