LPL Recruits $4.6B Advisor Network from Lincoln Financial 

LPL Financial LLC announced that Pilot Financial, a network of 105 advisors nationwide and another former Lincoln Financial team, has joined its broker-dealer, RIA and custodial platforms.  

The Greensboro, NC-based team of advisors manages approximately $4.6 billion in advisory and brokerage assets.  

The practice, which operates as an office of supervisory jurisdiction, is led by R. Chris Roney, Gregory E. Smith, Daryl E. King and William R. (Bill) Harnden. 

The Pilot leadership team’s due diligence process led them to LPL, which “checked all the boxes” for what they were looking for in a new wealth management firm. 

“LPL is a stable partner, Fortune 500 company and leading wealth management firm with a proven track record as a preferred service provider for financial professionals,” Roney said. “This move will greatly enhance our ability to service accounts more effectively, resulting in more convenience for clients and easy account access at their fingertips 

Pilot Financial’s origins date back to the early 20th century with the formation of three small firms: Pilot Life Insurance, Lincoln National Life Insurance, and Jefferson Standard Life Insurance. After multiple mergers, Pilot Financial was established in 2001 to support independent advisors with strategic planning, coaching, compliance, and administrative assistance. 

LPL has now taken on many advisory and brokerage teams that have departed Lincoln since the announcement of the wealth division’s sale to Osaic. At the time, the company had an estimated 1,400 advisors in charge of $115 billion in assets. 

LPL’s most recent acquisition of ex-Osaic advisors was the recruitment of Strategic Wealth Partners, a Dallas-based firm with $860 million in advisory, brokerage, and retirement plan assets, which was revealed in late April.