Atria Wealth Solutions, a Lee Equity Partners–backed wealth management holding company launched by former Morgan Stanley executive Doug Ketterer in 2017, has completed its acquisition of Grove Point Financial from Kestra Holdings. Headquartered in Rockland, Md., Grove Point is a hybrid firm with 400 employees and $15 billion in client assets.
Founded in 1984 as H. Beck Inc., Grove Point was acquired by Kestra in 2017 and rebranded in 2021. The deal to acquire 100% of the business and subsidiaries, Grove Point Investments and Grove Point Advisors, brings Atria to almost 2,700 employees and $120 billion in assets across all its companies, including CUSO Financial Services, Sorrento Pacific Financial, Cadaret Grant, NEXT Financial Group, Western International Securities and SCF Securities.
The transition to Atria’s multi-custodian and clearing platform should require no repapering and minimal interruption for existing Grove Point clients, according to both firms, while Grove Point advisors will benefit from “enhanced support” and a “broader set of solutions.”
"We operate in a very complex and demanding environment and those challenges will only continue to increase in the future,” Grove Point President Michelle Barry sad in a statement Monday. “It is very exciting to provide our financial professionals with a broader set of tools, solutions and peers so they can best serve their clients' needs.”
Atria boasts a number of proprietary financial technology platforms, including Unio, an integrated platform that was a finalist at the 2022 WealthManagement.com Industry Awards for its transition support capabilities; a client portal called Clear1; and Contour, a fee-based advisory platform that offers everything from processing and rebalancing to research, portfolio construction and billing. The company also offers a range of practice management resources, marketing tools and a “comprehensive” product platform.
"Our new relationship with Grove Point will be an undeniable success for all involved,” said Ketterer. “I've been very fortunate to meet with many Grove Point financial professionals since announcing the acquisition, and they are truly a phenomenal group of individuals.”
"Fit is critical to success anytime two firms come together," said Eugene Elias Jr., Atria's COO and a founding partner. "The entire team at Grove Point, both the financial professionals and home office team, perfectly fit with who and what we are at Atria.”
Following the sale of Grove Point, Kestra Holdings now comprises Kestra Financial and its subsidiaries, Kestra Investment Management, Kestra Private Wealth Services and Kestra Advisory Services, as well as acquisitive hybrid platform Bluespring Wealth Partners and Arden Trust Company. Together they oversee $111.3 billion in assets under advisement and $60 billion under management across more than 2,200 financial professionals.
Majority owned by Warburg Pincus, Oak Hill Capital took over a minority stake in Kestra from Stone Point Capital last fall.