$580M Florida Trio Departs Merrill for LPL Financial
LPL Financial announced the addition of three advisors from Merrill Lynch, where they managed about $580 million in advisory, brokerage, and retirement plan assets.
The Winter Park, FL-based advisors, siblings Sarah Grafton, William Grafton, and Dexter Grafton, will operate as Grafton Wealth Advisors and join LPL’s independence model, LPL Strategic Wealth Services.
The three take over the business from their father, William “Bill” Grafton III, who founded it in 1972. Tanya Carroll and Percy Canteenwalla, client relationship managers, will join them at LPL.
Looking for more control over how they operate, the team chose LPL because the Strategic Wealth Services offering provides them with the greatest flexibility and choice to build a boutique practice with a concierge service model.
“This move puts us in a better position to provide highly customized strategies and independent financial advice in our clients’ best interests, outside of corporate pressure,” said Dexter Grafton.
The Grafton team works with several high-net-worth multigenerational families and business owners, offering estate and philanthropy planning, income tax strategy, trustee services, and alternative investment options.
LPL has had an active year. The Grafton Wealth Advisors deal follows the addition of seven financial advisors from five firms earlier this month, collectively serving approximately $700 million in advisory, brokerage and retirement plan assets, from Osaic. LPL also added Endeavor Wealth Strategies, a Fort Wayne, IN-based advisory firm with $515 million in assets.
In February, the firm added two Merrill Lynch financial advisors, James “Jamie” P. Debuque and Timothy M. Baltz, who managed $1 billion in advisory, brokerage, and retirement plan assets, who left the wirehouse to launch Continuity Private Wealth.
That same month, LPL acquired Atria Wealth Solutions, a NY-based wealth management solutions company that manages about $100 billion and works with approximately 2,400 advisors and 150 banks and credit unions.
LPL serves more than 22,000 financial advisors, including advisors at about 1,100 institutions and at about 570 registered investment advisor (“RIA”) firms nationwide.