Anybody see the news that Goldman Sachs bought United Capital?
United Capital is a company that over the last bunch of years has bought into a lot of advisory firms. They own parts, or maybe even all, of many different firms. Goldman Sash has now bought them.
If you’re a client of one of those firms, how do you feel about that? I’m curious because I’m not so sure that I would like it. Many of our clients come to us because they want independence, not Wall Street.
Let’s say you were a client of an independent firm a few years ago or even last year. They told you that United Capital is buying a stake in their business. It probably made you think and wonder what it was about. But, your advisor was probably still the owner or a partner and you probably figured, hey, he or she needs a financial plan too.
Now that Goldman Sachs bought the firm, that feels different. Clients who went the independent route have wound up right back on Wall Street. It makes me think that Joe Duran does not “get” what being independent is all about. I’m so glad I said “no, thank you” to them.
Maybe I’m naive, but I’m also not so sure how the deal fulfills the firms’ and United Capital’s fiduciary duty to their clients.
Switching from a fiduciary advisory relationship to one that is not a fiduciary advisory relationship or a firm that has lots of relationships that are not fiduciary advisory relationships. That doesn’t seem quite right to me.
Interesting to see how this is all going to play out.
My name is Mike Garry, and my company is Yardley Wealth Management. We are a fiduciary, fee-only financial planning, and wealth management firm in Newtown, Pennsylvania. (That’s in Bucks County). Our law firm is Yardley Estate Planning, LLC and is in the same place. We only do Estate Planning work and I am licensed in Pennsylvania and New Jersey.
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