OneSeven Bolsters Leadership Amid Rapid Growth, Nears $9 Billion in Assets
Original reporting from WealthManagement.com. Subscribe to our free daily WealthManagement newsletters for the latest updates.
CLEVELAND – OneSeven, a registered investment advisor platform backed by Merchant Investment Management, is strengthening its executive bench to manage its explosive growth. The firm announced the appointments of a new Chief Financial Officer, Chief Compliance Officer, and a newly created role of Advisor Advocate, as its assets under management (AUM) swelled to over $8.6 billion.
The strategic hires come at a pivotal moment. Over the past year, OneSeven's AUM has more than doubled from approximately $3.5 billion, fueled by a surge of new advisor teams joining its platform. The firm now has commitments that are expected to push its AUM to between $13 and $14 billion by the end of 2026, with a clear trajectory toward its stated goal of $20 billion by 2027.
“This expansion isn't just about numbers; it's about building the infrastructure to support sustainable, high-quality growth,” said Todd Resnick, co-founder and CEO of OneSeven. “Bringing on dedicated, full-time leadership in these critical areas was the necessary next step.”
The new leadership team includes Betsey Saffar as CFO, joining from Cornerstone Fund where she served as Vice President and CFO; John Carey as CCO, previously Director of Compliance at OneDigital; and Brian Bunker as the firm's first Advisor Advocate. Bunker, formerly head of practice management at Stratos, will act as a dedicated liaison to OneSeven's partner firms, assisting with growth strategy, succession planning, and mergers and acquisitions.
Analysts see the moves as a classic playbook for scaling RIA platforms. “The ‘Advisor Advocate’ role is particularly telling,” said financial services consultant, Michael Thorne. “It signals a focus on advisor retention and satisfaction, which is crucial when integrating dozens of independent practices. Their targeted community model—aiming for 100-150 advisors rather than thousands—could be a key differentiator in a crowded market.”
The firm, born from the 2022 merger of MGO Investment Advisors and the original OneSeven platform, is also developing an enterprise-level technology stack, including AI tools, to roll out to its network of advisors.
What People Are Saying
David Chen, Portfolio Manager at Horizon Wealth: “This is a smart, proactive move. You can't manage $20 billion with a $3.5 billion structure. Bringing in experienced executives like Saffar for capital planning and Carey for compliance shows institutional discipline. Their growth metrics are impressive, but the real test will be integrating all these new teams seamlessly.”
Lisa Monroe, Independent Financial Advisor: “Another platform chasing scale. The ‘advisor advocate’ sounds nice, but is it just a fancy title for an account manager? I'm skeptical. When platforms get this big, the personal touch and the very community they're selling often gets lost. They talk about fighting advisor loneliness, but will a single advocate for over a hundred teams really move the needle?”
Arjun Patel, Analyst at FinTech Insights: “The commitment to letting advisors keep their own brand and investment autonomy is a significant advantage. It reduces friction for joining. Their projected path to $14 billion by 2026 seems achievable given current momentum. The Merchant Investment Management backing provides them with steady capital for strategic acquisitions, which will likely be a primary growth lever.”