May 2025 RIA Channel Activity: Advisor Moves, Firm Changes & Trends

June 05, 2025

What Happened in the RIA Channel in May 2025? Key Moves & Updates

The month to month ups and downs in RIA M&A deal flows continued in May, with deal volume dipping to just 14 announced and confirmed acquisitions in the month, comparable to February's 16 deals but well down from 31 and 28 in April and March, respectively.

AUM moving in May's deals came to approximately $18B, up from $13.3B in April, a month characterized by many smaller transactions, though the May tally was heavily skewed by Focus Partners' acquisition of $9.4B AUM Los Angeles RIA Churchill Management. Looking ahead, Aquiline Capital Partners is reportedly exploring a sale of $238.5B AUM SageView Advisory Group, which would be a massive deal if it comes to fruition.

In other notable moves, RIAs VisionPoint Advisory Group and Navitas Wealth Advisors merged to form Balefire, with $3.7B in combined assets, while Hightower Advisors made strategic investments in Lindbrook Capital and Smith Anglin, and HPS Investments outbid Bain Capital and The Carlyle Group to invest in Lido Advisors.

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

Acquisitions

Following months of speculation, $9.4B high-net-worth RIA Churchill Management agreed to sell to Focus Financial Partners, operating as a division of Focus Partners Wealth, in a deal that will add 42 investment advisors spread across 39 cities.
Ft. Lauderdale, FL-based Global Wealth Management (GWM) acquired Gulf Coast Financial Planning (GCFP), adding $150M of client assets and expanding into Florida's West Coast region through the establishment of its Lakewood Ranch office. Through this acquisition, GCFP founder Kurt Stahl transitions to the GWM team, aiding the firm to serve clients in the Greater Sarasota Area.
Savant Wealth Management, a serial acquirer headquartered in Rockford, IL, made its first acquisition of 2025, snapping up Rhode Island-based Corrigan Financial, adding a team of 25 and nearly $1.2B in its client assets.
Edelman Financial Engines (EFE) acquired $426M Kalamazoo, MI-based Cahill Wealth Management, which specializes in financial planning for pharmaceutical and life sciences executives. The firm will operate under the EFE brand. EFE said it will continue to seek additional acquisitions.
Focus Partners Wealth acquired Walnut Creek, CA-based Adero Partners, a $4.4B RIA that had been a part of the Focus network since 2018.
Mercer Global Advisors acquired $810M Tufton Capital Management and $75M Lewis Wealth Management, marking their 100th and 101st acquisitions since 2016, as CEO Dave Welling hints at a future "transformational deal."
Florida-based 55 North Private Wealth, an RIA founded in 2023 by former WaterOak CIO Steve Curley that focuses on early retirement advising, reportedly made its first acquisition – buying $250M F4 Wealth Advisors in a deal that closed in January. The deal bought in Darrell DeVaney as a co-managing principal.
Advisory Services Network, a platform for independent RIAs, reportedly added $250M Arkansas-based AUM Harris Wealth Management, bringing its total client assets near $10B. The Harris Wealth team broke away from Arkansas-based Cornerstone Advisors.
Richmond, VA-based wealth manager Cary Street Partners acquired $257M AUM Sarasota, FL-based RIA IFS Advisors, marking its first deal since agreeing to sell a majority stake to private equity firm CIVC Partners last month.
Avantax, a tax-focused Cetera network firm based in Dallas, acquired the assets of Indianapolis-based WealthCare Financial Group. The firm, which was founded in 1997 by Jeffrey Watson and administers $180M in client assets, began an affiliation with Avantax in 2019.

$14B The Mather Group (TMG) acquired $200M Walnut Creek, CA-based Pillar Wealth Management. The acquisition is TMG's fourth in the Bay Area. Pillar's co-principals, Hutch Ashoo and Chris Snyder, will join TMG upon completion of the deal.
Simon Quick Advisors, an independent RIA headquartered in Morristown, NJ, acquired Las Vegas-based boutique advisory firm Proquility Private Wealth Partners. Led by founders Andy Ferguson and Patty Yeager, the team brings four decades of experience and approximately $300M in client assets. ECHELON Partners served as financial advisor and Alston & Bird served as legal advisor to Simon Quick, while Turkey Hill Management served as financial advisor and Hanson Bridgett served as legal advisor to Proquility Private Wealth.
Boca Raton, FL-based RIA Financial Trust Asset Management acquired Lakewood Ranch, FL-based Hueston Financial Services (HFS) – a single-advisor firm with $17M in regulatory AUM headed by Stephen Hueston. HFS will retain its name and act as a division of the company.

Mergers

VisionPoint Advisory Group and Navitas Wealth Advisors merged to form Balefire, a Dallas-based comprehensive wealth management firm that targets high-net-worth clientele. Balefire represents a team of more than 65 financial professionals, managing $3.7B in combined assets.
Serial RIA buyer and backer Focus Financial Partners will reportedly merge its $35B Kovitz Investment Group into its $140B Focus Partners Wealth by January 2026, marking the first combination of two newer "hub" firms under Focus Financial's strategy and following the promotion of Adam Birenbaum as president.

Deal Rumors

Private equity firm Aquiline Capital Partners is reportedly exploring a sale of SageView Advisory Group, a retirement plan-focused RIA with approximately $238.5B in assets under management. Aquiline, which reportedly engaged Moelis as its financial advisor for a potential deal, acquired a controlling 80% stake in SageView in early 2021.
Rockville, MD-based SOL Capital Management is reportedly looking to sell and has hired Houlihan Lokey as its investment banker. The HNW advisor had nearly $3B in AUM as of its most recent form ADV filing.
The parent company of Encino, CA-based RIA SB Capital Management is reportedly seeking a sale. Singer Burke, an accounting and financial consulting firm, has engaged Dalphia Partners as financial advisor in its pursuit to sell to a wealth management acquirer.

Investments

Emigrant Partners acquired a minority stake in serial RIA investor Elevation Point, founded by former Sanctuary Wealth CEO Jim Dickson, providing growth capital and a senior debt facility. The partnership allows Elevation Point, which invested in Fortgage Capital last month, to broaden its offerings and accelerate the onboarding of advisory teams.

Hightower Advisors, backed by Thomas H. Lee Partners and SEB, made strategic investments in $3.8B Los Angeles-based RIA Lindbrook Capital and $2B Dallas-based aviation industry-focused Smith Anglin.
$30B RIA Lido Advisors received an investment from BlackRock-owned HPS Investment Partners, which joins existing investor Charlesbank. The deal is expected to close in the third quarter. Bain Capital and The Carlyle Group reportedly both submitted bids to invest in the Los Angeles-based wealth manager but tabled lower offers than HPS.
Merchant Investment Management-backed Summit Financial made minority investments in $250M Montgomery, AL-based Parsons Broach Financial Services and $313M Grandview Square Financial in Edina, MN. Parsons Broach was formerly affiliated with Raymond James, while Grandview was with Northwestern Mutual. Since May 2024, Summit has added 27 partner firms to reach nearly $20B in total assets.