Securities America in the News

November 02, 2011 | Press Releases

Securities America Creates First Online Practice Transition Center for Advisors

LA VISTA, Neb. – November 2, 2011 – Financial advisors are dedicated to helping clients plan their financial futures, but sometimes need help putting plans in place to ensure the smooth transitions of their own practices. Securities America recently introduced its Practice Transition Center, a first-of-its-kind library of videos and tools that help advisors understand and implement the process of buying or selling a practice.



For advisors who want to expand their practice through acquisition or simply put a contingency plan in place in case the unexpected happens, the Practice Transition Center offers an overview of succession planning and details on valuation, due diligence, deal structuring and client transition. This information, coupled with consulting support from Securities America’s practice management team, enables advisors to achieve their business growth objectives.



“The support received from Securities America has been a tremendous asset in my acquisition of other financial practices,” said Rene Cordell of Cordell Wealth Management in Wichita, Kan. “In my experience purchasing six other Securities America practices, the acquisition and transition process has been very well planned and executed. Most importantly, for clients it has been a nonevent.”



Securities America advisor Max Briggs, chief executive officer of FLC Capital Management in Palm Desert, Calif., knows all too well the need for contingency planning. When his business partner passed away unexpectedly from cancer at a young age, the buy/sell agreement they had put in place ensured the continuity of the practice and provided for the partner’s family. But when Briggs was attacked by a shark while fishing in the Bahamas just months after his partner’s passing, he did not yet have a continuity plan, never imagining that the unexpected could occur again. Briggs survived the attack and immediately took the necessary steps to implement another continuity plan. He described his experience in an interview with Securities America on Advisorpod.com.



“While delineating a succession plan is a critical first step, guidelines for executing the plan are equally important,” said Roger Verboon, senior practice management consultant at Securities America. “For example, we’ve seen excellent plans fail because of delays in the client transition phase. By using the tools available in the Practice Transition Center, advisors can facilitate a smooth transition for their practice, whether it is triggered by choice or due to an unexpected event.”



The content of the Practice Transition Center materials has been collected over time, in response to questions and requests for information from an increasing number of advisors. Being able to direct advisors to comprehensive self-learning tools gathered in one central location allows more time to help advisors deal with the specifics of more complex situations.



“In many cases, strategic acquisitions allow our advisor offices to double in size overnight,” said Verboon, “but it doesn’t happen without the planning, coaching and resources Securities America provides, through the Practice Transition Center and our dedicated practice management team. We currently have four deals underway for Securities America advisors to acquire practices outside our broker-dealer, with a combined total of almost $400 million in assets under management. With the addition of the Practice Transition Center, we expect that volume to increase as other advisors seek growth through purchasing other practices.”



About Securities America

Headquartered in La Vista, Neb., Securities America Inc. is the nation’s eighth largest independent broker-dealer (as ranked by Financial Planning magazine, June 2012, based on 2011 total revenue). For more than 25 years, Securities America’s mission has been to foster the success of financial professionals so they can provide quality, objective counsel and services to their clients. Advisors benefit from the firm’s industry-leading programs in practice management, advisory services and retirement income distribution, supported by state-of-the-art technology. Founded in 1993, Securities America Advisors Inc. is an SEC-Registered Investment Advisory firm that offers investment management, financial advice and financial planning through a national network of independent financial advisors. Securities America Financial Corp. is a wholly owned subsidiary of Ladenburg Thalmann Financial Services Inc. (NYSE MKT: LTS). Securities America received the inaugural Thought Leadership Award from the Retirement Income Industry Association in March 2011. Additional information is available at  www.securitiesamerica.com.