Phil Sieg retiring as head of J.P. Morgan Advisors

Phil Sieg, the head of JPMorgan’s brokerage division, has announced his plans to retire next month. Managing Director Mollie Colavita will replace him as CEO of J.P. Morgan Advisors, effective immediately.

Sieg, 65, came to JPMorgan in 2021 from Merrill and will officially step down on Oct. 15. His accomplishments as CEO of J.P. Morgan Advisors, according to a memo from JPMorgan wealth management CEO Kristin Lemkau, include helping to oversee the firm’s absorption of First Republic Bank, a regional institution JPMorgan bought out of government receivership in 2023. His successor, Colavita, also came from Merrill in 2021.

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Lemkau credited Sieg in her memo for helping to double her unit’s assets under supervision, revenue numbers and net asset inflows. Sieg has also overseen an aggressive drive to recruit advisors from rivals.

“Average (annual revenue generation) per advisor has increased by almost 50%,” Lemkau wrote. “We successfully integrated First Republic and refocused our business to serve high net worth and ultra high net worth clients.”

JPMorgan’s wealth management division ended the second quarter this year with just over $6.4 trillion in client assets. J.P. Morgan Advisors, which has around 600 advisors and works mainly with high net worth clients, is just one part of that division, alongside the firm’s private bank and network of advisors working out of bank branches.

Sieg was at Merrill for more than 25 years, serving at different times as head of the firm’s ultrahigh net worth client segment and head of the company’s private banking and investment group. His brother is Andy Sieg, who became the head of wealth at Citi in 2023 after also leaving Merrill, where he had served as president.

In a Wealth Think piece Phil Sieg wrote for Financial Planning in 2021, he called attention to how the firm provides continuing education through a two-year Advisor Growth Program.

“During these 24 months, advisors will receive support and guidance from specialists on tools, technology, operations, compliance, and supervision,” Sieg wrote. “Participants are part of monthly cohorts that will progress through the program together, offering a community experience. Advisors move through a series of check-ins to demonstrate what they’ve learned. Upon completion, advisors obtain the Wealth Management Certified Professional certification from the American College of Financial Services.”