Financial Services Acquisitions in 2024

Cleveland-based MAI Capital Management has acquired Concentric Wealth Management, a Lafayette, California RIA with six employees and $662 million in client assets, effective December 31, 2024. Concentric's founders, Eric Flett and Stewart McGuire, will adopt MAI branding and join as regional presidents as the firm integrates MAI's operations, HR and marketing resources.

Wealth Enhancement, a national independent wealth management firm, acquired Danison & Associates, an independent RIA based in Columbus, Ohio that oversees roughly $82 million in client assets. The deal closed on December 31, 2024 and marks Wealth Enhancement's first office in Greater Columbus as the two-advisor team joins Wealth Enhancement's platform and centralized planning and back-office services.

Mesirow has acquired Bastion Management, an asset-backed specialty finance lender based in Stamford, Connecticut; the transaction closed December 31, 2024. Bastion will operate within Mesirow Global Investment Management and serve as the platform for Mesirow’s Private Credit – Asset-Backed Lending expansion; Bastion was founded in 2013 and has completed 50+ transactions totaling over $2 billion in commitments.

Wealth Enhancement has acquired VanceGray Wealth Management, an independent RIA that oversees over $409 million in client assets and maintains locations in Bangor and Ellsworth, Maine. The acquisition closed on December 31, 2024, establishes Wealth Enhancement's first location in Maine and increases the firm's total client assets to more than $102.1 billion. The VanceGray team of four advisors and six support staff will join Wealth Enhancement.

CAPTRUST Financial Advisors has acquired Campbell Wealth Management (Alexandria, Virginia) and TruNorth Wealth Partners (St. Paul, Minnesota), adding a combined $1.97 billion in client assets and expanding its geographic footprint. The deals bring 33 colleagues from Campbell (with $1.4 billion in assets) and 10 colleagues from TruNorth (with $570 million in assets) to CAPTRUST; financial advisors Houlihan Lokey and Advisor Growth Strategies served as advisors to Campbell and TruNorth, respectively.

Creative Planning, a large independent wealth management firm based in Overland Park, Kansas, acquired Kowal Investment Group, an RIA based in Brookfield, Wisconsin. The deal closed December 21, 2024; Kowal's 20 employees and approximately $1.3 billion in AUM joined Creative Planning as part of the firm's ongoing nationwide expansion.

TA Associates has signed a conditional agreement to make a strategic minority investment in Craigs Investment Partners, a leading New Zealand wealth management firm headquartered in Tauranga. Under the deal Craigs' existing employee and director shareholders will retain 50% ownership; the transaction is subject to regulatory and shareholder approvals and is expected to settle late in Q1 2025 (financial terms not disclosed).

Marcy Venture Partners, the VC firm co-founded by Jay-Z, has merged with Pendulum Opportunities (the investment arm of Pendulum Holdings) to create MarcyPen Capital Partners, a combined platform reporting roughly $900 million in assets under management. The combined firm will continue fundraising efforts under MarcyPen Opportunities Fund II (target $250 million), with more than $100 million reportedly secured.

Savant Wealth Management, a Rockford, Illinois-based fee-only RIA, has acquired New York boutique RIA Source Financial Advisors, which manages $536 million in assets. The deal closed on December 9, 2024 (terms undisclosed); Source founder Michelle Smith and several team members joined Savant as advisors and staff as part of the transition.

Farmers National Banc Corp., through its subsidiary National Associates, Inc., completed the acquisition of Crest Retirement Advisors LLC on December 16, 2024. Crest will continue to operate from its Dublin, Ohio location and will merge with National Associates as part of Farmers' strategy to expand its wealth management and retirement plan administration capabilities in Central Ohio.

LPL Financial announced that financial advisor Francisco J. Blanco (bringing approximately $200 million in advisory, brokerage and retirement plan assets) has joined LPL's broker-dealer, RIA and custodial platforms. Blanco merged his practice with Stonebrook Wealth Management (founded by Joe Mazzucco) to form Stonebrook Wealth Partners, which will operate on LPL’s platforms to provide wealth management and retirement planning services.

Mariner (Mariner Wealth Advisors) acquired Sarasota-based Atlas Financial and Newport Beach-based Newport Advisory, adding a combined approximately $878 million in assets under management and expanding its national footprint. The deals establish Mariner offices in Sarasota and Newport Beach and support the firm's goal of growing its advisor network and AUM.

