March 24, 2025
Diamond Consultants Transition Report Quoted
By Michael S. Fischer
In 2024, 9,615 experienced financial advisors changed firms, according to a new report from Diamond Consultants. In context, that means that despite sundry headwinds, advisor movement was roughly flat — down by less than 1% — compared with 2023, when 9,674 advisors changed firms.
Why do advisors move? Some do so because they receive lucrative recruiting deals. Others opt for a version of independence, where transition capital is less available or even nonexistent. Still others disregard recruiting deals, preferring to evaluate each firm on its own merits because their only focus is to make life better for their clients.
The report looks at which firms are most and least successful in retaining talent and bringing on new blood, and why advisors at big brokerages and independent firms are moving. It also discusses last year’s biggest and most influential transitions.
For its report, Diamond Consultants gathered data from Discovery Data and FINTRX, as well as from a variety of news sources. It also tapped its own proprietary data from transitions it facilitated.
See the accompanying gallery for the report’s 10 predictions for 2025 and beyond.
