AdvisorHub reported that &Partners has hired James T. McHale, the chief compliance officer at LPL Financial, as the firm continues to build out its executive team. According to the report, McHale is set to join &Partners later this month in a role titled chief risk and governance officer, a title the firm itself laid out in its statement.
AdvisorHub described LPL as the largest independent broker-dealer, with nearly 33,000 advisors. LPL did not respond to a request for comment on the move and did not say whether it has named a replacement. WealthManagement.com has put LPL's servicing and custody figure at about $2.3 trillion in brokerage and advisory assets, a measure of assets rather than revenue.
In the statement, &Partners chief executive David Kowach said that strong governance, compliance and risk management are central to building a durable financial services firm. The announcement is the firm's account of the hire, and the research for this article found no press release, Form ADV, BrokerCheck entry or SEC filing from either firm covering the move.
According to AdvisorHub, McHale came to LPL in 2023, having spent close to ten years at Wells Fargo, where he rose to lead compliance for the Wealth and Investment Management division. LPL announced his arrival as executive vice president and chief compliance officer on November 29, 2023, in a press release. AdvisorHub reported that McHale previously held the post of head of brokerage compliance at E*TRADE Financial, and did not place that role in sequence with his Wells Fargo tenure. Financial Advisor Magazine has also reported that he worked on the SEC's Division of Trading and Markets team and held an associate general counsel post at SIFMA. AdvisorHub noted that McHale worked alongside Kowach while Kowach led Wells Fargo Advisors.
&Partners was founded in 2023 by former Wells Fargo and Edward Jones executives, according to AdvisorHub. WealthManagement.com reported that Kowach, a former president and chief executive of Wells Fargo Advisors, co-founded the firm with Kristi Mitchem and John Alexander. The firm describes itself as a hybrid broker-dealer and advisory firm. AdvisorHub reported that regulatory filings describe funding from friends and family of the founders and a line of credit from The Carlyle Group.
The firm's scale has been reported with figures that differ by date and by measure. AdvisorHub's most recent count puts &Partners at at least 127 practices managing $63 billion in pre-hire assets at former firms. Reported targets from AdvisorHub and Yahoo Finance call for roughly 150 practices and $120 billion in assets by 2028, along with $800 million in revenue across three years. Earlier, the firm's news page reported $35 billion in assets as of June 30, 2025, a firm-wide asset figure that should not be compared directly with recruited assets.
The hiring comes amid a steady recruiting pattern. AdvisorHub reported in March that a $950 million Wells Fargo team in Virginia had joined &Partners and that most advisor hires have come from Wells Fargo and Edward Jones. AdvisorHub also noted that two UBS Wealth Management USA field leaders recently took co-leadership roles over ultra-high-net-worth and private wealth at the firm.
McHale's start later this month will be the next test of how the firm builds out its risk and governance functions as it grows. LPL did not respond to a request for comment and did not say whether it has named a replacement for the compliance role.