Ultra-wealthy Prefer RIAsUltra-wealthy Prefer RIAs

Kristen French

Not only are the independent RIAs stealing brokers and assets from the big Wall Street wirehouse firms, they also seem to have greater favor with the super-rich. According to an Aite Group survey of 402 financial advisors from the fourth quarter of 2009, independent RIAs have a greater share of high-net-worth (HNW) and ultra HNW clients than either wirehouse brokers or independent brokers. But the mass affluent own a greater share of the country's wealth. HNW clients, defined as those with assets of between $1 million and $10 million, represent 20 percent of retail advisory client assets, says the Aite report. Mass affluent clients, those with between $100,000 and $1 million in assets, represent 30 percent of all retail advisory client assets. Mass retail clients, those with fewer than $100,000 in assets, are a significant client segment for independent b/ds, but also for self-clearing b/ds outside the wirehouse space like Ameriprise and Edward Jones, the report says.