Bolton Global Capital has recruited a $1bn team of international advisors from Wells Fargo to join its independent network, becoming one of the first teams from the wirehouse to officially sign on to another firm ahead of the closure of its international wealth unit.
The team set to join includes veteran Wells Fargo advisors Jorge Aguerrevere, Ernesto Amengual, Felix Bosque, Andrei Santos and Leonardo Tedeschi, all of whom have spent more than a decade at the wirehouse.
Also joining Bolton as part of the team are advisors Rafael Sotillo and Norvin Ulloa, who both worked at Wells Fargo for more than three years.
It is understood the advisors have not yet officially handed in their notice at Wells Fargo but will do so shortly in order to complete their transition to Bolton.
The Weston, Florida-based team are set to join Bolton’s offices on Brickell Avenue, Miami to launch their own independent advisory business which will be largely servicing ultra-high net worth clients based in Latin America, according to a Bolton announcement.
Bolton provides office space, technology infrastructure, brand development and legal support for bank and wirehouse teams that are looking to go independent while acquiring ownership and operating under their own brand name.
The seven-person team joins just over a month after Wells Fargo announced it was closing its international wealth management business by September this year.
The advisors’ book of business will be transferred to Bolton through BNY Mellon Pershing which will act as its clearing firm and custodian, Bolton added.
‘These advisors have chosen to convert to the independent business model through Bolton because we offer the best value in terms of global platform capabilities, compensation and ownership,’ said Bolton chief executive officer Ray Grenier.
‘Our strategy for continued growth in the international wealth management space is to affiliate with top tier professionals like these, who conduct high-quality business with a reputable clientele,’ he added.
The firm said that it expects to recruit ‘several other major teams’ from the wirehouse’s international unit in the coming weeks.
Bolton’s addition of the mega-team from Wells Fargo signals that recruitment contracts for the wirehouse’s departing international advisors are in their final stages, at least for the first batch of exits.
The news also comes amid an intense recruitment race involving a number of competing big name banks in Miami – like Raymond James and Morgan Stanley – as well as other independent brokerage firms who have all looked to scoop up talent from Wells Fargo’s international division.
Bolton Global Capital is an independent broker-dealer firm founded in Bolton Massachusetts, with offices in New York and Miami.
It has $10bn in regulatory assets under management of which close to $3bn is held through its RIA Bolton Securities, according to the firm.
