Hi Everyone,
Life is full of first dances. Sophia just attended her first middle school dance this past Saturday. It’s impact on Mom rivals other first dances for sure. This week, I want to talk about the impact first dances can have on us.
I remember the first time I reached out to Linsco Private Ledger (now LPL Financial). I wanted to join a Broker/Dealer that would truly allow independence. I wanted unbiased investment research. I wanted to sell no proprietary products.
I was deeply frustrated when they said my firm wasn’t large enough for them. That was a long time ago.
Thanks to you, I have grown and they don’t seem to mind having me around now. LPL Financial and I have been dancing together for about a decade and I want to give you an update on just who they are. You should know who you’re dancing with.
LPL Financial is now a publicly traded company under ticker symbol “LPLA”. It is a mid-cap stock headquartered in Boston with support offices in Charlotte and San Diego. According to Financial Planning magazine, LPL Financial is the nation’s largest independent Broker/Dealer from 1996-2011 based on total revenue.
What impresses me is that they/we did it without selling proprietary products. LPL Financial enables the independent financial advisors, banks, and credit unions with whom they partner to offer their/my clients truly objective, conflict-free advice. The open-architecture platform provides customers with access to thousands of commission, fee-based, cash and money market products manufactured by hundreds of third-party product sponsors.
My daughter had the courage to dance at her first dance. I had the courage to call LPL Financial years ago, LPL Financial had the courage to go public and remain independent, and I want you to have the courage to stick to your investment plan. . . then go dancing!
Until next week,
Susan Linkous