Murdock Banner

What Murdock Banner does

Murdock Banner Financial Group LLC is an independent ensemble financial planning firm founded in 1975 by Timothy Murdock in Warrensburg, Missouri. The firm provides holistic wealth management through a team-based model with seven core service lines: financial planning, retirement planning, investment management, estate planning, insurance and protection, tax planning, and education planning. It serves individuals and families — explicitly including multigenerational households spanning 2nd through 5th generation clients — with no minimum account size, onboarding contributors from $20/month up to multi-million dollar managed portfolios. The firm reaches clients in over 43 states by combining in-person consultations at its single Warrensburg headquarters with remote advisory delivered via phone and Zoom.

Operationally, Murdock Banner functions as a registered representative of Cetera Advisors LLC, which provides broker-dealer and Registered Investment Advisor infrastructure, while Pershing serves as custodian for client assets. The technology stack is described as standard financial planning and portfolio management software with no proprietary platforms, AI/ML capabilities, or APIs disclosed. Service delivery is relationship-led, supported by an extensive Resource Center of articles, calculators, and videos, plus community events such as Shred Fest and an annual Holiday Open House.

The firm generates revenue primarily through recurring financial planning and investment management fees, supplemented by insurance product commissions on term, universal life, whole life, long-term care, and disability coverage. It is privately held by four co-owners — Craig Coen (CEO), Seth Petsch (CFO), Chad Appleton, and Andrea Houseworth (COO) — and has received no external private equity or venture capital. Following the 2013 conversion to an LLC and founder Timothy Murdock's passing in 2014, the firm has continued under the current co-owner group without M&A, capital raises, or geographic office expansion.

Name

Murdock Banner

Legal name

Murdock Banner Financial Group LLC

Website

https://murdockbanner.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1975

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Murdock Banner Financial Group is an independent ensemble financial planning firm in Warrensburg, Missouri, serving multigenerational individuals and families across 43+ states with holistic wealth management including retirement, investment, estate, tax, insurance, and education planning.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Wealth Management and Financial Planning

NAICS

Portfolio Management and Investment Advice (523940)

SIC

Investment Advice (6282)

akta.pro primary industry

Financial Planning–Led RIAs (FSAAACAB)

akta.pro secondary industry

Business Owner & Executive Financial Planning (FSAEAAAO)

Keywords

• Financial planning services
• Retirement planning
• Wealth management advisory
• Investment management
• Insurance and estate planning

Headquarters

HQ city

Warrensburg

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. Financial Planning and Advisory Services: Comprehensive financial planning fees for holistic wealth management services including retirement planning, investment management, estate planning, insurance planning, tax planning, and education planning.
2. Investment Management Fees: Independent investment advice and portfolio management with transparent compensation disclosure. As an independent firm, they choose from all investment products in the market without pushing products.
3. Insurance Products Commission: Insurance planning services for term, universal life, whole life, long-term care, and disability insurance offered as supplements to overall financial plans.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels2 records

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

Murdock Banner Financial Group is an independent ensemble financial planning firm that delivers holistic wealth management through seven integrated services: financial planning, retirement planning, investment planning, estate planning, insurance and protection, tax planning, and education planning. The firm serves individuals and families across 43+ U.S. states from its Warrensburg, Missouri headquarters, combining in-person and remote (phone/Zoom) advisory delivery. Operating as a registered representative of Cetera Advisors LLC with Pershing as custodian, the firm provides independent, product-agnostic advice under a team-based model.

Product overview

Murdock Banner Financial Group offers a suite of integrated financial planning services delivered through a team-based approach. The core offering consists of seven interconnected services: Financial Planning (holistic roadmap), Retirement Planning (readiness assessment and income planning), Investment Planning (independent wealth management), Estate Planning, Insurance & Protection, Tax Planning, and Education Planning. The firm also provides client-facing tools including calculators (Social Security Tax Estimator, retirement, investment, insurance needs, and more), educational articles, and videos through their Resource Center. Services are designed to integrate into a comprehensive, long-term wealth management plan, with the firm serving as a lifelong financial partner for clients across life stages from starting out through retirement.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Financial Planning Holistic planning process providing a financial roadmap to help individual clients and families pursue their desired lifestyle and prepare for future needs across all life stages.
• Retirement Planning
• Investment Planning
• Estate Planning
• Insurance & Protection
• Tax Planning
• Education Planning

Segments2 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

One partnership is on record.

• PershingcoreTechnology or IntegrationCustodian for client assets. Pershing provides custodial services for the firm's investment management operations, ensuring proper safekeeping and administration of client securities.

Scale indicators3 records

Recent moves7 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Ritholtz Wealth Management: Boutique independent RIA offering personalized financial planning and wealth management to individuals and families. Similar size profile and planning-centric model to Murdock Banner, with content-driven marketing.
• Ronald Blue Trust: National financial planning firm offering integrated wealth planning, investment management, and tax services to individuals and families. Compares on holistic planning suite and multi-state service delivery.
• Savant Wealth Management: Independent ensemble financial planning firm with multiple offices offering holistic financial planning, investment management, tax, and estate services to individuals and families. Closely matches MBFG's ensemble model, services, and Cetera-affiliated approach.
• Halbert Hargrove: Long-standing independent wealth management firm providing comprehensive financial planning to individuals and families, including multigenerational clients. Matches MBFG's 50+ year heritage and full-service planning model.
• Buckingham Strategic Wealth: Independent, fee-only registered investment advisor providing comprehensive financial planning across retirement, investment, tax, and estate domains. Comparable to MBFG in planning-led approach and mid-market client focus.

Broad incumbents

• Creative Planning: Large independent wealth management firm offering comprehensive financial planning, investment management, tax, and estate services nationally. Shares the planning-led independent RIA model but at far greater scale than MBFG.
• Carson Group (Carson Wealth): Large RIA support platform that provides operational, technology, and back-office infrastructure to independent financial advisors and firms. Relevant incumbent offering an alternative affiliation model to MBFG's Cetera partnership.
• Edelman Financial Engines: One of the largest independent RIAs offering financial planning and investment management to individuals across the U.S. Comparable holistic service mix and individual/family target market, but at national scale.

Emerging players

• Facet Wealth: Digital-first financial planning firm offering flat-fee planning access to individual clients via remote delivery. Competes with MBFG for the same mass-affluent segment but through a fully digital model vs. MBFG's relationship-led approach.

Others

• Cetera Advisor Networks: Parent broker-dealer and RIA that Murdock Banner operates through. Architecturally relevant for comparison on independent advisor affiliation models and shared-service economics.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles7 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Murdock Banner