Financial advisors widely express interest in expanding their wealth management practices by tapping into the retirement plans they already serve, but a new study shows that ambition rarely translates into results. According to joint research from Cerulli Associates and Morningstar, only 10.2% of an advisor's wealth clients on average come from a defined contribution (DC) plan relationship. The finding underscores a persistent gap between intention and execution.
The survey, which polled hundreds of advisors and included dozens of interviews with home-office executives and individual practitioners, found that 91.2% of respondents consider building their wealth practice at least a moderate priority. Moreover, about 63% said they view prospecting for wealth clients within their DC plans as a similar priority. Yet the so-called "Bridge to Wealth"—the process of converting plan participants into individual wealth management clients—remains largely unbuilt.
Chris Bailey, director at Cerulli Associates, noted that organic growth in wealth management is challenging, and advisors may be overlooking warmer leads within their existing DC relationships. "Growing a wealth management practice organically can be very challenging, so advisors may be missing out on warmer leads that exist within DC plans whom they already have relationships with," he said.
Why the pipeline stalls
Time is the most frequently cited barrier. Among plan advisors who do not prioritize wealth growth, 37.8% said they lack the hours to prospect within their DC plans. Another 24.5% cited insufficient staffing to offer wealth services to participants, and 20.9% said the additional revenue does not justify the effort. Account minimums add further friction: 52.5% of all advisors require new wealth clients to bring at least $250,000 in assets, and that figure rises to nearly 60% for those whose practices are built primarily around DC plans.
The study segmented advisors into three categories. DC plan specialists, who derive roughly 66% of their revenue from retirement plans, serve about half as many wealth clients as their peers, hampered by technology and manpower constraints. Wealth-retirement hybrids, with about 23% of revenue from plans, source 15.5% of their wealth clients from that business. Wealth advisors, who get only 7% of revenue from plans, see just 3.5% of their clients arrive from plan relationships.
Home-office support and data gaps
Advisors report limited assistance from their home offices. Among those not prioritizing wealth growth, 53.4% ranked help converting DC-sourced prospects as a top-three resource their firm could provide, and 43.7% said the same about identifying those prospects. Data is another blind spot: for every type of participant data queried, at least 62% of advisors either lacked it or wanted more detail. Demand was highest for participant life events such as marriage or job changes, at 82.1%. Only 14% of advisors use artificial intelligence for prospecting, with another 29% experimenting.
Brock Johnson, president of Morningstar Retirement, said advisors do not need convincing about the value of the Bridge to Wealth. "They need the tools to build it without adding headcount or hours," he said.
Recordkeeper dynamics and new platforms
The research also highlights tensions with recordkeepers that have their own wealth arms, including Fidelity, Schwab, and Empower, which pursue rollovers directly. To maintain relationships, 58% of advisors are willing to set participant "rules of engagement" with these providers. Meanwhile, recordkeepers without such retail wealth footprints are positioning themselves as preferred partners for advisory firms.
In this context, Ascensus recently launched a workplace-to-wealth platform designed to connect retirement savers with advisors at key moments like job changes or retirement. The recordkeeper, serving more than 16 million savers, says the platform integrates referral workflows, advisor engagement tools, participant insights, and AI-powered digital support. Dan Morrison, president of retirement at Ascensus, emphasized in a September 30 release that the company does not compete with the advisors and institutions it serves.
For advisors looking to bridge the gap, the findings suggest that technology and data improvements—such as those highlighted in AI and data tools for advisors—may be essential. Additionally, the rise of platforms like Vestwell's retirement platform indicates a growing market for solutions that facilitate plan-to-wealth conversions.
