Bluespring acquired SHP Financial; McKinsey sold MIO Partners to Neuberger Berman; Aerodigm Wealth launched; CAPTRUST bought Alpha Cubed Investments; Cerity Partners will merge with Verus Investments; ECHELON published its 2025 RIA M&A report; LPL recruited Sound Wealth; Raymond James recruited a $730 million Wisconsin team; Mariner will use State Street’s Charles River platform; FMG named a Chief Revenue Officer; Composition hired a Chief Marketing Officer; and Mercer Advisors appointed an SVP to run its investment platform.
EDITOR IN CHIEF’S TAKE:
The M&A numbers keep rising. This week, Cerity announced a merger with Verus, which serves clients with $1.2 trillion in assets. Asset numbers for the Bluespring, Neuberger and CAPTRUST acquisitions are in the multiple billions. And ECHELON predicts another banner year for M&A in 2026. At this point, one must wonder what it would take to even slow down the M&A train.
– Julius Buchanan, Editor in Chief, Wealth Solutions Report
Mergers & Acquisitions
Bluespring Acquires SHP Financial In Massachusetts
Bluespring Wealth Partners, a Kestra Holdings subsidiary, acquired SHP Financial, a Plymouth, Massachusetts-based RIA with about $2.3 billion in client assets. The deal closed Dec. 31, and the firm said SHP will keep its branding and name. SHP was founded in 2003 and operates three Massachusetts offices in Plymouth, Woburn and Hyannis.
SHP has about 50 team members, including seven producing advisors, according to Bluespring. The founders – Keith W. Ellis Jr., Derek L. Gregoire and Matthew C. Peck – will remain in their current roles, the company said. Turkey Hill Management served as financial advisor to SHP in connection with the acquisition.
Peck said: “We are deeply protective of the culture we’ve built over the last two decades and were intentional about choosing a partner we felt could help us fuel SHP’s next stage of growth while helping us remain true to our goals.”
McKinsey’s MIO Partners To Join Neuberger Berman
McKinsey & Company and Neuberger Berman said they reached an agreement for MIO Partners to join Neuberger. MIO is McKinsey’s investment and wealth manager for partners, employees and alumni, and the firms said it has $26 billion in assets under management, including about $20 billion in alternative investments. The transaction is expected to close in 2026.
Neuberger will onboard MIO’s investment teams that manage the alternative strategies and MIO’s advisory business serving McKinsey partners, along with supporting functions, the firms said. Ardea Partners supported McKinsey in the transaction, with Simpson Thacher & Bartlett providing it with legal counsel. Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom served as legal counsel to Neuberger.
Bob Sternfels, Global Managing Partner of McKinsey, said: “McKinsey set out to find a long-term partner that could build on what makes MIO great. Neuberger is that partner. Their record in both investment and wealth management, and their partnership culture, convinced us that they were the right long-term steward of MIO, and we’re excited to see what the future brings.”
ECHELON Publishes 2025 RIA M&A Deal Report
ECHELON Partners published its 2025 RIA M&A Deal Report, noting deal volume increased 27% year-over-year to 466 for 2025, pointing to continued consolidation and changes in buyer and seller priorities as drivers.
ECHELON said it expects deal volume this year to “rival — and potentially exceed — 2025 levels” while remaining under 500 transactions, and it discussed new buyers, capability expansion through M&A and recapitalizations.
Dan Seivert, CEO and Founder of ECHELON Partners, said, “Today’s RIA M&A market reflects intentional strategy, not short-term opportunity. We expect elevated transaction activity to persist as firms pursue scale, capabilities, and strategic partnerships that position them for the next decade.”
Cerity Partners To Merge With Verus Investments
Cerity Partners said it is merging with Verus Investments, an institutional investment consulting and advisory firm serving clients with approximately $1.2 trillion in assets. The combined firm will advise on and provide services to individual and institutional clients with about $1.3 trillion in assets.
The firms said the combined business will operate under the Cerity Partners brand. The merger is expected to close at the end of the first quarter. Houlihan Lokey advised Verus on the merger.
Kurt Miscinski, CEO of Cerity Partners, said, “We are thrilled to welcome our new colleagues from Verus, which brings decades of experience and incredible expertise in helping institutions achieve their financial goals.”
CAPTRUST Brings Alpha Cubed Investments Onto Platform
CAPTRUST said Alpha Cubed Investments joined the firm in January and will adopt the CAPTRUST brand. The acquired firm, headquartered in Orange County, California, with an office in Scottsdale, Arizona, oversees approximately $3.8 billion in assets, according to the announcement. Alpha Cubed is led by CEO and Chief Technical Analyst Todd Walsh and President Tony Jabczenski, supported by a team of 28 professionals, including 16 advisors.
Alpha Cubed was founded in 2011. Gorman Jones served as Alpha Cubed’s advisor in the transaction, CAPTRUST said.
Mike Wunderli, Managing Director and Head of Mergers and Acquisitions at CAPTRUST, said, “From our earliest conversations, it was clear that Alpha Cubed Investments shares our commitment to putting clients at the center of every decision. ACI brings a differentiated, organic growth strategy built around highly effective advisory teams.”
