Big move follows questions of bank's stability after SVB failure
Just over a month after concerns were raised about First Republic's viability due to the failure of Silicon Valley Bank, another team is departing the company.
The Todd Halbrook and Adam MacDonald Management Group, which manages around $1 billion in assets, is transferring from Newport Beach, California to RBC Wealth Management. The team, led by managing directors Todd Halbrook, Adam MacDonald, and Vince Lovoy, has over 20 years of experience working with high-net-worth individuals, families, and corporations, and joined First Republic in 2018 after being a member of the Wells Fargo network.
According to Halbrook, the group selected RBC because of "its long-standing reputation of financial strength, honesty, and devotion" to assisting advisors and clients. RBC "continues to be the home of best fit" for advisors seeking honesty and financial stability, according to a statement from Tom Sagissor, president of RBC U.S. Wealth Management.
“Not only do we feel fortunate to welcome this fantastic team of professionals, but we are also proud to be the choice of some of the industry’s top advisors amid ongoing market volatility,” Sagissor said.
With more than $270 billion in total managed assets, First Republic's wealth management division has witnessed significant growth during the past 10 years. However, following Silicon Valley Bank's historical failure, the bank's stock market value fell by about 90%, forcing it to sell assets that had lost value due to the recent increases in interest rates.
First Republic received $30 billion in deposits from 11 financial institutions last month to prevent further losses, but there is still uncertainty since, according to Yahoo Finance, the bank recently stopped paying preferred stock dividends, suspended the common-stock dividend, eliminated annual executive bonuses, and hired JPMorgan's investment banking division to advise them.
In the midst of the turbulence, a few of the bank's 300 wealth advisors have looked elsewhere.
Vishal Bakshi, a New York-based advisor who left First Republic for Morgan Stanley, was one of the initial exits. According to Barron's, Miami-based Steven Levine and his team, as well as a group with $10.8 billion in assets, also defected to Morgan Stanley.
Prior to Wells Fargo, Halbrook was with Citigroup and Smith Barney, while MacDonald was with A.G. Edwards & Sons and Ameriprise, according to their IAPD profiles. Lovoy also had a previous stint at Citigroup. They’re joined by Senior Financial Associate Christie Gregg and Senior Client Associate Parker Howard.
