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The Role of a Broker/Dealer
The definition of a broker/dealer is any individual or firm in the business of buying and selling securities for itself and others. A financial advisor affiliates with a broker/dealer for the access to support, research and education that they provide.
Our Broker/Dealer
Our broker/dealer is LPL Financial, or LPL, the top independent brokerage firm in the nation for the past eight years. LPL was formed in 1989 through the merger of two successful brokerage firms, Linsco (established in 1968) and Private Ledger (founded in 1973). Fifteen year later, LPL works with more than 5,800 registered representatives based in 3,300 branch offices nationwide. The company has dual headquarters in San Diego and Boston, with over 1,000 staff members dedicated to providing the highest level of client service to affiliated representatives.
The mission of LPL is to provide financial advisors with the technology, research and products that will position them as premier providers of investment advice.
Independent Research
LPL’s chief investment officer, Lincoln Anderson, oversees a team of 10 chartered financial analysts. Their jobs are to find a variety of data and outside research, evaluate it and combine the best of it with their team’s own research to develop portfolio strategies and investment recommendations that advisors can share with their clients. The company’s research department is completely independent of Wall Street and are proud of their track record.
Self-Clearing
The norm for most broker/dealers is to hire a third-party to clear the money that is invested through their advisors. LPL differs from the norm by clearing money that is invested through their advisors themselves. The goal is twofold - cost savings and improved customer service. By self-clearing, there is no need to hire, and pay for, a third-party to process client investments. Self-clearing also allows for the advisor to resolve any client service issues directly with the broker/dealer. Before self-clearing, an advisor had to notify the broker/dealer of any problem, the broker/dealer had to call the clearing firm, the clearing firm had to investigate the issue and then get in touch with the broker/dealer who, in turn, had to get back to the advisor. Now the advisor can get their answer directly from LPL, and it seems to be working as 91% of issues called into LPL’s phone center are resolved in one call.
Open Platform
LPL does not produce proprietary products as that would go against their commitment of completely independent product research. The company offers more than 4,600 non-proprietary funds, including institutional class shares that have lower internal expense ratios.
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