BOSTON — The difficult times many retail brokerage firms are going through may be putting a strain on the client/broker relationship, making it difficult for brokers to continue to grow their books of business.

That is one of the findings from a new Aite Group LLC report. Based on a survey of 69 U.S.-based employee brokers, the data provides insight into which employees are most likely to go independent, categorizing them by assets under management, total revenue, percentage of recurring fee income, financial planning and their product preferences, among others.

Aite's research found that more than one in four employee brokers are currently considering going independent. Among the five leading full-service retail brokerage firms alone (Merrill Lynch, Citi/Smith Barney, Wachovia Securities, Morgan Stanley, and UBS), this would roughly add up to a 16,300 potential breakaway brokers, according to the research. Should all of these brokers decide to leave, these firms could lose an estimated $2 trillion in client assets and $7.5 billion in revenues.

“Unless firms manage to convince their brokers that their situation will stabilize very soon, brokers might come to the conclusion that their employer no longer provides the best environment in which to grow their business,” said Alois Pirker, senior analyst and author of the Aite report.