Advisor movement from the four wirehouse firms “accelerated sharply” in the first half of 2026 as they lost a combined 1,449 experienced advisors — those with more than three years of service — and recruited 932, creating net attrition of 517, Diamond Consultants said in its first half Financial Advisor Transition Report, released on Thursday.
However, the report said, all the net losses of experienced advisors were from Merrill, which had a net loss of 404, and UBS, which had a net loss of 182.
In contrast, Morgan Stanley had a net gain of 23 experienced advisors, while Wells Fargo had a net gain of 46, according to the report. Wells Fargo’s figures included all its advisor channels, including its independent FiNet channel.
The first‑half net loss exceeded the wirehouses’ combined net loss for all of 2025, the report said.
“This is not simply another chapter in the long-running story of advisors leaving the wirehouses for independence,” Jason Diamond, President of Diamond Consultants, said in the report’s introduction.
Diamond wrote that the wirehouses were also recruiting aggressively.
The report said the share of departing advisors who chose another wirehouse fell substantially from 2025, while independence captured a larger share than in earlier periods.
Among advisors who left a wirehouse in the first half, 46% chose an independent advisor model and 24% joined another wirehouse, according to the report.
The report identified 41 teams managing $500 million or more in assets that left a wirehouse during the first half.
“I have two top takeaways from the report,” Diamond told Wealth Solutions Report by email. “First and foremost, the number of large teams in motion,” he said, pointing out 20 teams “managing north” of $1 billion in assets left a wirehouse in the first half of 2026. “Those are the teams that move the needle.”
“Also, the number of unique firms that recruited a wirehouse advisor,” he told WSR, saying there were more than 200 firms. “That is a staggering amount of choice and optionality for advisors today, and it means they are more likely to find ‘their version of perfect.’”
“That is a staggering amount of choice and optionality for advisors today, and it means they are more likely to find ‘their version of perfect.’” — Jason Diamond, President, Diamond Consultants
“Advisors have more legitimate alternatives than at any point in the industry’s history,” Diamond wrote in the introduction.
The report also examined recruiting packages, expressed as a percentage of trailing 12‑month (T12) revenue.
Employee‑model recruiting packages for “desirable” wirehouse teams can reach approximately 350% to 425% of T12 revenue, according to the report. It said independent and RIA options involve different tradeoffs among upfront compensation, control, ownership and long‑term enterprise value.
The firm attributed higher recruiting offers across the industry to increased competition.
The report said all four wirehouses were offering recruiting packages near the top of the market, which it interpreted as evidence of the channel’s resilience.
The firm expects some advisors to continue favoring the stability, brand and scale of wirehouse firms.
In March, Diamond Consultants said in its fourth annual Advisor Transition Report that advisor movement accelerated significantly last year as 11,172 advisors with over three years of service changed firms or platforms, a 16.2% increase from 2024.
Jeff Berman, Contributing Editor and Reporter at Wealth Solutions Report, can be reached at jeff.berman@wealthsolutionsreport.com.
