# Georgia team with $1.1 billion in client assets leaves Raymond James for independence URL: https://www.financialadvsr.com/article/georgia-team-with-1-1-billion-in-client-assets-leaves-raymond-james-for-eaf20e Published: October 28, 2026 By: Grant Whitmore, Moves Correspondent Section: Moves Publisher: Financial ADVSR (https://www.financialadvsr.com) The Stribling~Whalen Financial Group, led by Brian Whalen, has launched an independent SEC-registered RIA and is using Fidelity Investments as its custodian, according to its announcement. WealthManagement.com reported that the Stribling~Whalen Financial Group, a Georgia-based team, is leaving Raymond James to operate as an independent registered investment adviser. The move was also announced by the firm itself on October 27, 2026, when the team said it had launched an independent RIA registered with the SEC. The team is led by Brian Whalen, CFP, AIF. The firm's press release says that, during its time at a previous employer, the team oversaw $1.1 billion in client assets serving more than 350 households. The release does not name that firm in the passages available to us. Separately, WealthManagement.com said the team was affiliated with Wells Fargo from 2008 to 2015 before registering with Raymond James, and the sources do not link that affiliation to the $1.1 billion figure. The release frames the group as Warren Stribling, the firm's founder, together with Jacob Beauchamp, Cindy Casey, Lauren Tuttle, Christa Griffin and Kayleigh Dell. Neither the release nor the research notes we reviewed gave a firm-level advisor count. The new RIA is using Fidelity Investments as its custodian, the release said, and describes Fidelity as an independent company and a service provider unaffiliated with the firm. Trevor Norton, head of custody at Fidelity Investments, is quoted in the release welcoming the firm to the Fidelity platform. One listing of the news describes the arrangement as involving Fidelity Institutional; the firm's own release refers to Fidelity Investments generally, so the exact division should be confirmed before relying on that detail. The firm was founded by Warren Stribling in 1975, according to the release, and has spent more than five decades helping families and business owners with financial decisions. Today it is owned and led by Brian Whalen, who the release says runs it as a registered adviser working with high-net-worth clients, households and owners of businesses. According to the firm's announcement, Whalen worked for a considerable stretch in asset management, with nine years at Capital Group and American Funds, before becoming an adviser in 2012. He holds a B.A. in Economics from Boston College, graduating magna cum laude, and the CFP and AIF designations. According to his Raymond James biography, Warren Stribling obtained the CFP certification in 1986 and has a business degree dated 1975 from the University of Georgia. The release says the firm serves clients in Georgia and 19 other states. Raymond James is a St. Petersburg, Florida-based company that was founded in 1962 by Robert A. James and trades on the New York Stock Exchange under the symbol RJF. The company's own fact sheet says it had approximately 8,900 financial advisors and $1.92 trillion in total client assets as of June 30, 2026. A Motley Fool article puts its advisor count at 9,076 at the end of the first quarter of 2026. These figures come from different dates and sources and should not be compared directly. WealthManagement.com linked the departure to Cerulli Associates research showing that the biggest fee-based firms had given up market share to hybrid rivals over a five-year span. The article also notes that the group frequently serves multigenerational households, reportedly spanning three or four generations. The breakaway fits a broader pattern in which experienced teams move from wirehouse and broker-dealer platforms to independent registration, a choice that typically shifts custody, technology and compliance responsibilities to the team itself. The sources reviewed do not describe the transition as complete. A Gainesville, Georgia address at 620 Spring St SE appears on a Raymond James contact page for the team, which is the former broker-dealer's site rather than the release or WealthManagement.com. Further detail on the transition, including how client accounts were moved and whether Raymond James responds publicly, was not in the sources available to us. Key facts: - Stribling~Whalen Financial Group announced on October 27, 2026 that it launched an independent SEC-registered RIA, according to the firm's release. - The release says the team managed more than $1.1 billion in client assets across more than 350 households at a prior firm. - The new RIA is using Fidelity Investments as custodian, according to the release. - The firm was founded by Warren Stribling in 1975 and serves clients in Georgia and 19 other states, according to the release. - Raymond James had approximately 8,900 financial advisors per its own fact sheet, and a Motley Fool article puts the count at 9,076 at the end of Q1 2026. Why it matters: For advisors weighing a move, the choice of custodian and platform largely determines how an independent RIA handles operations, technology and client service once it leaves a broker-dealer. Team leaders and recruiters tend to watch deals like this one closely because they show how much client assets and relationships can travel with a group that goes independent. Firm executives at broker-dealers and wirehouses may read it as a sign of continued interest in independent registration among established teams. Sources: - WealthManagement.com: https://www.wealthmanagement.com/ria-news/11b-georgia-team-leaves-raymond-james-for-ria-model - raymondjames.com: https://www.raymondjames.com/striblingwhalen/ - prnewswire.com: https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/striblingwhalen-financial-group-swfg-launches-independent-ria-302920488.html - raymondjames.com: https://www.raymondjames.com/striblingwhalen/contact-us - pr.chinookobserver.com: https://pr.chinookobserver.com/article/STRIBLINGWHALEN-FINANCIAL-GROUP-SWFG-LAUNCHES-INDEPENDENT-RIA/6ae0a258282cc2aea3184a9c - uk.advfn.com: https://uk.advfn.com/stock-market/share-news/STRIBLING-WHALEN-FINANCIAL-GROUP-SWFG-LAUNCHES-IND/99567653