TL;DR
- Going independent starts months before anyone at the old firm knows, with quiet research into contracts, custodians, and business models.
- Advisors typically choose between joining an existing RIA, using a platform or aggregator, or launching a standalone firm.
- The actual move usually happens over a single weekend, timed around a resignation letter and a wave of account transfer paperwork.
- Client transitions run through ACAT transfers and take weeks, not days, even after the advisor has technically "left."
- Cash flow gets tight for a stretch because trailing commissions and old payouts stop before new revenue fully replaces them.
What does "going independent" actually mean?
It means an advisor stops being an employee of a brokerage or bank-owned firm and becomes the owner, or part owner, of their own registered investment advisory business. That is the short version. In practice it covers a range of setups, and the differences matter a lot operationally.
Some advisors join an existing RIA as a partner or employee, which is closer to a lateral move than a true launch. Others plug into a platform or "aggregator" that handles compliance, technology, and back office work in exchange for a fee or equity stake. A smaller group builds a standalone RIA from scratch, registering their own firm with the SEC or a state regulator. Each path has a different sequence of steps, but they all start the same way: with a decision made quietly, long before anyone else finds out.
What happens before the advisor tells anyone?
Before any resignation letter gets written, the advisor spends weeks or months doing quiet homework. This is the phase almost nobody outside the advisor's closest circle ever sees.
First comes a hard look at the employment agreement. Advisors review non-compete clauses, non-solicit language, and any provisions about client lists or "garden leave" periods that might delay a move. Many wirehouse and bank-affiliated contracts are governed by industry agreements that spell out exactly what an advisor can take with them, such as client names and contact information, and what they cannot. Getting this wrong can mean a lawsuit, so most advisors quietly consult an employment attorney before doing anything else.
Second comes book analysis. The advisor, sometimes with help from a recruiter or consulting firm, maps out the client base: total assets, revenue by household, which relationships are likely to follow and which are not. This step drives almost every later decision, including how much capital the advisor will need to bridge the transition and what valuation or deal terms make sense if they are joining another firm.
Third is custodian and technology research. Advisors going independent need a place to actually hold client assets. That usually means picking a custodian, evaluating trading platforms, financial planning software, and CRM systems, and figuring out what a new operating budget looks like. This is often where the reality of running a business first sinks in. Many advisors are surprised by how much operational work sits underneath the parts of the job they actually enjoy.
This planning stage is also when advisors are most honest with themselves about why they are leaving. Firms that want to keep good people should pay attention to that pattern, since the reasons advisors give during this quiet phase are usually the same ones covered in why financial advisors leave firms and, in a growing number of cases, tied to the kind of exhaustion described in pieces on advisor burnout warning signs.
How does an advisor choose a business model?
The advisor picks a model based on how much control they want versus how much operational burden they are willing to carry. There is no single right answer, and the choice shapes every step that follows.
Joining an existing RIA is the lowest-friction path. The advisor typically becomes an employee or partner, hands over compliance and back-office work to the existing firm, and focuses on client relationships and growth. This is often called a "breakaway" move when the advisor is leaving a wirehouse or bank channel for an RIA.
Using an aggregator or platform sits in the middle. The advisor gets their own brand and more autonomy than a straight employee role, but leans on a shared infrastructure for trading, compliance, and technology. Fees are usually a percentage of revenue or a flat platform charge.
Launching a standalone RIA gives the most control and the most work. The advisor has to register the firm, write compliance policies, hire staff, negotiate with vendors, and build a brand from nothing. It usually takes longer to get running and costs more upfront, but it also keeps the most economics with the advisor long term.
Whichever model an advisor picks, the underlying motivation is often the same one recruiters hear again and again: advisors want more say over how they get paid and how they serve clients. That is a big part of what shows up in research on what advisors really want in a job offer, and independence is, in effect, an advisor writing their own offer instead of waiting for one.
What does the actual transition weekend look like?
The move itself is compressed into a very short window, usually a Friday resignation followed by a weekend of paperwork. Everything before this point was planning. This is execution.
On a typical Friday afternoon, the advisor resigns in person or by letter, often at the end of the business day to limit the time the old firm has to react. Many firms respond by immediately cutting off system access, escorting the advisor out, and freezing accounts. This is standard practice at most large firms and is expected, not a sign of anything unusual.
