Avantax Reports Recruiting Surge in 2022

What You Need to Know

Avantax, formerly Blucora, said recruited assets rose 79% from 2021.
The firm says it’s experiencing strong recruiting as advisors look to meet demand for wealth management that integrates tax planning.
Avantax comprises a BD and an RIA that partners with CPAs.

Avantax announced strong growth in 2022 that it said Tuesday included 66 recruits in the fourth quarter, contributing to newly recruited assets of about $1.7 billion for the full year, up about 79% from 2021.

For all of 2022, Avantax attracted 258 recruits, according to Todd Mackay, president of Avantax Wealth Management, the firm’s independent broker-dealer division.

Giving Avantax an edge over many rivals in the financial services sector is its tax and financial professionals offering clients the “differentiated value of tax-advantaged wealth management,” according to Tim Stewart, vice president and head of business development for Avantax.

Clients, he said in a statement, are increasingly growing “frustrated by advisors offering limited services.”

Meanwhile, Avantax recruits “don’t want to be anonymous cogs in their broker-dealer’s machine,” he said. “They’re joining Avantax to be part of our community of like-minded, growth-oriented peers who collaborate and help elevate each other as they grow.”

Financial professionals are transferring to Avantax from various channels, including large BDs, RIAs and regional firms, the company said.

Independent financial professionals who became affiliated with Avantax in the fourth quarter included Kenneth S. Hamada, who the company said transferred his practice from Independent Financial Group.

Hamada has been an advisor and broker for four firms since joining the sector 24 years ago, according to his report on the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority’s BrokerCheck. He joined UBS in 1998, left to join LPL Financial in 2002, then joined IFG in 2014 and Avantax last year.

He selected Avantax to continue growing his practice’s assets and geographic presence with the support of Avantax.