This edition of the WSRIA Roundup covers Corient acquiring Palo Alto Wealth Advisors, Berkshire and DeVoe reporting record M&A for 2025, Choreo’s two Pennsylvania acquisitions, Cetera’s purchase of Darnall Sykes, Beacon Pointe buying Litman Gregory, Creative Planning acquiring Baseline Wealth, Elevation Point staking Forta Wealth, Farmers launching an RIA, World appoints a CFO, Hightower names a Chief Compliance Officer and Sowell names a CEO.
EDITOR IN CHIEF’S TAKE:
This is the first installment of a newly launched roundup – the WSRIA Roundup – bringing all the top RIA stories of the past month into one convenient place. Let us know what you think.
– Julius Buchanan, Editor in Chief, Wealth Solutions Report
Mergers & Acquisitions
Corient Acquires $766.7 Million Palo Alto Wealth Advisors
Miami-based Corient acquires Palo Alto Wealth Advisors, an RIA with $766.7 million in assets under management (AUM). Palo Alto Founders Ryan Schmidt and Nate Blair join Corient, together with their team.
Palo Alto is a Silicon Valley advisory firm serving ultra-high and high net worth technology entrepreneurs and their families. Corient, founded in 2020, operates under a fee-only structure and a private partnership model. It had more than 260 partners and approximately $218 billion in client assets as of Sept. 30.
“Corient has deep expertise serving founders and entrepreneurs, including a substantial number of technology leaders,” said Kurt MacAlpine, Partner and CEO of Corient. “The Palo Alto team shares that focus and brings additional depth that strengthens our leadership in the space.”
Berkshire Global: U.S. RIA Deal Volume Sets Record In 2025
According to a report from Berkshire Global Advisors, 2025 was the most active year on record for U.S. wealth management M&A, with 349 transactions involving RIAs with more than $100 million in AUM, much higher than 2024’s 276 deals. U.S. activity rose 26% year over year, peaking in the third quarter with 102 deals, while dealmaking “shows no signs of slowing,” the firm said.
Despite that, the firm reported that the median acquired RIA size decreased to $597 million from $609 million in 2024 and RIAs with $500 million or less represented 44% of transactions.
Berkshire said strategic acquisitions accounted for 85% of U.S. deal activity, while financings, minority investments and recapitalizations accounted for 15%. It also said 2025 included 12 recapitalizations among platforms with at least $10 billion in AUM.
On drivers, the report said internal successions have become harder to execute as RIA valuations have climbed, so that selling to an external buyer rather than to younger advisors has become the most practical path for many firms. It also said client expectations and the need for scale are influencing consolidation, including through broader service offerings and technology investments.
Choreo To Acquire $1.3 Billion Pennsylvania-Based RIAs
Choreo agreed to acquire Northeast Financial Group in Allentown, Pennsylvania, and Herbein Financial Group in Reading, Pennsylvania, two RIAs overseeing $1.3 billion in combined client assets, with the Chicago-based firm adding a total of six financial advisors and six staff members.
Northeast Financial and accounting firm Herbein LLP formed Herbein Financial Group as a joint venture a little more than two years ago, and both advisory firms are led by Josh Laychock.
Choreo CEO Jason Van de Loo explained that Northeast Financial and Herbein Financial “share our focus on business builders and the real-world planning work that comes with running a company, building wealth and preparing for what’s next. Together, we’ll be able to bring clients more depth, coordination and support without losing the local relationships that matter.”
DeVoe: 2025 Set RIA M&A Record As Buyer Pool Narrowed
DeVoe & Company’s fourth quarter RIA Deal Book showed 322 RIA M&A transactions announced in 2025, up 18% from 272 in 2024. The number of sellers increased 18%, while the number of buyers fell 19%. The report also said first-time buyers represented 8% of transactions last year, the lowest share on record.
