What Happened in the RIA Channel in July 2025?

RIA deal volume and acquired AUM increased in July compared to June, with Dakota tracking 32 announced transactions totaling over $57.1B in AUM for the month – up from 24 deals and $37.7B AUM tracked in the previous month.

Investment outsourcer and RIA custodian SEI's agreement to acquire a 57.5% stake in $37B Stratos Wealth Holdings for $527M made up more than half of July's AUM total. The transaction will close in two stages: the first in the second half of 2025, and the second in the first half of next year.

Focus Partners Wealth’s acquisition of Menlo Park, CA-based Bordeaux Wealth Advisors, which manages $5.6B in client assets, was the largest full acquisition of the month, and Beacon Pointe Advisors also remained active, announcing six acquisitions that collectively added approximately $2.7B in AUM.

Looking ahead, AllianceBernstein is reportedly in talks to acquire Rockville, MD-based $3B wealth manager SOL Capital Management, and $3.9B Dynasty Financial Partners affiliate DayMark Wealth Partners is reportedly considering selling a majority stake.

On the investment side, Chicago-based RIA Constellation Wealth Capital disclosed plans to acquire a minority interest in Merit Financial Advisors, which oversees $19.9B in assets under advisement.

Read on for Dakota’s roundup of RIA M&A and investment news.

M&A

• Lido Advisors agreed to acquire Cottonwood Heights, UT-based independent wealth management firm Olympus Wealth Management. The deal would add $850M to Lido’s existing $29B of regulatory assets under management. Olympus, which focuses on HNW and UHNW clients, was founded by Scott Poelman, Scott Bird, and Matt Krull. The entire Olympus team will remain in Cottonwood Heights. Turkey Hill Management is serving as financial advisor and the Salt Lake City office of Dentons is serving as legal advisor to Olympus. Sidley Austin LLP is serving as legal advisor to Lido. Source

• Reverence Capital Partners-backed Osaic acquired a majority stake in Nashville, TN-based $700M Innovative Wealth Team. The firm, led by founder and CEO Brian Heapps, focuses on advisor succession and continuity solutions. Source

• McLean, VA-based Centurion Wealth Management, which has $591M in regulatory assets under management, acquired Fairfax, VA-based Metrics Money Management. The target firm, which is led by founder Dennis Campbell, has $80M in AUM, according to its latest form ADV. As part of the deal, Campbell has joined Centurion Wealth. Sources 1, 2

• Serial RIA acquirer Bluespring Wealth Partners purchased Irving, TX-based Halcyon Wealth Advisors, a firm affiliated with Kestra Financial with $364M in AUM. As a part of Bluespring’s broader consolidation strategy, Halcyon will be merged into existing Bluespring firm LifeBridge Financial Group. Terms of the deal were not disclosed. Source

• Los Angeles-based, $3.5B RIA SteelPeak Wealth acquired Chicago, IL-based practice Amling Investments for an undisclosed sum. The firm, led by Peter Amling, has $45M in AUM. SteelPeak’s private equity backer, Emigrant Partners, which acquired a minority stake in the firm in 2023, provided the required funding for the transaction. Amling will join SteelPeak and his firm will operate under the SteelPeak brand following the close. Source

• Maridea Wealth Management, which is backed by private equity firms 119th Street Capital and Pelican Capital, acquired Chicago, IL-headquartered Pinnacle Wealth Management, which was previously affiliated with LPL Financial. Pinnacle Wealth’s Brian Sheehy will join Maridea as a senior investment advisor. Terms of the deal were not disclosed. Source

• Financial products distribution firm Simplicity Group Holdings acquired Durham, NC-based RIA Verity Asset Management, which has $1B in AUM. Under the deal, Verity will continue to be led by Gordon Wegwart, Sean McGill, Amy Simonson, and Jeff Munsey, with each becoming a Simplicity partner. Simplicity is backed by Dragoneer Investment Group and SkyKnight Capital. Source

• Sammons Financial Group-backed, Minneapolis, MN-based NorthRock Partners, which manages $8.6B in assets, acquired San Francisco-based $800M financial advisory firm Parkside Advisors. Managing principals Charlie Benziger and Audrey Grubman, along with their team of advisors and staff, will join NorthRock in the deal. Source

• Independent wealth management firm Creative Planning, which is backed by private equity firms General Atlantic and TPG, acquired $430M RIA Mosaic Pacific in Honolulu, HI. Financial and other terms of the deal, which closed June 30, were not disclosed. Creative Planning and its affiliates had $370B in combined assets under management and advisement as of June 30. Source

• Atlas Financial Services acquired $121M Madison, Wis.-based RIA Central Wealth Management, bringing its total AUM to $230M. Central Wealth Management founder Eric Heiting will serve as president and head of wealth management at Atlas. The acquired firm will maintain its Wisconsin office. Source

