The evidence suggests that larger organizations in the space are consolidating their grip on the market, a trend that fits with other developments.

Revenue for the 25 largest independent broker-dealers rose by 14.7 per cent last year to $25.5 billion, shrugging off weaker equities in 2018, according to a survey by InvestmentNews.

Last year’s revenue rise beat the 13.1 per cent rise a year before. The rise also compares with the 14 per cent fall in the S&P 500 Index of US equities and falls in other major benchmarks such as the Dow Jones Industrial Average.

Fee revenue for the top 25 firms continued rising at a rate faster than commission revenue, reflecting a shift towards fee-based advice in the country over recent years.

The results of the IN report also gel with evidence from organizations such as ECHELON Partners, which advises wealth managers about mergers and acquisitions. M&A activity remains brisk, with some evidence also of consolidation among the larger players. Regulation and rising client expectations are helping fuel this trend. Among registered investment advisors - to take a different wealth segment - more of them were bought and sold during the fourth quarter of last year and average deal sizes continued to grow. There was a total of 44 consummated transactions in the final three months of 2018, which means that last year was the sixth straight record year of RIA dealflow.

According to IN's data, the top 25 independent broker-dealers produced almost $11.7 billion in revenue from fees, $9.5 billion from commissions and $4.4 billion from other business lines. The previous year, those totals, respectively, were $10.2 billion, $9.2 billion and $3.8 billion, it said.