First Republic has just signed three big-name wealth management teams to its roster in one week’s time to kick off 2023. First, an $11 million in revenue/$1.8 AUM BNY Mellon Boston-based team led by Brenda Travaglini, Michael Corcoran, Dennis Murray, and Dan Gallagher along with three staffers. All four with substantial years under their belt with BNY, Travaglini with 37 years, Corcoran with 34 years, and Murray and Gallagher each with 20 years at the firm. To leave the firm with this many years of service and a salary plus bonus must have been for something special as we’ll get to in a moment.
The second move, is a four-person Morgan Stanley team led by Eric Yamin with 35 years in the business, and Keith Caparelli with 10 years. The $7 million revenue/$ 700 million in AUM team serves clients in New York and Florida. The third movement, the $8 million Wellesley Hills, Massachusetts-based Mohamed-Merola Wealth Management team left Merrill Lynch also for First Republic. Derek Mohammed and Justin Merola each had been at Merrill for 7 years and previously were both at UBS and Morgan Stanley respectively.
Roger Gershman of the Gershman Group, familiar with the teams stated, “First Republic is undeniably a great consideration for advisors on the coasts serving the UHNW client with private banking needs (including direct referrals), the extremely competitive compensation plan is clearly luring advisors to the firm, one after another.”
What is behind these moves and First Republic’s ability to now have amassed 200 top advisors representing over $195 billion in AUM? In 2022 alone, First Republic recruited $12 billion in new AUM.
The upside?
One, First Republic is a premier private bank with pristine UHNW relationships. The bank has been able to negotiate the banking – wealth management relationship well. Some might see this as a negative if they want to be separated from the pressures that come with a bank, some view it as a positive.
Two, the First Republic model allows some freedom and is more entrepreneurial in nature than the firms advisors are leaving yet it isn’t a “go it alone” setup for advisors who don’t want to establish their own RIA firms.
Three, the bicoastal footprint of First Republic works for advisors serving clients in those areas, it might not serve advisors well in the rest of the country.
