The RIA industry kicked off 2024 with a flurry of activity, announcing at least 11 deals this week, as well as some key people moves and one rebrand.
Mission Wealth promoted five advisors to partner, while Mainsail Financial Group, Hub International and MAI all announced acquisitions. Edelman Financial Engines also announced a new executive hire.
In earlier reported news, Mariner bought a $360 million California firm; Dakota Wealth Management picked up a $900 million firm in Massachusetts and a Minnesota firm with around $600 million; Mercer Advisors acquired a $465 million Denver RIA; Waverly Advisors added $1.5 billion in its largest deal yet; Kestra Private Wealth Services scooped up an Edward Jones advisor; Savant Wealth Management added $440 million with its first Florida acquisition; and CoastalOne announced it’s rebranded as Realta.
Mission Wealth Names Five New Partners
Mission Wealth, a Santa Barbara, Calif.-based RIA managing more than $7 billion for around 2,950 clients, named five new partners in the first week of the year.
The appointments bring the number of partners in the firm to 36—roughly a third of the entire team—as Mission seeks to develop new leaders and promote confidence in career pathways at the firm.
The new partners include Director of Tax Strategy Brandon Baiamonte, who has been with the firm since June 2021; Director of Mergers & Integrations Nicole Madosik, who joined in September 2021 and stepped into her current position a year ago; Senior Wealth Advisor Jessica Mora, who started as a client advisor associate in June 2017 and moved into her current role nine months ago; Director of Investments Emil Nazaretyan, who has been in that role for seven months after beginning as an investment associate in May 2018; and Director of Human Resources Jessica Neves, who began as a human resources manager in May 2021 and has held her current position for a year.
Founded in 2000, Mission has grown assets to more than $7 billion from around $750 million in 2012.
Mainsail Financial Group Grows Assets by 25% with Inaugural Acquisition
Mainsail Financial Group, a Bellevue, Wash.-based RIA managing close to $165 million in registered assets, acquired the practice of John L. Gunn in the greater Portland area.
Gunn, who has been running his own RIA for 22 years, was managing more than $43 million for around 30 clients, according to his latest Form ADV filing from late March.
The addition of Gunn brings the Mainsail team to nine, including six advisors, and adds a second location in the Pacific Northwest.
Gunn expects to benefit from access to a broader menu of resources and strategies available through the partnership, saying the Mainsail team has “more depth of expertise and will be able to provide even more comprehensive service.”
Hub Adds Two Firms to Wealth and Retirement Division
Hub International announced two new additions to its Retirement and Private Wealth unit this week.
In Fort Lauderdale, Fla., Hub acquired a team of 24 providing wealth management, insurance planning, employee benefits, and employer sponsored retirement plan services. Previously affiliated with MassMutual, BLS Wealth Management is led by Managing Partner Howard Bienenfeld, and Partners Carol Lasek and Mitch Starr. The team will join Hub South Florida, and Starr will lead the regional expansion of Hub RPW.
The team is now operating as BLS Wealth Management, a Hub International Company.
In the greater Washington, D.C. area, Hub recruited Bob Gottschling, an advisor who was with Lincoln Financial Network for nearly four decades.
Based west of D.C. in Vienna, Va., Gottschling brings experience with advanced personal retirement, investment and estate planning strategies, as well as qualified and non-qualified retirement plan development for businesses.
The moves add to the continued growth of Hub RPW, which has grown assets to around $148 billion. Owned by Hellman & Friedman since 2013, Hub International is a publicly traded insurance brokerage and financial services firm based in Chicago.
MAI Picks Up Local $110M Firm
MAI Capital Management picked up a local practice, R. Karras Asset Management and Planning, managing around $110 million for about 200 clients from an office just minutes away from its Cleveland-area headquarters.
The firm was founded by CEO Robert Karras, who will become a senior wealth advisor and managing director at MAI, more than 35 years ago.
Majority owned by Galway Holdings and led by Managing Partner Rick Buoncore, MAI has completed 32 acquisitions since 2018, bringing the firm’s network of advisory firms to a total of 25 offices across the United States, managing about $17.3 billion.
Edelman Taps New CMO
Edelman Financial Engines, a $242 billion AUM RIA based in Santa Clara, Calif., hired Megan Hanley as its new chief marketing officer. She joins from Forge Global, a publicly-traded marketplace for researching, buying, and selling private company stocks, where she served as CMO.
As of Jan. 3, Hanley reports to EFE CEO Jay Shah and is responsible for overseeing all marketing activities and outreach strategies.
She has also held CMO positions at Achieve Financial, Helix, ShopRunner and Auction.com, following marketing leadership roles with Microsoft and Esurance in her earlier career.
Majority owned by Hellman & Friedman and minority backed by Warburg Pincus, Edelman Financial Engines was created in 2018 when H&F merged Ric Edelman’s $21.7 billion AUM RIA, Edelman Financial Services, with Financial Engines, a tech-focused corporate retirement plan advisor with $169 billion in managed assets.
Today, EFE oversees more than $250 billion in client assets, nearly $242 billion of which is reflected on its Form ADV, for more than 1.3 million clients from almost 150 offices nationwide.