Over that same weekend, the advisor and their team, if they have one, work through a stack of ACAT (Automated Customer Account Transfer) forms and new account paperwork at the new firm or custodian. Depending on the size of the book, this can mean dozens or hundreds of individual account forms that need signatures, either gathered in advance where legally permitted or collected quickly once the move is public.
By Monday morning, clients typically get a phone call, email, or letter announcing the move and explaining what they need to do next. The tone and timing of this outreach is carefully planned in advance, since it needs to thread the needle between industry rules on solicitation and the advisor's need to reassure clients quickly before the old firm reaches out first.
How do client accounts actually get transferred?
Client accounts move through the ACAT system, and this part of the process takes weeks, not the single weekend that gets most of the attention. The resignation is fast. The paperwork is not.
Each client has to sign new account forms authorizing the transfer to the new custodian. Some transfers are "in kind," meaning the actual securities move over without being sold, which avoids triggering taxes. Others require liquidation first, especially with proprietary products or accounts that cannot be held at the new custodian. Any account with unusual holdings, trusts, or retirement plan complications tends to slow things down further.
It is common for a meaningful share of a book, sometimes 70 to 90 percent depending on the situation, to transfer within the first month or two. The rest can trickle in over several more months, and a small percentage of clients typically choose to stay behind, whether out of loyalty to the old firm, comfort with the status quo, or simple inertia. Advisors build this attrition into their financial projections rather than assuming every client will follow.
Throughout this stretch, the advisor is also rebuilding basic infrastructure: setting up a new phone system, website, marketing materials, and often a physical office, all while trying to reassure anxious clients and keep the business running.
What happens to income during the move?
Income usually dips for a period before it recovers, because old payouts stop immediately while new revenue takes time to catch up. This gap is one of the most underestimated parts of going independent.
At most firms, an advisor's trailing commissions, deferred compensation, and unvested bonuses do not simply follow them out the door. Deferred comp is frequently forfeited entirely under the terms of the original employment agreement, which is one reason book analysis and legal review happen so early in the process. On the new side, revenue only starts flowing once accounts are actually transferred and generating fees or commissions again, which, as noted above, can take weeks to fully ramp up.
Because of this gap, many advisors either save up a personal cash reserve before making the move, negotiate a transition package or forgivable loan if they are joining an established RIA, or take on a line of credit to cover several months of business and personal expenses. Firms recruiting independent-minded advisors, including those building remote or multi-location teams as covered in guidance on recruiting financial advisors remotely, often build transition assistance directly into their offers for exactly this reason.
How long does the whole process take, start to finish?
From the first quiet conversation with an attorney to a fully transferred, stable book of business, the process commonly runs somewhere between six months and a year. A few advisors move faster if they are joining an established RIA with a streamlined onboarding process. Others, especially those launching a standalone firm with full SEC or state registration, can take longer, particularly if compliance approval or office buildout hits delays.
The visible part, the resignation and the transition weekend, is only the midpoint of a much longer arc that starts with private planning and ends with the slow, steady work of re-earning client trust in a new setting.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can an advisor take client contact information when they leave?
It depends on the firm and the agreement in place. Some large firms participate in industry agreements that allow advisors to take limited client information, such as names, addresses, and account types, when moving between participating firms. Advisors outside those agreements generally cannot take client lists and have to rely on public information or client-initiated contact instead. This is exactly why legal review happens before any other step.
Do all clients follow an advisor who goes independent?
No. A meaningful share typically does, often the majority within the first couple of months, but some clients stay with the old firm regardless of how strong the relationship was. Reasons vary from comfort with existing paperwork to family influence to simple inertia, and advisors generally plan their finances assuming some attrition rather than a full book transfer.
What is the biggest operational surprise for advisors who go independent?
Most advisors underestimate how much non-client work is involved, from vendor contracts and compliance filings to office logistics and technology setup. Advisors who join an existing RIA avoid much of this, while those launching a standalone firm often describe the first few months as running two jobs at once: serving clients and building a company.
Is going independent the same as a "breakaway" move?
Not exactly. "Breakaway" usually refers specifically to advisors leaving a wirehouse or bank-owned brokerage for the RIA channel. Going independent is a broader term that also covers advisors moving between RIAs or launching entirely new firms outside the wirehouse world.
How do advisors cover expenses during the income gap?
Common approaches include personal cash reserves built up in advance, a transition package or forgivable loan from a new RIA partner, or a business line of credit. The right approach usually depends on the size of the book, the chosen business model, and how quickly the advisor expects revenue to stabilize after the move.