• NFP, an Aon subsidiary, acquired Brentwood, TN-based financial services firm Levine Group. Under the deal, Levine's Michael Levine, Trevor Coe, and Zach Levine will join NFP. Levine Group, which has been affiliated with Kestra Financial, provides services including investment management, retirement plan consulting, employee benefits, and insurance. Source

• Dallas-based private multi-family office True North Advisors acquired Blue Investment Partners, an investment management firm in Danville, CA, with $353M in AUM, increasing True North Advisors’ AUM to $5.1B. Founded by Brett Hoover and Matt Dublin, Blue Investment advises ultra-high-net-worth families and institutional investors. Financial and legal terms of the deal were not disclosed. Source

• Fee-only, $14B RIA The Mather Group, which is backed by The Vistra Group, acquired Portland, OR-based wealth manager Independent Progressive Advisors. The firm, led by principals Scott Emblen and Ann Garcia, has $115M in regulatory AUM, according to its latest form ADV. Source

• Corsair Capital-backed RIA Composition Wealth acquired two advisory teams – Blue Oak Capital in Menlo Park, CA, and Centricity Wealth Management in Westerville, OH – bolstering its AUM to $9.5B. Blue Oak, which is led by Thomas Baker, manages $289M in client assets. Centricity has $192M in AUM and was founded by husband-and-wife team Chris Ciehanski and Wendy Ciehanski. The acquisitions follow Composition's recent rebranding from Miracle Mile Advisors. Source

• Crestview Partners-backed RIA Modern Wealth Management acquired El Segundo, CA-based fee-only RIA Kaye Capital Management, which has $700M in assets under management and $300M in assets under advisement. The deal, which is Modern Wealth’s fourth acquisition in 2025, bolstered its AUM to $8.5B. Kaye Capital’s team of four has joined Modern Wealth, including Ken Watten and David Hilton, who will work as managing directors. Source

• Aspen Standard Wealth, which is backed by private equity firm Alpine Investors, acquired $880M, Hartford, CT-based RIA SKY Investment Group. The firm is led by Robert Bingham as founder and CIO. Aspen, which is not an RIA, acquires investment advisors to form long-term partnerships. Source

• Crestline Investors-backed Credent Wealth Management acquired Michigan-headquartered $420M TFG Advisors, bringing its total AUM close to $4B. TFG, which serves 400 clients through its Auburn Hills and Ann Arbor offices, is led by managing partner and director of operations and marketing, George Barnhart. Source

• Advisory network Carson Group, which is backed by Bain Capital, acquired Englewood, CO-based Aveo Capital, which manages $608M in assets. The firm, led by partners Keys Tinney, Brian Rorick, and Michael Beerman, will be rebranded as a Carson Wealth location. Carson Group manages $42B in assets through its advisory network of over 150 partner offices, including more than 50 Carson Wealth locations. Source

• KKR-backed Beacon Pointe Advisors acquired six RIAs over the last 60 days, increasing its total assets under advisement to $47B. The acquisitions include $1B Waypoint Wealth Partners in Mill Valley, CA; $600M Jentner Wealth Management in Akron, OH; $335M Heritage Financial Planning in Dallas, TX; $284M Hart & Patterson Financial Group in Amherst, MA; $280M Michael A. Dubis Financial Planning in Middleton, WI; and $210M Ng Wealth Advisors in Pleasant Hill, CA. Source

• Constellation Wealth Capital-backed $8B RIA Procyon acquired Connecticut-based boutique advisory firm Wooster Corthell Wealth Management, which has $600M in client assets. The firm’s CEO Matthew Corthell and three advisors, along with five other team members, have joined Procyon in the deal. Source

• Omaha, Nebraska-based Carson Group agreed to acquire affiliated practice Jacob William Advisory, which will be the $42B RIA’s 28th wholly owned office. The Cockeysville, MD-based affiliate, which manages $300M in assets, is led by founding partners and wealth advisors Mark Ring and Dan Morrison. Its roster also includes partner and wealth advisor Christina Snyder along with advisors David Hodnett and Matthew Rodgville. Terms of the deal were not disclosed. Source

• Clayton, MO-based RIA Focus Partners Wealth, a network firm of RIA financier Focus Financial Partners, acquired Menlo Park, CA-based investment advisory and wealth management firm Bordeaux Wealth Advisors. The acquisition adds $5.6B to Focus Partners’ existing AUM of $96B. Bordeaux, which has been a part of the Focus Financial Partners network of RIAs since 2017, is led by CEO Tom Myers. Source

• Employee-owned, $40B independent financial services firm Steward Partners acquired Danville, CA-based Consilium Wealth Management, adding $1.1B in assets to its Legacy Division platform. Consilium’s John H. Seo joined Steward as a partner. Steward Partners' Legacy Division provides support to advisory teams seeking a long-term succession plan. Source

