Eric Brotman, CEO and founder of BFG Financial Advisors, is stepping down from that position to focus on the firm’s growth. But unlike many such transitions for financial advisors, his handover is not part of an acquisition, but a long-planned internal succession.
“I’ve been working toward this moment,” said Brotman. “In 2003, when I was 35 years old, I monetized and started selling shares to junior shareholders, and people thought I was nuts. They were saying, ‘why sell the watermelon before it’s ripe?’”
But Brotman had a different mentality for his firm, whose employees operate as investment advisor representatives of Kestra Advisory Services and registered representatives of Kestra Investment Services.
“I thought, if I want to have the right people on the bus, and I want to put them in a position where they can ultimately afford to buy me out without seeking corporate pockets, I need to start early,” he said. “I’ve been selling gradually, almost on an annual basis, to folks.”
Now, the firm’s former president and chief operating officer, Lena Nebel, will take over as CEO just ahead of the Timonium, Md.-based firm reaching $1 billion in client assets at the start of 2026. That milestone will come, in part, from the firm’s third acquisition, with Brotman stepping into the role of chief growth officer.
According to a plethora of surveys from consultancies and RIA service providers, many small to mid-tier firms lack a written succession plan, let alone one that can be executed. There are, however, numerous RIA aggregators, platforms and consultancies offering succession tracks backed by external capital.
Brotman views BFG Advisory as a firm that, despite its modest size, can sustain itself in the long term.
“We could sell to private equity next week at a multiple that I can’t get internally,” Brotman said. “But one reason that I’m doing that is that I consider this my baby, my legacy, and I want it to live on … and the other is that I have 20-plus co-workers who have really made this happen; it wasn’t my show, and I don’t want to pull the rug out from under them.”
BFG Advisory currently has 23 employees, including advisors and operations staff. Today, Brotman owns approximately 52% of the firm, and Nebel another 27%. It takes shareholder votes to make decisions, so neither Brotman nor the smaller shareholders can act unilaterally.
All employees are salaried, with profit sharing distributed to shareholders, and a profit-sharing bonus pool available to everyone.
Nebel joined BFG Advisory in 2018 after what Brotman described as a years-long recruiting effort. She had joined with no clients and a deal that would bring her equity if she built a book of business.
That didn’t take long, according to Brotman, as she amassed $100 million in assets within her first six months at the firm and went on to become a leader in its evolution.
“In the last six years or so, where she and I have been working closely together, she has transformed our firm from a practice to a business,” Brotman said, referring to her bringing on technology tools, an operations team and setting up employee reviews and feedback.
Now, Brotman will shift to recruiting and acquisition work, which he said is generally funded by a combination of equity sharing and bank loans. He will also mentor younger advisors at the firm, which has an apprenticeship program, and participate in speaking events and content creation, including his long-running podcast, “Don’t Retire … Graduate!,” which focuses on living a fulfilling life after full-time work.
It’s advice, Brotman said that, despite stepping away from the CEO role, he’s not ready for yet.
“I’m 53 years old,” he said. “I have a lot of gas left in this tank, and I don’t want to retire.”