LPL Financial Welcomes Zuk Financial Group

OSJ Reported it Served Over $1.6B in Assets*, Was Among NPC’s Largest 

CHARLOTTE, N.C. – Dec. 12, 2017 – Leading retail investment advisory firm and independent broker/dealer LPL Financial LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of LPL Financial Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ: LPLA), today announced Zuk Financial Group, a firm formerly associated with National Planning Corporation (NPC), has joined LPL’s broker/dealer and hybrid registered investment advisory (RIA) platforms. The firm reported, based on prior business^*, that its advisors served approximately $1.6 billion of client brokerage and advisory assets, as of Oct. 31, 2017.

Based in Lake Forest, Calif., Zuk Financial Group was founded in 1974 by Paula Key and the late Cori Zuk. Key began her career in education and the firm started with the goal of helping employees of public schools and nonprofit organizations reach their financial goals. The firm has grown to 29 advisors, more than half of whom are women, along with 45 support staff who operate among 20 branches located throughout California. According to the firm, more than half of Zuk Financial Group’s clients are women as well. The firm focuses on financial planning and retirement planning services.

“We are excited about our move to LPL and to have a platform that will support the unique needs of our business and our clients,” said Paula Key, CEO and president of Zuk Financial Group. “We took part in a lengthy due diligence process, which included site visits, phone calls and other efforts to build relationships with the LPL leadership team. LPL stood out for the flexibility of its platform and the firm’s enhanced resources, tools and systems. We feel we will have the support and stability to be able to deliver on our mission of helping our clients work toward their retirement goals.”

“We are honored to welcome Zuk Financial to LPL,” said Bill Morrissey, LPL managing director and divisional president, Business Development. “Paula and the entire Zuk team are passionate about the service and value they deliver to their clients. Because of that, they gave considerable consideration to the long-term outlook for their clients and their business. We appreciate they recognized that LPL’s tools and capabilities can be an enabling factor to growing their business in this increasingly complex and ever-changing industry. We value the opportunity to serve their advisors and their clients and look forward to doing so for many years to come.”

NPC is one of four broker/dealers in National Planning Holdings, Inc.’s (NPH) network of broker/dealers, assets of which were purchased by LPL as part of a previously announced transaction in August 2017.

*Asset numbers were reported by Zuk Financial Group based on prior business and have not been independently and fully verified by LPL Financial.

About LPL Financial

LPL Financial LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of LPL Financial Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:LPLA), is a leader in the retail financial advice market and provided service to approximately $566 billion in brokerage and advisory assets as of Oct. 31, 2017. LPL is one of the fastest growing RIA custodians and the nation’s largest independent broker-dealer (based on total revenues, Financial Planning magazine June 1996-2017), and the firm and its financial advisors were ranked No. 1 in net customer loyalty in a 2016 Cogent Reports™ study. The Company provides proprietary technology, comprehensive clearing and compliance services, practice management programs and training, and independent research to more than 14,000 financial advisors and over 700 financial institutions, enabling them to provide a range of financial services including wealth management, retirement planning, financial planning and other investment services to help their clients turn life’s aspirations into financial realities. As of Sept. 30, 2017, financial advisors associated with LPL served more than 4 million client accounts across the U.S. as well as an estimated 41,000 retirement plans with an estimated $137 billion in retirement plan assets. Additionally, LPL supports approximately 3,700 financial advisors licensed and affiliated with insurance companies with customized clearing, advisory platforms, and technology solutions. LPL Financial and its affiliates have more than 3,500 employees with primary offices in Boston, Charlotte, and San Diego.

Securities and Advisory Services offered through LPL Financial. A registered investment advisor, Member FINRA/SIPC.

Zuk Financial Group offers Investment Advice through Valley Wealth Strategies, a registered investment advisor. Zuk Financial Group, Valley Wealth Strategies, and LPL Financial are all separate entities.

Forward-Looking Statements

Statements in this press release regarding the Company’s future levels of assets serviced, growth, business strategy, and plans, as well as any other statements that are not related to present facts or current conditions or that are not purely historical, constitute forward-looking statements. These forward-looking statements are based on the Company’s historical performance and its plans, estimates and expectations as of December 12, 2017. The words “believes,” “expects,” “may,” “plans,” “will” and similar expressions are intended to identify forward-looking statements, although not all forward-looking statements contain these identifying words. Forward-looking statements are not guarantees that the future results, plans, intentions or expectations expressed or implied by the Company will be achieved. Matters subject to forward-looking statements involve known and unknown risks and uncertainties, including economic, legislative, regulatory, competitive and other factors, which may cause levels of assets serviced, actual financial or operating results, levels of activity, or the timing of events, to be materially different than those expressed or implied by forward-looking statements. In particular, the Company can provide no assurance that the assets reported as serviced by financial advisors and/or firms mentioned in this press release will translate into assets continuously serviced at LPL Financial or that such financial advisors and/or firms will remain at LPL Financial. Important factors that could cause or contribute to such differences include: the choice by one or any of the clients of the Company's newly recruited financial advisors and/or firms mentioned in this press release not to maintain brokerage and/or advisory accounts at LPL Financial; discovery of errors made in the calculation of assets serviced reported by the newly recruited advisors; changes in general economic and financial market conditions, including retail investor sentiment; fluctuations in the value of assets under custody; effects of competition in the financial services industry; and the other factors set forth in Part I, “Item 1A. Risk Factors” in the Company’s 2016 Annual Report on Form 10-K and any subsequent SEC filing. Except as required by law, the Company specifically disclaims any obligation to update any forward-looking statements as a result of developments occurring after the date of this press release, even if its estimates change, and you should not rely on those statements as representing the Company’s views as of any date subsequent to December 12, 2017.

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Media Contact:

Lauren Hoyt-Williams

980-321-1232

Lauren.Hoyt-Williams@lpl.com