Exclusive: Wells wealth chief wants 10,000 more advisers

CHARLOTTE, North Carolina (Reuters) - Wells Fargo & Co (WFC.N) has a long-term goal of adding 10,000 additional advisers in its wealth management unit over time and plans to aggressively expand the number of brokers working out of the bank's retail branches.

David Carroll, a Wells Fargo senior executive vice president overseeing wealth management, told Reuters on Thursday the company's bank branches are a key part of expanding the $1.1 trillion in client assets managed by what many people may be surprised to learn is the third largest U.S. brokerage.

Among the nearly 15,000 advisers employed by Well Fargo are 3,000 working inside Wells Fargo branches nationwide. Carroll said he's trying to grow the branch-based force as quickly as he can, constrained by the ability to find the right people.

"If I could double the number of people (in the branches), the market would support probably twice as many people as we have" in the branches now, Carroll said in an exclusive interview at his Charlotte, N.C., office.

Wells Fargo's wealth unit has been overshadowed by the changes at the two larger U.S. brokerages, including the addition of Merrill Lynch's wealth business to Bank of America Corp (BAC.N), and the new Morgan Stanley (MS.N) Smith Barney joint venture with Citigroup Inc (C.N).

When Bank of America Corp bought Merrill Lynch in January 2009, many brokers feared they would become more like bank tellers than financial advisers.

This brokers-at-banks model has historically been viewed by the industry as akin to mixing oil with water, but Carroll insists the model does work -- though it takes years to fully implement.

"It takes a while to build a culture where they come together," Carroll said.

HIRING

In February, Wells Fargo disclosed it planned to hire 1,400 advisers this year through a mix of recruiting and training.

Longer term, Carroll has his sights set on more ambitious growth.

The company's brokerage force, he said, could swell to as large as 25,000 advisers, though he notes that will take years to accomplish.

He said that a brokerage team any larger than that would likely over-saturate the United States.

Carroll said Wells Fargo Advisers -- its brokerage division -- added 97 advisers in January, but will likely not match the pace seen in the first quarter last year, when the bank added 838 advisers amid historic industry turmoil.

Carroll said advisers and brokers are continuing to move among the major firms, though the movement is slowing.

He said the so-called "breakaway broker" phenomena, or brokers leaving to become independent financial advisers or join independent firms, is still very real and not restricted to the worst performing brokers.

Wells Fargo also operates an independent adviser unit, which Carroll also oversees.

"I think there is migration all along the productivity spectrum," Carroll said. "Its not just the low-end advisers. To the extent anyone thinks that, I think they're deluding themselves."

Wells Fargo Advisers is 14 months into the integration of Wells Fargo and Wachovia Corp's wealth management operations. The bulk of the wealth operations come from Wachovia Corp -- itself the amalgamation of a dozen regional brokerages plus Prudential Securities.

Carroll is the only senior Wachovia executive remaining at the company, after the 2008 buyout.

(Reporting by Joe Rauch; editing by Carol Bishopric)