By Andrew Welsch
Osaic may be best known for its independent broker-dealer, but the wealth management company is attracting more teams to its nascent employee advisor unit.
On Tuesday, Osaic unveiled its latest W-2 addition: Bard Financial Services, an advisory practice that oversees approximately $1.2 billion in assets and has been affiliated with Osaic since 1986. Osaic took an equity stake in Bard Financial, according to a spokesman, who declined to comment further.
Osaic bills the W-2 unit as "empowered independence." It provides advisors with additional resources and support so they can focus on serving clients rather than running their business. The company said Bard Financial will continue to use Osaic's brokerage and advisory platform while operating under its corporate RIA.
Branford, Conn.-based Bard Financial is led by Kenneth Spitzbard, who has been a financial advisor for four decades. "As we looked ahead, we wanted a business model that allows us to devote more time to clients and provide mentoring to the next generation of advisors, while continuing with a trusted partner for operational support," he said in a statement.
Spitzbard's team also includes advisor Jeffrey Welsh, managing director Julie Cross Hoko, wealth advisor Mickey Goldberg, and senior operations professional Jackie Weston.
Osaic has long been one of the nation's largest wealth management companies as measured by head count, with more than 10,000 advisors. It launched the employee advisor unit in 2023, and has been recruiting independent advisors into the business. For example, Veater Financial Group, a $1.1 billion advisory firm in California, joined the employee channel in December. Veater Financial had been affiliated with Osaic Wealth since 2020. Last year, Osaic also acquired CW Advisors, a Boston-based RIA managing $13.5 billion in fee-only client assets. The acquisition represented a significant expansion of Osaic's employee advisor unit.
The company's employee advisor unit is composed of eight practices totaling $5.7 billion in assets, including Bard Financial, according to Osaic.
Osaic, which is owned by private-equity firm Reverence Capital Partners, was previously known as Advisor Group until it was rebranded in 2023.
Write to Andrew Welsch at andrew.welsch@barrons.com
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(END) Dow Jones Newswires
February 24, 2026 15:51 ET (20:51 GMT)
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