The firm said typical first-time buyers are established RIAs making their first transaction, and he said a growing pool of acquirers is needed to absorb a growing cohort of retiring advisors. The report attributed elevated deal activity to multiple forces, including succession pressure, scale dynamics and private equity-backed consolidators increasing outreach.
David DeVoe, Founder and CEO of DeVoe & Company, said, “The drop in the number of buyers was a surprise. This is another potential step toward the separation we have started to see between the ‘haves’ and ‘have nots’,” as a smaller group of buyers wins more transactions.
Cetera Acquires $1.9 Billion Darnall Sikes Wealth Partners
Cetera acquired the wealth management business of Louisiana-based Darnall Sikes Wealth Partners, which held approximately $1.9 billion in assets as of Oct. 31. Darnall Sikes was already affiliated with Cetera firm Avantax, and will now be part of Avantax Planning Partners.
This transaction was under Cetera’s RIA and Branches channel, which was launched in June. An affiliated CPA firm, Darnall Sikes & Frederick, remains independent but maintains a partnership with Cetera.
“This strategic partnership with Cetera brings clear and compelling benefits to our team, our shared clients, and the long-term growth of our business,” said John P. Armato, President of Darnall Sikes & Frederick. “This next chapter reflects our shared commitment to putting clients first, and we are confident that expanding our collaboration with Cetera provides a strong foundation for the future.”
Beacon Pointe Acquires Litman Gregory, Adds $2.7 Billion In Client Assets
Beacon Pointe Advisors buys Litman Gregory Wealth Management, an RIA in Northern California that oversees $2.7 billion in client assets. The deal closed Dec. 31.
Litman, which operates offices in Larkspur and Walnut Creek, California, and St. Louis, specializes in financial scenario analysis, tax strategy, estate and legacy planning, philanthropy and risk management. The transaction pushes Beacon Pointe’s total client assets under advisement to $61 billion and marks the firm’s entry into Missouri.
Piper Sandler served as financial advisor and Seward & Kissel as legal advisor to Litman Gregory.
“We’re proud to welcome an exceptional team whose experience and client-first approach strengthen our firm,” said Beacon Pointe CEO Shannon Eusey. “Their alignment with our platform and institutional-quality investing approach reflects a strong cultural fit and a continued focus on delivering a personalized, relationship-driven client experience.”
Creative Planning Acquires Swiss RIA Baseline Wealth, Adds $1 Billion In AUM
Creative Planning buys Baseline Wealth Management in Switzerland, its first international acquisition. The SEC-registered RIA, which operates offices in Geneva and Zurich, oversees $1 billion in AUM.
Baseline serves high net worth individuals worldwide, including entrepreneurs, professional athletes and other established professionals. Creative Planning first started to eye the international market with its purchase of Thun Financial Advisors in 2020, an advisory firm that focused on serving Americans living abroad.
“We’re absolutely thrilled to have Baseline join Creative Planning for our initial expansion into Europe,” said Creative Planning President and CEO Peter Mallouk. “We’ve long recognized the large international demand for Creative Planning’s unique financial planning model. In addition to Baseline’s extensive experience serving international and U.S. clients, they also share our core values of integrity, transparency and a strong fiduciary responsibility to clients.”
Elevation Point Stakes $900 Million Forta Wealth
Minneapolis-based Elevation Point announces a minority investment in Forta Wealth Partners of Indianapolis, an advisory team with over $900 million in assets under supervision. The team, led by Principal and Wealth Advisor Will Turner, was previously with Merrill Lynch Wealth Management under the name The Turner Group.
The Forta team includes: Principals and Wealth Advisors Jon Shurtz and Harrison “Taylor” McDougal, Client Services Associate Brandon Marvel, Manager of Team and Client Services Holly Hynes, and Financial Advisor Madeline Armstrong. Elevation Point is a minority stakes partner for advisory firms that was founded 19 months ago. It has strategic investments in wealth management teams with approximately $11.9 billion in assets under supervision, the firm said.