Advisor Transactions
LPL Recruits $420 Million Sound Wealth From Ameriprise
LPL Financial said Curt Pederson and Britt Saylor of Sound Wealth joined its broker-dealer and RIA platforms from Ameriprise. The advisors reported serving approximately $420 million in advisory, brokerage and retirement plan assets.
The team is based in the Seattle and Phoenix areas and focuses on high net worth and multigenerational households, including planning tied to inheritance, liquidity events and executive compensation, according to the firm.
Britt Saylor, Co-Founder of Sound Wealth, said: “At Sound Wealth, our relationships with clients are deeply personal. We take the time to truly understand each family’s goals, values and the emotional context behind their financial decisions.”
Raymond James Recruits $730 Million Wisconsin Team From Commonwealth
Raymond James recruited an advisor team operating as Financial Consulting Services, based in Green Bay, Wisconsin, to its independent advisor channel, Raymond James Financial Services. The advisors – Russell Olson, Christopher Lamal, Raymond Krusic, Ryan Spiering, Brian Craig and Nicole Krusic – were previously affiliated with Commonwealth Financial Network where they managed approximately $730 million in client assets. The group is joined by Branch Operations Manager Amanda Hanley and Branch Professional Renate Diedrick.
The team provides financial planning and guidance, with a client base that includes business owners, corporate executives and retirees, the company said. David Sisemore, Midwest Division Director for RJFS, David Sisemore.
Olson said: “After nearly three decades helping families focus on what matters most, Raymond James’ people-focused culture and innovative resources made for an easy next step for our practice.” He added that the firm’s tools and private wealth capabilities would support the team’s approach to tailoring strategies to client goals.
Aerodigm Wealth Launches As Independent, Partner-Owned RIA
Aerodigm Wealth launched as an independent, partner-owned advisory firm following the management buyout and renaming of Delap Wealth Advisory. The firm reported approximately $1.5 billion in assets under management as of Dec. 31. It is headquartered in Portland, Oregon, and serves ultra-high net worth individuals and families.
Aerodigm focuses on integrating tax-aware advice with allocation and multigenerational planning. It said its leadership team remains unchanged.
Jared C. Siegel, Managing Partner of Aerodigm Wealth, said: “Our history is rooted in tax planning and Aerodigm’s strategy is built to meet the new paradigm in how taxable wealth compounds. For our UHNW clients, it’s not what they make, it’s what they keep. Our focus is working within the tax code to implement coordinated strategies designed to compound efficiently over time and after tax.”
Strategic Partnerships
Mariner Picks State Street’s Charles River Platform
State Street said Mariner will implement Charles River’s Wealth Management Solution with the goal of streamlining operations and supporting growth plans, including expanding to 5,000 advisors. The firms said the implementation is intended to improve efficiency across Mariner’s current base of over 2,080 advisors.
Mariner plans to use the platform to support portfolio management, advisor workflows, trading, custodial data integration and enterprise data management, State Street said.
Marty Bicknell, CEO and President of Mariner, said: “This partnership reflects how we think about our company’s next chapter. It’s designed to support our journey to 5,000 advisors and beyond, while enabling a more unified and modern experience across the firm as it continues to grow.”
Promotions & People Moves
FMG Names Matt Newman As Chief Revenue Officer
FMG appointed Matt Newman as Chief Revenue Officer, with responsibility for sales, customer success and revenue operations. The company said the role is intended to align its revenue system “from a client’s first contact” through longer-term growth, and noted it operates two brands: FMG for wealth management and Agency Revolution for insurance.
Newman previously served as CRO at Hearsay and held sales leadership roles at Institutional Shareholder Services, according to the release. FMG is backed by GTCR.
Dave Christensen, CEO of FMG, said: “FMG has reached an important inflection point as a platform powering organic growth for enterprises and their advisors and agents. Matt's role strengthens execution across the entire revenue system, building on an already strong foundation across the company.”
Composition Wealth Appoints Meghan McCartan As CMO
RIA Composition Wealth appointed Meghan McCartan as Chief Marketing Officer in a newly created role, joining the firm at the end of January. McCartan is tasked with developing digital-first strategies to support advisor growth and expand its brand.
McCartan previously served as CMO at Hightower Advisors. She has over 25 years of experience at custodians, wealthtech firms and RIAs. Composition Wealth has over $10 billion in assets and 125 employees.
McCartan said, “I was extremely precise and deliberate in choosing my next career opportunity. The firm’s straightforward, no-jargon culture and collaborative team approach for how financial advisors serve clients is refreshing.”
Mercer Advisors Names Lindsay O’Toole As SVP, Investment Platform Operations
Mercer Global Advisors (Mercer Advisors) appointed Lindsay O’Toole as Senior Vice President, Investment Platform Operations, in charge of over 90 professionals who are supporting advisory teams. In her new role, O’Toole will work with the firm’s Investment Committee and CIO Don Calcagni to advance its platform and improve investing experiences for clients and advisors.
O’Toole joined Mercer Advisors after more than 17 years at LPL Financial, where she most recently served as Senior Vice President of Trading, the firm said. Her earlier experience includes trading operations roles at Merrill Lynch. Mercer Advisors said the hire supports ongoing investment in people, technology and operational practices tied to its investment platform.
O’Toole said, “My career to date has been defined by a passion for ensuring client outcomes surpass expectations, and that’s what excites me most about joining a firm like Mercer Advisors.”
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