How fee-based assets are remaking a $20T industry

From Financial Planning

It seems a dramatic milestone at first glance: client assets have reached a record high of $20 trillion. But this stunning number obscures the far more significant move from commissions to fee-based accounts, which is reshaping the advisory industry.

At the end of 2016, 39% of client assets were in fee-based programs, up from 30% in 2010, according to a report last June by Aite Group. The consulting firm predicts that trend will accelerate, so that at least half of all client assets will be in fee-based programs by 2025.

Financial advisor Kim Kropp has watched the industry’s shift firsthand since she and her business partner launched their RIA practice in the ‘90s. Her firm, Moylan Kropp, in Omaha, Nebraska, manages client assets of $440 million, with 60% already in fee-based accounts under Securities America’s corporate RIA, she says.

Read More on Financial Planning.com