Another rumor about UBS...to close all small
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market offices. Anybody hear anything on this? Only going to keep large offices in large cities with large producers only.
Whats a large office in a Large city?
What is a large producer? They just gave 100's of guys who were large producers who are now medium producers millions to come over. Your story is absurd.Define a small market…
I live in one. These freaking slaughter houses I mean wire houses only want to be in the top 100 metro areas with a floor on broker production of 500k and account size of $250k. See ML’s “focus on growth”. Look at what SB just did in December…cut 40 offices in “small markets”. ML has been quietly eliminating offices in small markets for years. I was in one. Find out when your office lease is up. That’s when they find a reason to “consolidate”. If you are not in one of these top 100 national markets and you work for a wire, and your production is less than 500k…look out.
This last “comp plan” for both ML and SB put guys in the penalty box for producing below $400k. They can get away with this becasue the competition is disappearing. MS buys SB, or something, and think about how many 10 broker offices of both companies there are in cities of 150k population. In 8 months, there will be one 10 broker office in this city. Wells buys Wach, ML turns into BAC and why does UBS need to keep an office in a 150k population town? No one else is there and their now overflowing office(due to the recent inlfow of ML wags who want a check) on the 12th floor in the city is staffed with a whole bunch of guys doing 500k. Why waste your time in an office of 8 guys in 150k town…
There is going to be an opportunity for the smaller boutique type firm. Look at these smaller regional banks are now morphing their b/d into “wealth management” firms as they hire these guys(managing directors, etc) from the wire’s that were recently whacked.
I can hear Bob Dylan singing “oh, the time’s they are a changing…”
I agree and I think Jones will benefit from this. The wirehouses are essentially kicking out all but the biggest producers with the biggest clients (so they can steal the accounts of everyone they fire/starve out of the business). Jones has one heck of a headstart in marketing in a small market/personal approach to clients ML turns their nose up at.There is going to be an opportunity for the smaller boutique type firm.
The business is no longer set up for small producers. They’ll be the guys in the polo shirts in your local branch saying "Hi Mr. Smith, thanks for your deposit. Would you like a mutual fund with that?"
It seems to me, small offices aren’t necessary when most everything can/will eventually be handled at your local bank branch.
Besides, firms would do better to follow Thain’s model and spend lavishly on sweeter offices - at least clients will feel pampered and perhaps less annoyed at having to fill out all the paperwork to transfer everything.