NEW YORK (Reuters) - Wells Fargo Advisors, Wells Fargo & Co's brokerage unit, landed a three-person team from JP Morgan Private Bank where they managed $972 million in client assets and deposits.
Mike Reed, Zach Gates and Eli Strait, known as the Reed, Gates, Strait Wealth Management Group, joined Wells Fargo in November. The three operate an office serving high net worth clients in Lexington, Kentucky.
A spokesman for JP Morgan declined to comment, and Reed, Gates and Strait were not immediately available for comment.
Wells Fargo Advisors is the second largest securities brokerage in the United States by sales force, employing 15,163 advisers, according to a statement from the firm. Only Morgan Stanley employs more brokers, reportedly having 16,162 advisers as of Sept. 30.
Wells Fargo's overall head count has remained stable this year, with a net increase of 17 advisers since March 31.
(Reporting by Elizabeth Dilts; editing by Andrew Hay)