Summit Financial, through its Summit Growth Partners (SGP) partnership, made a strategic minority investment in Midway Wealth Partners, a Chicagoland-based wealth advisory team managing approximately $550 million in client assets. Midway will continue to operate under its existing leadership while gaining access to Summit's platform resources, capital, and multi-family office services to support growth and expand Summit's presence in Illinois.

The Global Loan Agency Services Group (GLAS) has completed its acquisition of Watiga Trust and Watiga Asia, expanding GLAS’s footprint in Singapore and the broader Asia Pacific region. The deal (announced in March and approved by the Monetary Authority of Singapore in late November) brings Watiga’s trust, corporate and fund administration capabilities into GLAS’s global loan agency and trustee offering and increases its APAC headcount to over 60 professionals.

Merit Financial Advisors, a Georgia-based wealth management firm, has acquired Lake Oswego, Oregon–based Roth Asset Management, adding approximately $773 million of assets and expanding Merit's presence in the Pacific Northwest. Roth’s president, Steven B. Roth, will transition to a Wealth Manager role; financial terms were not disclosed and the deal closed December 13, 2024.

Waverly Advisors has acquired Planning Capital Management Corp., an investment advisory firm headquartered in Paoli, Pennsylvania, expanding Waverly's presence into the greater Philadelphia area. The deal, which closed on December 13, 2024, increases Waverly's AUM to approximately $15.9 billion and brings the entire Planning Capital team into Waverly.

Apella Wealth, a national RIA headquartered in West Hartford, Connecticut, has acquired Young Wealth Management, a Davis, California-based registered investment adviser with $144 million in AUM. The deal, which closed December 13, 2024, expands Apella's West Coast presence and is the firm’s twentieth acquisition and ninth since partnering with Wealth Partners Capital Group.

Warburg Pincus has agreed to acquire a minority equity interest in United Trust Bank (UTB), valuing the specialist UK banking group at approximately £520 million. The growth capital investment — subject to regulatory approvals — will support UTB's continued expansion into new products and balance-sheet growth; UTB serves ~60,000 deposit customers with assets approaching £4 billion.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. (Gallagher) acquired Sheila J. Butler & Company (SJB), an employee benefits brokerage based in Carrollton, Georgia. The SJB team will remain in place and integrate under Gallagher’s Southeast region employee benefits consulting operations to bolster Gallagher’s benefits consulting capabilities and footprint in Georgia; terms were not disclosed.

Deus X Capital-backed Solstice Labs has acquired the assets of Switzerland-based Bridgetower Capital GmbH and launched Solstice Staking AG, a Swiss public limited company based in Zug. The acquisition brings Bridgetower's on-premises, banking-grade institutional staking infrastructure and partnerships (including Lido and Cordial Systems) under Solstice's control, with over $1 billion of ETH allocated for staking via Lido.

ZEDRA, a global provider of wealth, corporate and fund services backed by Corsair and BCI, has joined forces with Gryphon, an Ohio-headquartered fund administrator. The integration significantly expands ZEDRA's U.S. fund administration business (doubling its size) and grows combined assets under administration to roughly $30 billion.

Apella Wealth, a West Hartford, Connecticut–based registered investment advisor, has acquired Barker Financial Group, Inc., an RIA based in Topsfield, Massachusetts that brings $218 million in AUM. The add-on deal, Apella's nineteenth and its eighth since partnering with Wealth Partners Capital Group, closed on December 6, 2024 and establishes Apella's presence in Topsfield while expanding its regional financial planning and investment management capabilities.

Merit Financial Advisors announced that Trinity Financial Partners has merged into Merit, adding approximately $603 million in assets and establishing Merit's third office in Pennsylvania. Robyn E. Jameson will join Merit as Managing Director, Partner and Wealth Manager; financial terms were not disclosed.

Abu Dhabi-based Mubadala Capital acquired a 42% minority stake in U.S. private credit manager Silver Rock Financial LP through a mix of cash and Mubadala capital stock, with an option to increase to 50%. The deal brings Silver Rock principals and M‑Cor (the Milken family office) into Mubadala Capital’s asset management platform while preserving Silver Rock’s operational independence and management leadership; the transaction is expected to close by Q2 2025.

