Advisor Moves · Updated Daily
Merrill Lynch advisor departures
Merrill's advisor movement tells the wirehouse story in miniature: headline headcount holds steady through trainee classes while experienced teams, including billion-dollar groups, continue to depart for regionals, boutiques, and independence. This tracker logs reported departures as they happen. Winthrop & Co.'s H1 2026 research measured Merrill at a net minus 255 producing advisors for the half.
31
Tracked departures
$159B
Disclosed AUM
22
Distinct destinations
Sep 25, 2026
Latest move
| Date | Team / Advisors | Destination | Reported AUM | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sep 25, 2026 | Pham and Yip (Palo Alto and San Jose, CA) | UBS | $575M | Google News — UBS advisor moves |
| Sep 4, 2026 | The Hall Wealth Management Group (Hall — Bellevue, WA) | UBS | $500M | Google News — UBS advisor moves |
| Aug 31, 2026 | Jeff Sharpe, Scott Tansley | Seventy2 Capital | — | Google News — Merrill Lynch advisor moves |
| Aug 27, 2026 | BHG Group (Wichita, KS) | Morgan Stanley | $1.7B | Dakota |
| Aug 17, 2026 | Foreman Rial Group (Foreman, Rial — Kirkland, WA) | Morgan Stanley | $750M | AdvisorHub |
| Aug 7, 2026 | Jones Wealth Partners (Columbus, OH) | Rockefeller | $2.1B | Google News — Merrill Lynch advisor moves |
| Aug 6, 2026 | Felix A. Erbring (Austin, TX) | Wells Fargo | $400M | Google News — Merrill Lynch advisor moves |
| Jul 28, 2026 | Flatt, Drew, Burns, Rodriguez team (Tampa, FL) | UBS | $1.3B | Google News — UBS advisor moves |
| Jul 20, 2026 | Matthew J. Smith (Montgomery, AL) | Morgan Stanley | $305M | Google News — UBS advisor moves |
| Jul 20, 2026 | Cosby, Powell & Associates (Cosby, Powell — Birmingham, AL) | Morgan Stanley | $460M | Google News — UBS advisor moves |
| Jun 18, 2026 | Robbins & Hooper (Colby Robbins, Brock Hooper — Nashville, TN) | UBS Wealth Management | $344M | Google News — UBS advisor moves |
| Jun 18, 2026 | Colby Robbins & Brock Hooper (Nashville, TN) | UBS | $2.0B+ | Google News — UBS advisor moves |
| Jun 16, 2026 | John Magee | Wells Fargo Advisors Private Client Group | $125M | Google News — UBS advisor moves |
| Jun 10, 2026 | Fundamentum Advisors (Gabriel, Burns, Johnson — Atlanta, GA) | Raymond James & Associates | $408M | Financial Advisor IQ |
| Jun 8, 2026 | Valen Private Capital (John Durham — Paoli, PA) | Sanctuary Wealth (hybrid RIA) | $477M | Wealth Solutions Report |
| May 28, 2026 | Alex Watts (Atlanta, GA) | NewEdge Wealth | — | Google News — Merrill Lynch advisor moves |
| May 22, 2026 | Ardalan Wealth Management Group (Shyan Ardalan — Los Angeles, CA) | Morgan Stanley | $830M | Google News — Merrill Lynch advisor moves |
| May 13, 2026 | Twin Harbors Private Wealth (Wang, Ilg, Rizzo, Streim, Napolitano — Melville, NY) | Wells Fargo Advisors | $1.4B | InvestmentNews |
| Apr 24, 2026 | Tyler Bybee Lane Morales Group, Merrill Private Wealth (Houston, TX) | Rockefeller Global Family Office (Post Oak Wealth Partners) | $3.0B | AdvisorHub |
| Apr 1, 2026 | Soteris Private Wealth (Erickson, Montierth) | Sanctuary Wealth (independent) | $800M | Trade reporting |
| Apr 1, 2026 | Clay Young (37-yr veteran) | UBS (South Market) | $1.0B | Trade reporting |
| Jan 1, 2026 | Infinity Private Wealth (Palermo, Frangas + 9) | Wells Fargo FiNet | $1.8B | Trade reporting |
| Oct 1, 2025 | Munster Freeman Group | Wells Fargo Advisors | $3.0B | Trade reporting |
| Oct 1, 2025 | Lewkowitz-Gersten Wealth Management Group | Morgan Stanley (52nd St, NYC) | ~$1.0B | Trade reporting |
| Oct 1, 2025 | Hyeon Kang Team (Bellevue, WA) | Wells Fargo (Private Client Group) | $1.0B | Trade reporting |
| Oct 1, 2025 | Ascend Private Wealth Partners (Barnett, Ament) | Kestra Private Wealth Services | $866M | Trade reporting |
| Sep 1, 2025 | OpenArc Corporate Advisory (formerly GCIAS) | Independent RIA (Dynasty / Schwab) | $129B | Trade reporting |
| Aug 1, 2025 | Longleaf Capital Group (Thornell, Singletary, Lee) | Arkadios Capital | $2.0B | Trade reporting |
| Aug 1, 2025 | WR Group (Scott Rosenblum, NYC) | Rockefeller Global Family Office | $400M | Trade reporting |
| Jun 1, 2025 | Sprenkle Stacy Wealth Management Group | Morgan Stanley Private Wealth | $2.0B | Trade reporting |
| Jun 1, 2025 | Opt Wealth Management (Kyle Vasel, Chicago) | Sanctuary Wealth (independent) | $260M | Trade reporting |
Moves are logged from trade press and public announcements, linked to their source where one was captured. AUM appears only where the original reporting disclosed it. This tracker records reported moves; it is not a census of every registration change.
FAQ
Merrill Lynch departures, answered
How many advisors have left Merrill Lynch recently?+
This tracker currently logs 31 reported departures of advisors and teams from Merrill Lynch, with the most recent on Sep 25, 2026. It captures publicly reported moves rather than every registration change; Winthrop & Co.'s State of Advisor Movement report measures the complete producing-advisor picture from registered-rep data.Where do departing Merrill Lynch advisors go?+
Across the moves tracked here, the most frequent destinations are Morgan Stanley (5), UBS (4), Wells Fargo Advisors (2). Destinations span rival employee-model firms, regionals, independent broker-dealers, and RIAs; the full destination-channel analysis is in the State of Advisor Movement report.How current and reliable is this tracker?+
Entries are collected daily from trade press and public announcements, deduplicated, and linked to their source where one was captured. Assets under management are listed only when the reporting disclosed them; 28 of the 31 tracked moves disclose AUM, totaling roughly $159B. The tracker was last updated Sep 26, 2026.
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