BFG Financial Advisors, a Baltimore-area wealth manager with $1 billion in client assets, has lured two advisors from LPL Financial’s Commonwealth Financial Network.
Chip Roe and Jason Harmon of Potter Financial Group are joining BFG Financial, whose employees operate as investment advisor representatives of Kestra Advisory Services and registered representatives of Kestra Investment Services.
The move marks a return to Kestra, which they had previously been with, before switching to Commonwealth for about seven years.
“Chip and I have known one another professionally for many years,” said Eric Brotman, the founder, chief growth officer, and chairman of BFG Financial. “He is 63 years old and was seeking a formal succession plan for his practice—including his clients and his associate advisor, Jason Harmon.”
Roe and Harmon, who will operate under the BFG Financial name, have been managing client assets of approximately $150 million for around 160 households from their office in Durham, N.C. The duo will remain in Durham, marking BFG Financial’s first new office location, although it had previously acquired two other practices, Brotman said.
The succession-related move is one that BFG Financial hopes to continue executing to drive growth.
“We are seeking to assist advisors around the U.S. who are planning for succession and/or seeking deeper resources and service teams for their clients— ideally once every 12 to 24 months,” Brotman said. “We are talking with several other advisors presently, but will only move forward if the culture fit and financial details make sense for everyone involved—clients, staff and advisors.”
Brotman executed his own succession plan earlier this year when he stepped down as CEO, passing the role to former president and chief operating officer, Lena Nebel. On LinkedIn, Nebel wrote that Roe and Harmon will benefit from working with BFG Financial’s CFPs and having dedicated client service and relations associates.
“This new location will allow our expansion in the southeast and provide a place for our area advisors and clients to meet,” she wrote.
LPL is continuing to manage through the departure of more than 300 financial advisors since it announced the acquisition of Commonwealth. LPL closed on its acquisition of Commonwealth, the Waltham, Mass.-based independent broker/dealer with 3,000 advisors and $305 billion in assets, in August.
In separate news on Monday, Raymond James announced that former Commonwealth advisors overseeing $420 million in client assets had joined the firm to be based in Fort Worth, Texas.
Financial advisors E. Kim Dignum and son Ryan Dignum will join Raymond James as Dignum Financial Partners, working with central division leader Kirk Bell. Kim Dignum had been with Commonwealth for 14 years, and distant relative Ryan joined about eight years ago, according to BrokerCheck.
LPL faces an important milestone toward the end of this year, when leadership has said it will complete the transition of those advisors to its platforms.
The country’s largest IBD is scheduled to give its fourth-quarter and full-year earnings update on Jan. 29.
