Slideshow Advisers on the move: Morgan advisers with over $2B jump to Merrill

Merrill Lynch hired advisers who managed more than $2 billion in client assets from Morgan Stanley. Merrill, however, also lost an $800 million team to Janney Montgomery Scott.

Meanwhile, Benjamin Edwards scooped up six advisers with $450 million in combined AUM as the regional firm continues a recent recruiting push.

Click through our slideshow to see more of our latest roundup of adviser moves.

Capping off a busy week in which Merrill Lynch unveiled a robo adviser as well as plans to comply with the fiduciary rule, the wirehouse recruited eight elite Morgan Stanley advisers to open a new office in Bellevue, Washington, according to a spokeswoman.

The advisers managed more than $2.3 billion in combined client assets, according to people familiar with the matter. The spokeswoman declined to provide AUM or production for the advisers.

The new hires include Jason Weese, Mark Harris, Todd Kelly, Matt Bridge, Kristen Buxton, Alan Lubner, Jim Ferguson and Traci Bumpus. Several are longtime industry veterans and have past work experience at Morgan Stanley predecessor firm Smith Barney. For example, Weese joined Smith Barney in 1993, according to FINRA BrokerCheck.

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A team that managed more than $800 million has left Merrill Lynch to join Janney Montgomery Scott, a spokesman said.

The advisers will work from two Janney offices in Connecticut: one in West Hartford and another that was recently opened in Mystic.

Joining the regional firm are Ken Griffen, Paul Vaida, Royden Grimm, Barry Saluk, and Jared Bloxsom. The team, which is called Seaport Wealth Management, serves almost 900 client households.

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Advisers with $450 million in combined assets joined Benjamin Edwards as the regional firm continues on an expansion plan, according to a spokeswoman.

The regional brokerage also opened three new offices. Two are in New Hampshire in Concord and Laconia, and the third in Sugar Grove, Illinois.

With these, the St. Louis-based Benjamin Edwards now boasts 59 offices across 25 states, including three in New Hampshire and 11 in Illinois, the spokeswoman said.

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A Wells Fargo team that oversaw more than $340 million in client assets left the wirehouse to join Baird, a spokeswoman said.

The four-person team opened a new satellite office for Baird in Stuart, Florida, the company said.

Joining Baird are advisers Jeff Cohen and Christian Clinton, as well as client specialist Jena Burrows and client assistant Paula McClughen.

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Two advisers who oversaw more than $300 million left Stifel last week to join RBC Wealth Management, the firm said.

Advisers Darren Lehrman and Brian Marzulli joined RBC in Parsippany, New Jersey. While at Stifel, they generated more than $1.5 million in annual revenue, according to RBC.

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A father, son and daughter running a UBS team with more than $300M in AUM have left the wirehouse to join the independent advisory channel, according to a spokeswoman.

Roger Ingwersen, his son Todd and daughter Laurie launched The Harvest Group, with assistance from regulatory and compliance firm MarketCounsel and the Hamburger Law Firm, which specializes in working with investment advisers, the spokeswoman said.

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Stifel enticed over an adviser from Wells Fargo where he managed $289 million in client assets, making him the firm's latest wirehouse recruit, a spokesman said.

Steve Myatt joined Stifel in Waco, Texas.

Myatt is an industry veteran having started his career at E.F. Hutton in 1982, according to FINRA BrokerCheck records. He later worked for UBS before joining Wells Fargo in 2008.

St. Louis-based Stifel has been on a recruiting push. Last week, the firm hired another ex-Wells Fargo adviser who previously oversaw $184 million in client assets. William Krueger joined Stifel in Decatur, Illinois.

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Two advisers who oversaw more than $280 million in combined client assets joined Stifel, a company spokesman said.

RBC adviser Janice Reilly joined Stifel in Chicago as a senior vice president. While at RBC, Reilly oversaw about $94 million in client assets, according to Stifel.

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Ameriprise snapped up a former UBS adviser with $261 million in client assets, the regional firm said.

Dean Weaver joined the employee channel at Ameriprise and is now part of the firm’s Troy, Michigan, branch, which has 21 advisers and eight support staff, according to a company spokeswoman. Weaver reports to branch manager Chris Ohlert and complex director Mark Feiler.

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A Merrill Lynch team that managed $250 million in client assets left for HighTower. The team is the tenth to join the firm this year, a spokeswoman said.

William Thrush and Meghan Rump lead the team, known as the Thrush Group. They are based in Westport, Connecticut.

Thrush said in a statement that they made the move because of HighTower's platform and resources.

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(Image: Bloomberg News)

Stifel snapped up two wirehouse advisers who managed $249 million in combined client assets, the firm said.

Advisers Randy Powers and Daniel Wright joined Stifel from Morgan Stanley and Wells Fargo, respectively. They opened a new office for the brokerage firm in Skaneateles, New York, making it the 12th office in the state, according to a spokesman.

Powers will serve as branch manager and senior vice president of investments for the new office, Stifel said.

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Waddell & Reed swept up four advisers managing over $227.7 million in combined client assets, the firm said.

Advisers Jake Dawson, Michael McKinnis, Kenneth Gass and Gary Pawliczek joined the independent broker-dealer from four different firms in July and August, according to a statement released by Waddell & Reed.

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A former Wells Fargo adviser who managed $154 million in client assets jumped to RBC, the firm said.

Thomas Pink, who generated over $1 million in production at Wells Fargo, joined RBC’s office in Stillwater, Minnesota, which is part of the St. Paul complex, according to the firm. He reports to complex director Rob Andringa.

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In the latest shakeup at a major brokerage firm, John Thiel will step down as head of Merrill Lynch Wealth Management, a role he's held since 2011, according to a company statement.

Andy Sieg, head of Merrill’s Global Wealth and Retirement Solutions unit, will succeed Thiel on Jan. 1. Sieg, 49, joined Merrill as an analyst in 1992. He left in 2005 to join Citigroup Global Wealth Management, then rejoined Merrill in 2009.

Thiel, 56, wanted to step away from the day-to-day running of the business, according to a person familiar with the matter. He will remain with the company in an advisory role as vice chairman of Bank of America's Global Wealth and Investment Management unit, which includes Merrill Lynch and U.S. Trust. Earlier this year, Greg Fleming left Morgan Stanley, where he had served as president of the company's wealth management unit, and John Taft retired as CEO of RBC Wealth Management-U.S.

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