Wealth management platforms hit growth milestones all the time, but few do it with the kind of momentum Genesis Wealth is showing. The firm—an LPL Financial non-OSJ branch office and a rising name in advisor-focused independence—just crossed $2.5 billion in assets under management, beating its own 2025 targets well ahead of schedule.

The achievement is more than a round-number victory lap. It reflects a structural shift in the advisory world: bank advisors are defecting to supported-independence models at scale, and Genesis Wealth has emerged as one of the clearest beneficiaries.

The pitch is simple but increasingly attractive: full independence and top-tier economics without the headaches of running your own RIA. For advisors stuck in the bureaucracy-heavy, margin-tight world of traditional banks, that value proposition has never been more appealing.

A Model Built for Bank Advisors Who Want Out

Advisors who leave banks typically face a familiar dilemma. Pure independence brings autonomy, but also administrative burdens—compliance, HR, real estate, vendor management, technology procurement, and that never-ending list of “things that keep you from actually working with clients.”

Genesis Wealth is betting heavily that advisors want the upside of independence minus the operational drag, and so far the numbers back it up. The firm’s “Supported Independence Model” includes:

• A turnkey infrastructure (staff, office space, tech stack, billing systems)
• LPL affiliation fees covered
• Full compliance and operations support
• Purpose-built workflows designed by former bank advisors for their peers

Advisors keep autonomy, keep economics, and keep growing—just without the business-running burden.

This model has emerged as a sharp competitive wedge in a market where many bank advisors are looking for an exit but aren’t ready to build an entire RIA from scratch.

Recruiting Momentum: A Pipeline Banks Should Probably Worry About

Founder and Managing Partner Kosta Tanglis says the firm’s 2024–2025 recruiting wave isn’t a coincidence. “Our year-to-date recruiting success reflects the appeal of our model. Advisors can combine independence with a growth-oriented culture and strong operational support,” he said.

Translation: advisors are tired of the constraints of bank-based programs—caps on payouts, product limitations, siloed technology systems, and limited control over practice growth.

For many, Genesis Wealth offers a middle path: independence with a safety net.

Co-founder Barry Krumwiede underscored the point: “These results are a testament to the hard work of our team and the strength of our advisor-first approach. We’re committed to tripling down on this model and continuing to attract top talent from the banking world.”

That “tripling down” isn’t just rhetoric. Genesis Wealth plans to expand its Chicagoland real estate footprint in 2026, creating more space to house both new recruits and supporting staff.

Why Bank Advisors Are Leaving—And Why Genesis Keeps Winning Them

The shift from bank channels to independence has been accelerating for years, driven by several factors:

• Banks continue tightening sales oversight, limiting advisor autonomy
• Payout grids at many banks have stagnated compared to independent alternatives
• Tech fragmentation makes client service harder
• Pressure to cross-sell bank products has pushed many advisors to reconsider long-term career fit
• Clients are increasingly demanding holistic, fiduciary-forward advice

Genesis Wealth directly addresses these friction points by offering bank advisors:

• Higher economics than most bank programs
• True autonomy without RIA-management headaches
• A fully staffed office ecosystem (rare in independent models)
• A tech-forward platform via LPL’s infrastructure
• A culture built by former bank advisors, not finance executives far removed from field reality

This is the part competitors may find hardest to replicate: Genesis is not a corporate experiment. It’s a platform founded and fully owned by high-performing ex-bank advisors who built exactly what they wished they’d had earlier in their careers.

That ownership structure creates “advisor alignment” many large platforms talk about but rarely deliver.

Behind the Numbers: Why $2.5B AUM Actually Matters

Crossing $2.5 billion is more than symbolic—it affects platform economics, partner leverage, and advisor confidence.

At this scale, Genesis strengthens its ability to:

• Attract larger advisor teams
• Negotiate better technology and service arrangements
• Reinforce its advisor-first platform design
• Expand service staff across compliance, practice management, and operations
• Invest in new tools for financial planning, client reporting, and tax-aware portfolio management

For incoming advisors, this is meaningful: joining a fast-scaling platform often translates to a stronger operational backbone and a deeper bench of expertise.

For banks still relying on advisor retention bonuses to keep top performers from exploring independence, this milestone should set off alarms. Advisors now have a proven landing spot that feels familiar in structure but liberating in autonomy.

Personalized Planning Push: Holistic Advice at the Center

One theme consistent across Genesis Wealth’s messaging is that planning—not products—is the core of their model. New advisors joining the platform typically have strong backgrounds in:

• Holistic financial planning
• Retirement strategies
• Tax-efficient investing
• Estate planning integration
• Family wealth continuity

Genesis layers infrastructure underneath that professional skillset, freeing advisors to do what clients value most: actual planning conversations, not administrative gymnastics.

With the industry seeing a major demographic shift—clients demanding broader advice as they move into retirement, small-business succession planning, and multi-generational wealth planning—the timing is ideal.

What’s Next: Expansion, More Recruiting, and Platform Enhancements

Genesis Wealth doesn’t plan to slow down. In addition to broadening its Chicagoland footprint, the firm aims to:

• Scale recruiting pipelines for bank teams transitioning to independence
• Enhance advisor technology tools
• Expand centralized support staff
• Introduce more planning and portfolio management capabilities
• Deepen service offerings for high-net-worth and multigenerational clients

The firm’s founding team appears confident that the supported-independence wave is just beginning—and that bank channels will continue shedding talent as constraints tighten.

Given Genesis Wealth’s early traction, large AUM milestone, and advisor-first design, it’s hard to argue with that assessment.

In a market crowded with platforms that promise independence but deliver complexity, Genesis is positioning itself as the on-ramp that removes friction from the journey. And advisors are clearly taking notice.