‘No Going Back’ on Commissions, Fiduciary Changes, Broker-Dealer CEOs Say

While some firms have "tended to think of [themselves] as vendors to independent advisors, our role is really to become true partners and to help advisors see around corners," she said, echoing remarks made by Talleur.

"With a delay, we still have to eliminate conflicts or bring transparency … that is not 75 pages deep, so clients really understand [products] and how they relate to us," Brown said.

"The fiduciary era is already here. A consistent standard of care across the whole business is really important," she added.

More Pressures

Even with a repeal, the DOL rule "has set in motion a set of processes that piggyback on other [Securities and Exchange Commission] rules, market practices and the like," said Richard Lampen, president and CEO of Ladenburg Thalmann, which is the parent firm of Securities America and other broker-dealers. "The hands of time will not be turned back. Things are changing, and they are going to continue to [do so] …," he explained. "There's a movement to the lowest cost shares, which regardless of DOL will continue."

Lampen and Talleur discussed the need for the right size and scale in order to be competitive.

The DOL rule was a key reason Madison Avenue Securities decided to sell a majority stake to KT Equity Partners, which owns an RIA and has affiliated insurance and marketing operations.

"We scaled up our resources, which is increasingly difficult for small firms to do," he said.

Such a move requires a firm have at least $500 million in assets and about $25 million in yearly fees and commissions, Talleur explains. Madison Avenue has about $2 billion in assets.

"The pace of change is accelerating," he said, "and firm valuations are down. They are lower because of the [regulatory] environment" and related factors.