Aite Group expands focus on wealth management in response to market demand. Consultancy Aite Group has expanded its wealth-management practice with the addition of Douglas Dannemiller, formerly a brokerage-industry analyst with National Financial, the clearing subsidiary of Fidelity Investments. The Boston-based research firm says the move comes in response to demand from its institutional client base more up-to-date insights on the fast evolving private-client space.

"The current markets hold an unprecedented level of opportunities and threats for players in the wealth-management industry," says Aite's research director Alois Pirker. "As the cards in the wealth-management game continue to be reshuffled, firms that fully understand the changes taking place in the market -- and adapt their unique selling propositions accordingly -- will find great opportunities to gain market share."

Propelled by asset-value erosion and large-scale consolidation, wealth management is in a period of flux, according to Aite. While big-name firms shed private-client assets by the trillions, nimbler independents -- RIAs, independent broker-dealers and discounters -- are on the rise.

As a result, "it is more important than ever that wealth management firms and service providers to the wealth management industry fine-tune their positioning and product capabilities in order to effectively compete in this rapidly changing market space," Aite says in a press release.

Dannemiller will focus on the independent broker-dealer market, correspondent clearing and custody, and retirement products and services. -FWR

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