• Denver, CO-headquartered RIA Mercer Global Advisors acquired Waltham, MA-based O’Brien Wealth Partners, which manages $1.1B in client assets and provides wealth management and planning services to high-net-worth individuals, families and nonprofits. O’Brien Wealth is led by Jill Fopiano as president and CEO. $72B Mercer is majority owned by Oak Hill Capital, Genstar Capital, and Altas Partners. Source

• West Hartford, CT-based Apella Wealth acquired Ohio-based fee-only RIA Independence Wealth Advisors, adding $207M to the employee-owned and managed firm’s AUM. Independence is led by Kathy Duffy as founder and president. Apella – minority owned by Wealth Partners Capital Group – has more than $6B in AUM. Source

• Investment outsourcer and RIA custodian SEI reportedly agreed to acquire a 57.5% stake in $37B Stratos Wealth Holdings for $527M. Certain legacy Stratos stakeholders will retain 42.5% of the business, though that stake will be subject to put/call rights. Existing backer Emigrant Partners will exit its position as a result of the deal. The transaction will close in two stages: Stratos’ US business, representing 80% of the deal value, is expected to close in the second half of 2025, and the Mexico-based NSC business should close in the first half of 2026. Source

• Beverly Hills, CA-based $4.1B multi-family office Mozaic is reportedly considering a sale. The firm, led by founder and CEO Christopher Zyda, has reportedly engaged Stifel’s Keefe, Bruyette & Woods to serve as its investment banker. Source

• Asset manager AllianceBernstein is reportedly looking to acquire Rockville, MD-based $3B wealth manager SOL Capital Management, with the parties having held talks about a potential deal. However, as of publication, it’s not certain whether terms have been finalized, sources told Citywire. The publication had previously reported that the RIA was considering a sale and had engaged Houlihan Lokey to serve as its investment banker. Source

• Cincinnati, OH-based RIA DayMark Wealth Partners, which is an affiliate of RIA network Dynasty Financial Partners, is reportedly considering selling a majority stake and has engaged Houlihan Lokey and Dynasty’s investment banking division to serve as its financial advisors. Although the firm has reportedly held talks with strategic acquirers and private equity players for a potential majority stake sale, it could ultimately opt for a minority investor. DayMark Wealth, which has $3.9B in AUM, was launched in 2022 by breaking away from Wells Fargo. Source

• Plymouth, MN-based $2.5B RIA Berger Financial Group is reportedly considering selling the firm and has engaged Houlihan Lokey to explore opportunities. The firm, which is led by Mark Berger as principal and chief compliance officer and Nick Asmus as CEO, has reportedly received interests from strategic acquirers. Source

Investments

• Advisor consulting and services firm Ascendia Partners is working with $350M RIA Holistic Wealth Advisors to secure a strategic minority capital investment to support the firm’s long-term growth and infrastructure. Led by Stacy Clifford, the firm is headquartered in Clifton Park, NY, and includes a team of six advisors. Source

• Emigrant Partners-backed Elevation Point, a minority stake partner for independent advisors and breakaway firms, made a strategic minority investment in Waycrest Wealth, a newly established wealth management firm based in Michigan. The team, which has $1B in assets under supervision, broke away from Raymond James and is led by Jay Hack and Lowell Weiss. Other members of the team include Paul Hack and Leonard Weiss. Source

• New York-based RIA investor Merchant Investment Management acquired a minority stake in Stone Temple Partners. The Darien, CT-based firm, which has $620M in AUM, is owned by Stone Temple Partners Holding, which in turn is majority owned indirectly by CEO Timothy Hall, COO David Ward, and CIO Alexander Herman. Source

• Chicago, IL-based RIA Constellation Wealth Capital agreed to acquire a minority stake in Merit Financial Advisors, which has $19.9B in assets under advisement. As part of the deal, Wealth Partners Capital Group and an investor group, led by HGGC's Aspire Holdings platform, will be exiting their ownership stake. The deal is expected to close in the third quarter. Source

• Lone Willow Advisors, a Bozeman, MT-based sell-side M&A advisory business for wealth managers, is reportedly looking to raise capital to buy minority stakes in wealth managers. Dan Newhall, a former managing partner of Rise Growth Partners, is the founder and principal of Lone Willow Advisors. The firm is in “very early stages” of the capital raising process, and plans to target investments in firms with $1B to $3B in client assets, Newhall told Citywire. Source

• Fayetteville, AR-based $1.6B RIA Greenwood Gearhart is reportedly mulling adding a minority investor as a part of its new growth strategy. The firm has engaged Gorman Jones to assist with its growth plan and to evaluate minority capital partners. Source