By Tracey Longo | This article first appeared in the Financial Advisor magazine

The race to capture rollover assets is accelerating as trillions of dollars move from workplace retirement plans into managed accounts, but the lure of these assets is sometimes offset by the accompanying pitfalls of regulatory compliance.

While rollovers have always been highly sought after, the generation where all their assets are in workplace retirement accounts instead of pensions has hit retirement age.

Add in the extended bull market, and these accounts are larger than they’ve ever been.

But a lot has to happen for advisors to gain control of those assets. They have to prove to the client that it’s in their best interest to move the money, and there has to be written documentation of a fee, service and investment option analysis. And there are annual review requirements.

In “The Great Convergence: Bridging Wealth & Retirement,” a regulation-focused webcast Wednesday, panelists described IRA rollovers as the critical bridge between these two important areas of client service—and a growing source of regulatory scrutiny if firms fail to standardize how advice on rollovers is delivered and documented.

“This is a trillion-dollar opportunity,” said Parham Nasseri, president of InvestorCOM, who moderated the discussion. “But it’s also where firms face the greatest exposure.”

Michael Doshier, senior vice president and head of retirement at LPL Financial, said the trend of convergence, defined as integrating assets from retirement plans into more general wealth management accounts, is already reshaping behavior across the firm’s roughly 30,000 advisors.

“Convergence isn’t new,” Doshier said. “But the firms that are fully integrated—that think holistically—are clearly ahead.”

Since launching a rollover analyzer tool last November, nearly 15,000 LPL advisors have used it more than 60,000 times. Doshier said the software’s adoption rate underscores the need for rollover assistance.

“Advisors don’t love process, but they do love efficiency,” he said, adding that when a firm’s approach to documentation is consistent and defensible,  the advisors “can focus on clients instead of checklists.”

Fred Barstein, founder and CEO of The Retirement Adviser University, called convergence the most important structural shift facing advisors as plan fees compress and unadvised assets remain abundant.

“About 50% of wealth is still hidden [in retirement accounts],” Barstein said. “That’s the opportunity. But only a few firms have truly figured out how to capture it.”

He said advisors who engage participants early—not just at job change or termination—dramatically shorten the sales cycle. Waiting until the client retires and has to make a decision, he warned, often means losing the assets.

Compliance friction remains the biggest deterrent at firms. Bonnie Treichel, a former regulator who advises firms on fiduciary oversight, said advisors often see compliance officers as obstacles rather than enablers.

“The risk is either doing too little—or drowning advisors in paperwork,” Treichel said. “Neither serves the client.”

She emphasized that the regulations around rollover scenarios keep regulators alert to patterns that appear “systematic.”

“If every rollover looks the same, that’s a red flag,” she said. “You have to show your work—and it has to be tailored.”

Polling during the webcast highlighted the industry’s pain points. Forty-one percent of respondents said technology and workflow integration are the biggest barriers to capturing rollover opportunities. Nearly a quarter said their rollover processes remain largely manual.

Anuraag Tripathi, CEO of Manifest, said the biggest breakdown occurs after advice is delivered, when assets actually have to move.

“The transfer journey is fragmented,” Tripathi said. “Different data sources. Different rules. Too much paper.”

Panelists also debated the role of financial wellness tools. While useful for engagement, they agreed technology alone is insufficient to satisfy regulations around advice.

“Tools without people don’t work,” Barstein said. “Advice still requires a human.”

The discussion closed with a warning  that as regulators revisit fiduciary standards and firms chase organic growth, rollovers will remain under the microscope.

“The firms that treat compliance as infrastructure, not a burden, will win,” Doshier said. “Efficiency creates scale. And scale creates advantage.”