RIA M&A deal volume in April remained strong, with Dakota tracking 31 new transactions during the month, up from 28 in March and 16 in February, though it was a story of many smaller deals, with total AUM value for April’s deals dipping to approximately $17B versus $302.1B in March and $32.6B in February.
Backing out LPL’s blockbuster March acquisition of $285B AUM Commonwealth Financial Network considerably smooths out the AUM values month to month, and also worth noting, Stifel closing on its pickup of 36 B. Riley advisors and $4B in AUM is not included in the April tally.
Aspen Wealth did the biggest single deal in April, adding $2.9B in AUM with its acquisition of New England Private Wealth Advisors, while a pair of wealth managers – SFA Partners subsidiary Strategic Blueprint and Cetera’s The Retirement Planning Group – were the most active, each accounting for three M&A deals. Also of note, Cerity Partners added more than $2.3B in client assets through two acquisitions, and a sizable deal could be in the offing, with global consultant Mckinsey & Co. reportedly shopping its in-house RIA, $24B AUM MIO Partners.
New investments in RIAs in April were on a similar pace to prior months, with Dakota tracking three growth investments, including the Schrager banking family of Indiana getting into the game with an investment in $470M New York City RIA Maridea Wealth Management and CIVC Partners making a majority growth investment in $10B Richmond, VA-based wealth manager Cary Street Partners.
Read on for Dakota’s April roundup of RIA M&A and investment news.
Mergers & Acquisitions
Cerity Partners to Acquire West Coast Financial
Cerity Partners is acquiring Santa Barbara-based RIA West Coast Financial, which manages $1.8B in regulatory assets. The deal will enhance Cerity's financial planning, investment management, and alternative investment offerings. West Coast Financial will operate under the Cerity Partners name post-acquisition.
EP Wealth Acquires $660M San Francisco-based RIA
$31B EP Wealth Advisors is acquiring $660M Peninsula Wealth, a San Francisco-based RIA, to strengthen its Northern California presence. Peninsula founder Rahul Shah and his team will join EP Wealth.
Mission Wealth Merges with $204M MN-based RIA Brown Wealth
$10B Mission Wealth acquires Brown Wealth Management ($240M AUM) in Eden Prairie, MN. Founder Timothy Brown and his team join the firm, with the Eden Prairie location becoming a regional hub.
CSP Acquires TX Wealth Manager Keene & Dorchak
Cary Street Partners acquired Fort Worth, TX-based RIA Keene & Dorchak Investment Advisors with $202M in client assets, expanding its Texas presence. Founded in 1994, Keene & Dorchak will operate under the CSP name, gaining access to broader resources.
Report: Align Impact Buys $113M Wealth Manager Conscious Endeavors
Santa Monica, CA-based investment management firm Align Impact has acquired Conscious Endeavors, a New York-based wealth manager with $113M in client assets that focuses on environmental, social, governance-based (ESG) investing, according to various media reports.
Cerity Partners Enters NC With Deal for $529M RIA
Cerity Partners makes its second acquisition for 2025 with $529M Cook Wealth in Raleigh, NC, expanding its presence into the state. The 27-person team, founded in 1984, offers various wealth management services.
Waverly Acquires $110M FL RIA Fiduciary Wealth
Waverly Advisors, based in Birmingham, AL, acquires Sarasota, FL-based RIA Fiduciary Wealth Advisors ($110M AUM), founded by Scott Collins. The deal, closed on April 4, expands Waverly's presence to six locations in Florida.
Aspen Standard Wealth Acquires $2.9B Boston RIA
Aspen Standard Wealth acquires $2.9B Boston-based fee-only RIA New England Private Wealth Advisors (NEPWA), founded in 2005. NEPWA provides customized wealth management services and uses Charles Schwab and Fidelity for custody. This is Aspen Standard Wealth's first acquisition of 2025, following its purchase of Summitry in November.
Modern Wealth Adding $1B with California RIA Deals
Modern Wealth Management is acquiring two California-based RIAs, Wade Financial Advisors ($700M AUM) and Planned Asset Management ($350M AUM), bringing its total AUM to over $7B.
West Shore Bank Acquires Auto Club Trust's Wealth Division
West Shore Bank acquired the wealth management, investment advisory, and trust unit of Auto Club Trust for cash, effective March 31. The deal brings a four-person trust team to serve Southeast Michigan. As of year-end 2024, West Shore Bank managed $768M in client assets.
Carson Group Acquires $314M Michigan Affiliate
Carson Group fully acquired its affiliate $314M RIA Mommaerts Mahaney Financial Services in Marquette, MI. Led by founder Jon Mommaerts, the team will rebrand as Carson Wealth's Marquette Office. This acquisition follows other recent buyouts and advisor additions for Carson Group, which navigated executive changes in the past year.
Stifel Completes B. Riley Deal, Adds $4B in AUM
Stifel Financial finalizes its acquisition of a segment of B. Riley's wealth business, bringing on 36 advisors and $4B in assets under management. This follows earlier discussions of a larger sale after B. Riley faced SEC scrutiny. Stifel's wealth management unit now manages over $500B in client assets.
Prospera Acquires IBD Cutter & Co
Dallas-based Prospera Financial Services acquired St. Louis broker-dealer Cutter & Company ($2B AUM) in a deal finalized March 31. Cutter's leadership and 40 advisors will remain. The acquisition brings Prospera's total AUM to over $24B.
NorthRock Partners Buys Advisory Practice in Chicago
Minneapolis-based $6.7B NorthRock Partners acquired the Greater Chicago area practice of veteran advisor Tony Pondel, who was previously with LPL for 23 years, supporting NorthRock's regional expansion strategy.
