Scott and Atwood leave J.P. Morgan Advisors, where they managed $18.6B, to launch Latigo Peak Partners

Phil Scott and Jim Atwood left J.P. Morgan Advisors, where they managed about $18.6 billion in client assets, to launch Latigo Peak Partners, an independent RIA for ultra-high-net-worth individuals and families. WealthManagement.com first reported the launch. The firm is based in Palm Beach Gardens, Fla., with co-operational hubs in Bellevue, Wash., and Boston and a field office in Los Angeles. It launched with 48 professionals alongside the two founders, and SEC records list 10 registrants affiliated with the firm, according to the report.

At J.P. Morgan, Scott and Atwood led two wealth management practices and grew combined revenue from $34 million to $130 million over six years, according to the report. Measured against $18.6 billion in client assets, $130 million of revenue works out to roughly 70 basis points. That is a ratio of total revenue to assets, not a stated advisory fee: the report does not break out asset-based fees from lending, planning or other services, and the coverage does not say how much of the $18.6 billion will follow the founders to the new firm.

Latigo Peak is founder-owned and self-funded, without private equity capital, and intends to follow a long-term vision rather than manage for a future transaction, according to the report. The firm follows what the report describes as a family capital model, building customized portfolios and providing estate, wealth and philanthropic planning rather than requiring families to fit a predetermined institutional model. Scott said the goal is to "build a firm geared principally toward investment performance and a distinctive client experience." Charles Schwab and BNY Pershing will custody the assets, with Fusion Financial Partners acting as strategic advisor for the launch, according to the report. The report describes Latigo Peak, at launch, as one of the country's largest independent wealth firms.

Atwood's route to J.P. Morgan ran through an acquisition. SEC records cited by the report show he was with Merrill Lynch from 1984 until 2018, when he joined First Republic Wealth Management, which JPMorgan subsequently bought after the regional bank crisis. His practice thus reached the bank through a purchase rather than a recruiting deal, and it leaves through a founder-led launch.