Cetera Financial Group, a San Diego-based independent broker-dealer and wealth management firm, has appointed Matt Kwartler, CFP, as Managing Director and Head of Strategic Growth. Kwartler joins from Fidelity Investments, where he served as head of Wealth Advisor Solutions, Fidelity’s coveted RIA client referral program operated through Fidelity Institutional. In that role, he was responsible for a platform that matches Fidelity clients with third-party independent RIAs for specialized wealth management services, and worked directly with some of the largest RIAs in the country on organic growth strategy and strategic partnerships.
Kwartler brings more than 25 years of experience in the financial services industry, with a particular focus on helping advisory firms achieve sustained organic growth and design growth programs that scale. He is an alumnus of the Securities Industry Institute at the Wharton School and the Money Management Institute’s Executive IQ Program, and has been a frequent speaker on RIA growth topics at industry events. At Cetera, he will lead growth efforts across the firm’s channels, drawing on his deep familiarity with the RIA landscape and his track record of building strategic partnership programs.
The hire is a notable one for Cetera, given the profile of Fidelity’s Wealth Advisor Solutions program in the industry. As head of that platform, Kwartler sat at the center of one of wealth management’s most sought-after client referral networks, giving him firsthand insight into the organic growth strategies and operational structures of the country’s leading advisory firms. Cetera’s CEO, Mike Durbin, himself came from Fidelity, where he served as head of Fidelity Institutional before joining Cetera in 2023, making this the second senior leadership hire the firm has made from that organization.
Cetera serves as a growth partner to independent financial advisors and financial institutions, providing a broad platform spanning brokerage, advisory, and institutional services. The firm has been actively expanding its capabilities and leadership team as it competes for advisor talent and enterprise clients in an increasingly consolidating wealth management landscape
