Wells Fargo Makes New Push to Recruit Wealth Managers

Wells Fargo has spent the last few years overhauling its wealth management business.

Now, the banking giant is trying to convince hundreds of financial advisors to join that division, Bloomberg News reported Thursday (Aug. 27).

According to the report, this new push focuses on wooing what are known as “independent advisers,” who aren’t full-time Wells Fargo employees but use the bank’s infrastructure. These advisers have brought in $17 billion for the year so far, in addition to the $24 billion that new, full-time advisers have generated.

The report noted that this hiring effort has helped balance a wave of departures facing Wells Fargo and other big banks as new technology makes it easier for wealth advisors to hang their own shingle. This marks a major shift from only a few years ago, when full-service brokerages operated by big banks were the main homes for financial advisers.

Among the hires is James Taylor, who joined Wells Fargo from Morgan Stanley in May, bringing with him his team and nearly $6 billion in client assets.

“I think that’s been great that Wells has been skating to where the puck’s going,” Taylor told Bloomberg, adding that this means he won’t need to change banks again if he decides he wants to go independent someday.

The report added that this is part of Wells Fargo wealth management head Barry Sommers’ major overhaul of the bank’s wealth management business since his recruitment five years ago. Rather than bucking the independent adviser trend, Sommers set out to make it easier for them with the assistance of his bank.

“We’re always going to be constantly improving our platform, but we have all the right products and services, the right technology, and we’re focused now on growing this business,” he said.

In other Wells Fargo news, PYMNTS wrote earlier this month about the bank’s decision to offer tokenized deposits to select corporate and commercial clients.

This service, set to begin this fall, will initially support transfers between American dollars and British pounds, letting participating companies move, program and settle funds around the clock. More countries, clients and currencies will be added to the service next year.

The move puts Wells Fargo next to JPMorgan and Citi in a contest over who will provide the digital money used to make corporate payments.

“Stablecoin issuers have demonstrated that funds can move across borders and outside banking hours,” the report said. “Banks are responding by applying similar technology to deposits that remain within regulated institutions. That distinction goes to the center of the emerging competition.”