Mariner and Wealthcare pitch giving up Form ADV to join 1099 platforms

Two platform executives told advisors at an RIA Edge Orange County panel on Wednesday that the compliance burden now favors giving up a firm's own Form ADV. Matt Regan, president of Wealthcare Capital Management, and Rob Sandrew, who heads Mariner's 1099 division, Mariner Independent, made the case during the panel, according to WealthManagement.com's report.

Regan said an SEC audit of one of Wealthcare's ADVs last year produced 104 questions, all on cybersecurity. A $250 million advisor facing the same review would be "dead in the water for six weeks," he said. Firms of that size are now weighing whether to shut down their ADV and join a 1099 platform, according to Regan.

Wealthcare, owned by Sammons Financial Group, runs a 1099 aggregator alongside a W-2 employee platform. Mariner Independent is 1099-only, though its advisors can later consider moving to Mariner's employee-owned RIA. Both executives framed the 1099 route as a way to shed obligations while keeping a firm's brand and identity.

Sandrew attributed the shift partly to AI advances and predicted "a massive consolidation and massive chasm between the haves and have-nots." He said client expectations will rise over the next three to five years and the advisor-client relationship will become "heavily EQ driven." He described the larger threat to a solo practitioner as a competitor outspending them on technology, not the exam itself.

During questions, an audience member asked whether advancing wealth technology might make solo operation cheaper rather than harder. Regan agreed with the premise but held his ground, saying "supported independence" lets an RIA keep its clients and retain the option to monetize the business without spending time on things it shouldn't.

Criterion, the Sammons holding company formed this month, groups Wealthcare with Beacon and NorthRock Partners, which keep their own registrations. The group oversees more than $27 billion in assets under management and advisement, according to PWD's reporting.