A "handful" of temporary restraining orders used against departing reps. PaineWebber says it has finished bringing former J.C. Bradford clients on board - and retained 95% of Bradford's $46 billion in client assets during the transition.
PaineWebber was also successful in keeping a "relatively proportionate" number of the 900 retail brokers who worked for the Nashville, Tenn.-based regional, says spokesperson David Walker.
A 95% broker retention rate would mean that roughly 45 Bradford brokers decided to take a hike. The remaining Bradford reps benefited from retention packages, mostly in the form of four-year forgivable loans. PaineWebber set aside more than $170 million for retention efforts.
Walker says PaineWebber has sought temporary restraining orders against "a handful" of departing Bradford brokers to keep client assets from leaving the firm.
A former Bradford broker who stayed with PaineWebber says the 95% broker retention number sounds accurate, but that time will tell how many producers ultimately leave. "Whether I'll be here for the long term or not remains to be seen," he says. He doesn't like that PaineWebber pays a bit less on insurance products.
PaineWebber acquired Bradford this past April. In May, PaineWebber was bought by UBS Warburg.