Distribution matters. Without effectively connecting fitting products and services to the needs of advisors and their clients, the industry cannot function, much less advance. That layer of connection that finds the right solutions for advisors and brings them to life is empowered by skilled experts who carefully craft and drive distribution strategy and process. This week, we honor the top distribution strategists serving the wealth management space.
We also bring you our Deals & Recruiting Roundup, my quarterly review of the wealthtech space, expert views on the standardization of tech stacks, Mubadala Capital taking Corient parent CI Financial private, Avantax’s latest recruit, Perigon’s new executives and F2’s new CEO.
Deals & Recruiting Roundup: This edition of the Deals & Recruiting Roundup covers CI Financial agreeing to go private, Constellation Wealth Capital investing in Cresset, Modera acquiring Bay Point Wealth, Mercer acquiring Frango Financial, Equitable recruiting Christoper Comer and Andrew Minker, Avantax recruiting Andrew Erickson, a donation establishing the Langston Wealth Management Center at UT Austin, Perigon hiring Jonathan Robbins as General Counsel and CCO and Michael Mignosi as Director of Organic Growth, PNC hiring Brendan Krebs as Wealth Advisor team leader, Bank of America recruiting Phillip Edwards and Lauren Stuhmer from Citi, and UBS recruiting four advisors from Citi and Wells Fargo.
And the winners are: We honor the inaugural DS 5: Top Wealth Management Distribution Strategists: Ronice Barlow, SVP, Senior Strategic Sales Director at Franklin Templeton; Alaina Giampapa, SVP, National Sales Manager at Natixis; Cliff Jack, President and CEO at AuguStar Retirement; Karen Lutomski, SMD, Co-Head US Wealth Advisory Sales at Nuveen; and Matt Matrisian, Head of Client Growth at AssetMark.
Standardizing tech stacks: Jaci Stanton, Managing Director at F2 Strategy; Jodie Papike, President of Cross-Search; Colleen Bell, President, Innovation and Experience at Cambridge Investment Research; and Emily Blue, Co-Founder of Hue Partners, discuss the reasons for the trend of large firms moving toward standardized tech stacks, the benefits of this trend and what the future may hold.
Starting a wealthtech: For my quarterly wealthtech review, I gathered direct insights from Brendan Falls, EVP and Chief Growth Officer at GeoWealth; Sid Yenamandra, Founder and CEO of Surge Ventures; Ryan George, Chief Marketing Officer at Docupace ; and Dan Johnson, Managing Director at F2 Strategy, on how to build a wealthtech firm from the ground up – and adapt it for changing market conditions.
Canadian acquisition: Corient parent CI Financial agreed with an affiliate of Mubadala Capital, the alternative asset management division of Abu Dhabi-owned Mubadala Investment Company, to take CI private in a transaction valued at about Canadian $4.7 billion. The deal is expected to close in the second quarter of 2025. CI Financial’s CEO Kurt MacAlpine and Lead Director William E. Butt commented, along with Mubadala’s Managing Director and CEO Hani Barhoush and CIO Oscar Falhgren.
Illinois recruit: Avantax recruited Andrew Erickson, Founder of Park Ridge, Illinois-based ClearGuide Wealth, with $143 million in client assets, from Edward Jones. Erickson and Laurie Stack, Vice President of Business Development at Avantax, provided comments.
Expanding executive bench: Perigon Wealth Management hired Jonathan Robbins as General Counsel and Chief Compliance Officer, and Michael Mignosi in the newly created role of Director of Organic Growth. Robbins and Perigon CEO Arthur Ambarik commented.
New CEO: Former Orion executive Ryan Beach is appointed CEO of F2 Strategy, while Doug Fritz transitions to Executive Chairman. Fritz, Beach and Lee Minkoff, Managing Director at F2’s majority owner Renovus Capital Partners, commented.
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Larry Roth
CEO
Wealth Solutions Report
