Cetera Financial Group has secured a significant addition to its registered investment adviser channel. On Tuesday, the firm announced that iTP Partners, a multibillion-dollar practice led by two veteran advisors, has joined its platform to establish a new independent RIA on the East Coast. The move underscores Cetera's ongoing push to expand its RIA and branch network.
iTP Partners, previously affiliated with Osaic, brings approximately $3.5 billion in assets under advisement and nearly 50 financial advisors to Cetera. The team will operate under a newly formed independent RIA called Blue Horizon Equity, which will run on Cetera's Blueprint platform. The firm will maintain its existing custody relationship with Pershing, a key detail for advisors and clients accustomed to that infrastructure.
The leadership of iTP includes managing directors Bob Sansone and Jeff Hartman, who co-founded the firm's growth model centered on advisor equity ownership. The firm is headquartered in Pittsford, New York, with a second office in Ponte Vedra Beach, Florida, and a nationally dispersed advisor base. This geographic footprint gives Blue Horizon Equity a presence in both the Northeast and Southeast markets.
Why iTP chose Cetera
Sansone explained that the firm evaluated multiple broker-dealers before settling on Cetera. He cited Cetera's "willingness to adjust to the needs at hand so things stay flexible as we move along" as a decisive factor. Hartman echoed that sentiment, emphasizing the accessibility of Cetera's leadership. "From day one, we've had people to work with; it's already a partnership with real people we can reach whenever we need them, and that says a lot about Cetera," he said.
Andina Anderson, who took over as head of Blueprint last year after joining from Envestnet, highlighted the platform's role in facilitating such transitions. "Blueprint is a collaboration that gives iTP the infrastructure to scale on their own terms, backed by the technology, resources, service and support of Cetera overall," Anderson said. "We're proud that iTP chose Cetera as its partner to help them write their next growth chapter."
Part of a broader RIA push at Cetera
The iTP deal arrives as Cetera builds out its RIA and Branches division under president Jennifer Hanau. Just last week, the unit recruited two executives from Primerica and Raymond James to serve as community leaders for Cetera Investors and RIA Network, a Blueprint-powered platform designed for independent RIAs. That hiring activity signals a broader strategy to attract sizable practices and bolster the firm's competitive position.
Todd Mackay, president of Cetera Wealth Management, praised the new partners in a statement. "Bob and Jeff have spent decades proving that building a firm the right way – anchored by relationships, advisor ownership, and a genuine culture of service – is how to create lasting value," he said. "iTP is exactly the kind of firm Cetera was built to serve because they're sophisticated, growth-oriented, and deeply committed to the advisors and clients who make it what it is."
Looking ahead, iTP plans to continue recruiting. Hartman noted that the firm is already in active conversations with advisors in several regions. Sansone emphasized the appeal of the equity-ownership model: "The RIA model is the future of our industry. At iTP, we have created a home where an advisor can participate in the benefits of our model – including real ownership through equity – without having to do all the work of building it from scratch," he said. "That's a powerful value proposition, and Cetera's Blueprint platform amplifies it."
This move is part of a wave of advisor transitions across the industry, as firms like LPL, Raymond James, and Merrill lure advisors from competitors. Cetera's recent hires, including Craig Bartlett to lead a tax-focused community, reflect its efforts to differentiate through specialized platforms. The addition of iTP, with its substantial asset base and advisor count, could help Cetera gain ground in the competitive RIA space.