Signature Estate & Investment Advisors (SEIA) has acquired Beverly Investment Advisors, bringing founder Canon Price back to SEIA after 22 years. Price's practice — built to roughly $300 million in assets under advisement — will leverage SEIA's platform, technology and succession planning resources to serve clients and expand services.

Mercer Global Advisors (Mercer Advisors) has acquired Frango Financial, a two-person RIA that manages approximately $110 million in client assets. The deal brings an all-woman advisory team into Mercer’s national RIA platform to bolster its presence in the Washington, D.C. and Charleston metro areas and expand its women-focused financial planning capabilities.

Capitolis has acquired Capitalab, BGC Group’s rates portfolio compression and margin optimization business, for $46 million. The purchase expands Capitolis’s compression and optimization capabilities and brings Capitalab founder Gavin Jackson onto the Capitolis executive team.

Chimera Investment Corporation completed the acquisition of Palisades Group, a U.S.-based alternative asset manager specializing in residential real estate credit, on December 2, 2024. Chimera paid $30 million in cash at closing with an additional earnout of up to $20 million contingent on performance; Palisades' co-founder Jack Macdowell Jr. joined Chimera as Chief Investment Officer.

SageView Advisory Group has acquired OnTrack 401(k) of Frederick, Maryland, a retirement plan consulting practice with approximately $400 million in Assets Under Advisement serving over 90 institutional clients. The acquisition, which closed on December 2, 2024, brings OnTrack principals Doug O'Rear and Cindy Brown into SageView and expands SageView’s East Coast presence with a second Maryland office.

Summit Financial, through its Summit Growth Partners (SGP) partnership model, has made strategic minority, non-controlling investments in three independent advisory firms: Southeast Financial Group (SEFG), Radiance Private Wealth, and Silvertree Retirement Planning. The transactions expand Summit's nationwide advisor network and provide the firms access to Summit's multi-family office resources while allowing them to retain their leadership and autonomy.

PIB Group has acquired Thoma Exploitatie and its subsidiaries in the Netherlands, augmenting PIB's Benelux footprint alongside its existing Dutch businesses Light Insurance and Risqwise. Thoma provides commercial-lines broking, MGA capabilities and pension advisory services; the deal supports PIB's European expansion and access to local underwriting/MGA capabilities in the Benelux region.

Osaic, a national wealth management platform, announced that Nova Wealth, an independent wealth manager based in Buffalo, New York managing $180 million in client assets, has joined the Osaic network. The move expands Osaic's advisor network and adds Nova Wealth's retirement income distribution planning capabilities to Osaic's platform.

Achmea and Sixth Street are combining pension and life portfolios into a joint venture, Achmea Pension & Life Insurance N.V., with Achmea owning 80% and Sixth Street taking a 20% stake. Sixth Street will contribute Lifetri to the JV and pay €445 million to Achmea, creating a top-three Dutch pension and life provider serving over 2.1 million customers and targeting growth in the pension buy-out market.

Bitwise Asset Management has acquired Attestant Limited, an institutional-grade Ethereum staking provider with $3.7 billion in staked assets. The Attestant team will join Bitwise and be rebranded as Bitwise Onchain Solutions to expand Bitwise's non-custodial staking and onchain services, with initial staking offered at a $10 million minimum.

Pinnacle Investment Management Group (ASX: PNI) has made a strategic minority investment in VSS Capital Partners, providing VSS access to Pinnacle's global distribution platform and middle-office infrastructure. Concurrently, VSS expanded its partnership by elevating four senior professionals to partners as it aims to scale its structured capital strategy and broaden its product offerings.

United Bancorporation of Alabama, Inc. repurchased all 197,717 shares of its common stock held by its 401(k) Employee Stock Ownership Plan (KSOP) at $54.25 per share, for an aggregate purchase price of approximately $10.7 million. The transaction was negotiated between United and the KSOP Trustee, included fiduciary/financial guidance and an independent appraisal, and closed on November 15, 2024.

TPG will make a strategic minority growth investment in Demopolis Equity Partners through its TPG NEXT strategy, providing growth capital and operational support to help scale the Demopolis platform. Demopolis, a technology-focused lower-middle-market private equity firm founded in 2022, will gain access to TPG's capital formation, capital markets, sourcing, and diligence capabilities.