“I’ve had the privilege of knowing Will since he started at Merrill Lynch, and I’ve witnessed firsthand his growth and the incredible team he has built,” said Jim Dickson, Founding Partner and CEO of Elevation Point. “Will, Jon, Taylor, and their colleagues bring deep, wide-ranging expertise and more than 60 years of combined experience. As a youthful, seasoned team with a relentless drive to exceed client expectations and continuously evolve, they represent the future of wealth management.”
Advisor Transactions
Farmers Launches RIA Farmers Asset Management
Farmers launched the full-service RIA Farmers Asset Management (FAM) as part of the Farmers Insurance Group of Companies. The RIA is expected to offer clients wealth management services along with its traditional investment and insurance services. FAM selected Charles Schwab for custody and clearing, and Orion for support with technology, planning, outsourced chief investment officer services and investment platforms.
Farmers has offered wealth management services through Farmers Financial Solutions for more than 25 years. The broker-dealer includes more than 2,500 registered representatives and oversees more than $10 billion in assets.
“We are building a full spectrum of financial offerings because investment management and insurance drive mutual growth and help customers with a broad array of financial needs,” said Zachary Schear, President of FAM, and President and CEO of Farmers Financial Solutions. “Farmers Asset Management, LLC is a modern wealth management firm designed to provide clients a wide array of fee-based financial planning and investment services.”
Promotions & People Moves
World Investment Advisors Hires Osaic’s Tyler Mahoney As CFO
World Investment Advisors announces Tyler Mahoney joined the firm as Chief Financial Officer. In this role, she will manage the firm’s financial strategy, capital planning and operating discipline to support growth and acquisitions.
Before joining World, Mahoney was Senior Vice President of Channel Strategy and Operations at Osaic. Prior to that, she served as CFO at Lincoln Financial Network, where she managed M&A activities among other duties.
“Tyler’s proven experience in transformation, M&A and strategic finance makes her an exceptional addition to our leadership team,” said Ed Walters, President of World. “Her ability to connect financial insights to vision and execution will be instrumental as we continue to grow.”
Hightower Hires Chief Compliance Officer From Edelman
Chicago-based Hightower appoints Bob Lavigne as Chief Compliance Officer (CCO) for Hightower Holdings, in charge of the firm’s enterprise-wide compliance program, regulatory strategy and risk governance for the firm’s community of advisors. He will report to CEO Larry Restieri.
Lavigne arrives at Hightower with almost 30 years of senior compliance and regulatory leadership experience in wealth management, including the design of scalable compliance programs, implementation of technology-driven oversight tools and partnering with advisors to support transparency and fiduciary excellence. Before joining Hightower, Lavigne served as Vice President and Chief Compliance Officer at Edelman Financial Engines since April 2023, according to his LinkedIn profile.
“Bob is an accomplished leader whose experience, judgment and collaborative approach make him well suited for Hightower’s continued growth,” Restieri said. “His work helping advisors navigate an increasingly dynamic regulatory environment aligns with our intention to modernize our compliance program.”
Sowell Management Names Daryl Seaton As CEO
Little Rock, Arkansas-based Sowell Management names Daryl Seaton as CEO. Seaton joined the firm in 2020, first as Chief Operating Officer, then becoming President in 2023. With over 25 years of experience in financial services, Seaton began his career at New York Life, where he rose to the rank of Senior Partner. He later founded Solera Asset Managers and had an eight-year advisor relationship with Sowell Management.
Firm Founder Bill Sowell becomes Chief Strategy Officer, with a focus on long-term strategic and inorganic growth, including mergers and acquisitions. In 1995, he founded a firm that later became Sowell Management. It was one of the industry’s first fee-based practices, according to the firm. It had over $6 billion in assets under management and advisement as of September.
“Daryl is a natural leader and an enthusiastic champion of the culture we established at Sowell since founding the company,” said Sowell. “This is a thoughtful evolution in our leadership, one that Daryl and I have been intentionally working toward over the past several years.”
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