EP Wealth Enters Cincinnati Area With Deal for $385M RIA
EP Wealth Advisors acquired $385M Fort Wright, KY-based AlphaMark Advisors, expanding into Kentucky and the Greater Cincinnati area. AlphaMark, founded in 1999, is a five-member team led by Michael Simon. This is EP Wealth's fourth acquisition of 2025.
$1B West Coast RIA Monterey Private Wealth Joins Creative Planning
Creative Planning acquired Monterey Private Wealth, a $1B fee-only RIA in Monterey, CA, effective March 31, establishing a presence on California's Central Coast. The 13-member team, led by Cristofer Cabanillas, Gary E.D. Alt, and Steven Merrell, offers comprehensive financial planning services.
Pure Financial Acquires $900M Chicago-area RIA
Pure Financial Advisors acquired Wheaton, IL-based RIA Fairhaven Wealth Management, with $900M in client assets, financed with cash and equity. Fairhaven, led by Marc Horner, offers financial planning and investment services.
Safeguard Investment Enters Arizona with RIA Acquisition
Safeguard Investment Advisory Group expands into Arizona with the acquisition of Scottsdale-based RIA Solutions First Financial Group, led by CEO Joe Donti. The Corona, CA-based firm, with $603M in assets, opened its new office on April 1st.
BFS Acquires $350M New England RIA
Bradley, Foster, & Sargent (BFS) of Hartford, CT, acquired $350M RIA Napatree Capital, founded by Jeff Ligouri in Westerley, R.I. Ligouri joins BFS as EVP, and Aaron Simmons becomes a portfolio manager. Napatree's team will maintain offices in Rhode Island and Longmeadow, MA.
SFA Partners’ Strategic Blueprint Acquires a Trio of Wealth Managers
Strategic Blueprint, a subsidiary of SFA Partners, acquired AdvicePoint, The Wealth Plan Company, and Clarity Financial Advisors, adding a total of $200M in client assets.
Lido Adds $870M in AUM with Bay Area Advisor Deal
Lido Advisors of Los Angeles acquired Bay Area RIA BluePointe Capital Management, which manages over $870M in assets. BluePointe founder and CEO Sanheev Sardana joins Lido as a partner. This marks Lido's first acquisition of the year, bringing its total regulatory AUM to over $29B.
RIAs Merge to Form Florida-based Bastion Fiduciary
Islamorada Investment Management (IIM) acquired Picket Fence Financial and rebranded as Bastion Fiduciary, with $110M in client assets. Led by IIM's Cale Smith as CEO and Picket Fence's Kirk Kinder as director of financial planning, the seven-person team operates from a headquarters in Islamorada, FL, and multiple offices across the US.
Modern Wealth Acquires $310M Chicagoland RIA OFM Wealth
Modern Wealth Management acquired OFM Wealth of Orland Park, IL, adding $310M in AUM and a six-person team led by founder Sam Ogrizovich. This marks Modern Wealth's 16th acquisition, bringing its total AUM to over $7.5B across 18 offices in 13 states.
Merit Financial Acquires $597M Wisconsin RIA
Merit Financial Advisors acquired Green Bay, WI-based Safeguard Wealth Management, an RIA with a strong YouTube presence, adding $597M in client assets. Safeguard's founders will take on new roles at Merit, marking Merit's 36th acquisition.
McKinsey Seeking Buyer for $24B MIO Partners
McKinsey & Co. is reportedly proceeding with the sale of its $24B wealth unit, MIO Partners. Leading the transaction is Ardea Partners, with McKinsey preferring a strategic acquirer over private equity.
Allworth Buys $1.5B Indianapolis RIA Sheaff Brock
$28B Allworth Financial is acquiring $1.5B Indianapolis-based RIA Sheaff Brock Investment Advisors, its first deal of 2025 and the second-largest in its history. Allworth CEO John Bunch expects the deal will close in early summer, furthering the Folsom, CA-based firm's aim to develop Indianapolis as a central hub with over 50 employees and $3B in assets.
$3.9B Schechter Acquires Enlightened Finance
Michigan's $3.9B RIA Schechter Investment Advisors has acquired Enlightened Finance, a Rochester, NY, fee-based firm founded by Alex Martin, to gain access to mass affluent clients. This is Schecter’s second acquisition and will increase its total client assets to around $4B.
The Retirement Planning Group Makes Three Acquisitions in First Quarter 2025
Cetera’s employee-based RIA The Retirement Planning Group expanded its nationwide presence with first-quarter acquisitions of Hawkes Wealth Management in Binghamton, NY, Wealtheon Advisors in San Ramon, CA, and Financial Research, Inc. in Seattle, adding a combined $180M in client assets.
RIA Investments
Procyon Partners Secures Minority Investment from Constellation
Dynasty Financial-backed Procyon Partners received a minority investment from Constellation Wealth Capital to fuel growth, enhance advisor resources, and open offices in key markets. Procyon will remain independently operated with Dynasty's continued support.
Cary Street Partners Sells Majority Stake to CIVC Partners
Private equity firm CIVC Partners will acquire a majority stake in $10B wealth manager Cary Street Partners Financial (CSP). The deal, supported by CSP's board, will provide capital for growth and acquisitions. CSP insiders will retain roughly half of the firm's ownership and have committed to reinvesting.
Zoe Closes $29.6M Funding Round With RIA Client Support
Digital wealth platform Zoe Financial secured $29.6M in Series B funding led by Sageview Capital, bringing its total funding to $45M. The investment will be used to scale the team and enhance the platform's capabilities, which provides RIAs with business development, operational support, and client referrals.
119th Street Capital Announces Strategic Investment in Maridea Wealth Management
Brooklyn-based, $470M RIA Maridea Wealth Management, received an investment from 119th Street Capital, an investment vehicle of Indiana's Schrage banking family, alongside Pelican Capital.
