RBC Wealth Management hires UBS's $1B Nepa/Susco team in Pittsburgh

RBC Wealth Management announced Thursday it hired a Pittsburgh team that oversaw more than $1 billion in client assets at UBS, InvestmentNews reported.

Raymond Nepa and Jennifer Susco, both managing directors and financial advisors, lead the five-person Nepa/Susco Team joining RBC's Pittsburgh North branch, according to Financial Advisor Magazine. Julia Munchel, a first vice president and financial advisor, Karen Venneri, a senior investment associate, and Max Freed, a client associate, round out the team, per InvestmentNews. The group reports to Frank Albanese, director of RBC's Great Lakes complex, and works with ultra-high-net-worth and affluent individuals, families and business executives on investments, risk management and estate planning.

Financial Advisor Magazine cited BrokerCheck records showing Nepa started at Richards, Lynch & Pegher in 1982, moved to Kidder, Peabody & Co. in 1987 and joined UBS, Kidder's successor, in 1995. Susco began at UBS in 2007, and Munchel joined in 2016 after a 2015 stint at McMahon Financial Advisors.

Albanese, in a statement, described what he said drew the team: "What stood out to the Nepa/Susco Team about RBC was the genuine culture of collaboration, having decision-makers close at hand, and the sheer breadth of resources they can tap into for their clients."

RBC was the third-leading destination for advisors leaving UBS in the first half of this year, according to a Diamond Consultants report cited by InvestmentNews. It trailed Wells Fargo and Morgan Stanley. In PWD's 30-day tracking through Oct. 21, UBS placed second among firms by advisor-move events, with 83.

Eric Smith moved to Wells Fargo Advisors in Naples, Florida, from Morgan Stanley, where he oversaw more than $400 million, InvestmentNews reported. Smith, who has more than two decades in the industry including earlier stints at UBS and Merrill, joins the Naples branch led by Brian Schoenle, part of Wells Fargo's Florida Gulf Coast market under Marc Beshany. PWD reported the Smith hire on Tuesday.

Kacy Walker left Cetera to start Kinetic Wealth, a practice affiliated with LPL's supported independence model. Her BrokerCheck record spans seven years and shows her reporting approximately $300 million across retirement plans and individual wealth management relationships, with clients including retirees and business owners. "Every relationship starts with listening," she said in comments excerpted by InvestmentNews.