BAI (Bank Administration Institute) and RMA (Risk Management Association) have combined to form ProSight Financial Association, a nonprofit trade association serving financial services professionals. The merger brings together BAI’s expertise in retail banking and compliance with RMA’s strengths in commercial banking and risk management to expand capabilities and resources for members.

ACA Group has acquired FINOP Consulting, LLC, an outsourced financial operations (FinOp) firm for broker-dealers led by Dan Beaton. The acquisition enhances ACA's FinOps capabilities and integrates FINOP Consulting's services into ACA Signature to better serve broker-dealer clients under FINRA and SEC standards; financial terms were not disclosed.

Allworth Financial has acquired City Fiduciary Group, a tax planning and wealth management firm that brings approximately $839 million in assets under management and a team of 31 professionals across Washington and Oregon. The deal expands Allworth's Pacific Northwest footprint and augments its in-house tax and wealth management capabilities; it is Allworth's seventh acquisition this year and its 38th since 2018.

Stonepeak has agreed to acquire Boundary Street Capital, a specialist private credit investment manager focused on digital infrastructure, enterprise infrastructure software, and technology services for the lower middle market. The deal expands Stonepeak Credit's private credit capabilities and strengthens its digital infrastructure and technology services investing platform; terms were not disclosed and the transaction closed in January 2025.

Mercer Global Advisors (Mercer Advisors) has acquired Chapel & Collins, a Fort Collins, Colorado-based Registered Investment Adviser managing about $675 million for over 500 clients. The deal expands Mercer's advisor capacity and boosts its assets under management in the Greater Denver area to nearly $5 billion, deepening its regional presence and wealth management capabilities.

DFCU Financial announced its intent to acquire Winter Park National Bank, a Winter Park, Florida-based commercial bank, expanding DFCU's Florida footprint. Winter Park National Bank, founded in 2017 with two branches and about 32 employees, will be retained under DFCU with CEO David Dotherow named Central Florida Area President; branches will be rebranded and integrated in 2025 pending regulatory approval.

MidFirst Bank completed the acquisition of the Houston, Texas banking locations of Amerant Bank, N.A., adding six branch locations and 45 employees. The acquired Amerant Houston locations transitioned to MidFirst Bank and reopened as MidFirst branches on November 12 as part of MidFirst's Texas expansion.

Wealth Enhancement Group has acquired M&R Capital Management, an independent RIA based in Summit, New Jersey that manages over $536 million in client assets. The three-advisor team (plus three support staff) will join Wealth Enhancement Group to access its centralized services and expand the firm's presence in New Jersey.

Insurance accounts managed by KKR have made an additional investment in eRESI Capital, a mortgage funding platform that provides private capital solutions and whole-loan purchases to the residential mortgage market. The commitment, via KKR's High-Grade Asset-Based Finance strategy, is intended to broaden eRESI's funding capabilities, help reach new origination milestones, and expand its operational capacity.

Eastside Distilling, a Nasdaq-listed craft spirits company, closed its merger with AI-powered mortgage origination platform Beeline Financial Holdings, issuing a combination of common and preferred stock to Beeline shareholders. The transaction brings Beeline's digital, AI-enhanced mortgage platform into a public company, strengthens Eastside's balance sheet via a debt-for-equity exchange, and included the sale of Eastside's Craft Canning + Printing business.

EP Wealth Advisors has acquired Gather Financial Planning (Maine) and Riley Private Client, LLC (Texas), adding more than $240 million in assets under management to the EP platform. The transactions are add-on acquisitions that expand EP Wealth's regional presence in Northern New England and North Texas and bring small advisor teams into the PE-backed RIA's national footprint.

Vinci Partners Investments Ltd. has signed and closed an agreement to acquire Lacan Ativos Reais, a Brazilian timberland investment management organization with ~R$1.5 billion AUM and management of roughly 130,000 hectares. The deal, closed November 4, 2024, includes an initial cash payment plus earnouts tied to fundraising and fee growth and will form the basis of Vinci's new forestry strategy in Latin America.

The Colony Group, a Focus Financial Partners firm, has integrated GYL Financial Synergies in a transaction completed on November 1, 2024, adding more than $6.6 billion in regulatory assets under management and bringing Colony’s office count to 100. The GYL team will join Colony’s institutional practice and former GYL CEO Gerry Goldberg will become a Division President at Colony to help expand advisory and institutional consulting capabilities.