By all accounts, First Republic has been a dream destination for financial advisors, a place where they could flourish and realize their full potential. Many were drawn to its sexy model and impressive upside, which was embodied by a recently traded stock price of $115 a share.
Not surprisingly, they had become a recruiting powerhouse in the RIA space. Advisors working for First Republic didn’t want to leave, while advisors at other firms, looking for a new landing spot, made the bank their top target.
That dream turned chaotic last week when Silicon Valley Bank folded. The collateral damage for other regional and niche banks was palpable. The development has also cast doubts about First Republic, which, has seen its stock price drop into the 30s at press time.
Industry trade publications like AdvisorHub addressed the chaos in a story earlier this week (https://www.advisorhub.com/uncertainty-at-first-republic-puts-advisors-on-edge-casts-doubt-on-recruiting-powerhouse/). “The uncertainty of the parent bank’s future has put some of its more-than 200 brokers at its private wealth unit on edge and could hamper the bank’s aggressive recruiting of high-end advisors from its Wall Street rivals, according to headhunters and former managers,” the media outlet suggests. More importantly, two provocative questions can be taken from the article:
As an advisor at First Republic should you explore other options?
As an advisor contemplating a move to First Republic, should you look at other options?
“These questions are not just hypothetical,” said Chris Stacey, the CIO of 3XEquity, the industry leader in facilitating career transitions within the RIA space. “We are hearing from advisors in both camps, who are questioning the old narrative about First Republic.”
First Republic may very well regain its luster six months from now, but it’s also not a good sign when the White House is singling out your employer (https://www.reuters.com/markets/us/us-monitoring-developments-first-republic-other-regional-banks-white-house-2023-03-14/) as being under “stress.”
Rescue efforts from a conglomerate of banks at the tail end of the week will help shore up footing, and First Republic does have multiple significant lines of credit to draw upon which are now untapped, but it remains to be seen how this will all play out.
Stacey suggests “It doesn’t hurt to be prudent and investigate your options so you can be an advocate for your clients and ready to take action if the situation calls for it. Your clients value their relationship with you and the moves you make on their behalf in this moment will set the tone for years to come.
If you are at First Republic (or any BD for that matter) and are curious about transitioning, now may be a good time to gather some information. Advisors can receive multiple offers from top broker dealers, while remaining 100% anonymous. Complete the form below or click here to schedule a meeting to discuss your options.
