The monthly WSRIA roundup brings you RIA-focused news for the past month. This edition covers MAI buying LOC Investment Advisers, Bluespring buying SHP Financial, ECHELON’s 2025 RIA M&A deal report, Summit’s merger with Premier Private Wealth, Waverly buying Pure Portfolios, CW Advisors buying Rovin Capital, Arax purchasing GFP Private Wealth, the launch of Aerodigm Wealth, Sowell Management naming Vincent Gimarelli as Chief Development Officer, Composition Wealth appointing Meghan McCartan as Chief Marketing Officer, F2 Strategy’s wealthtech report and Hamilton Lane’s private markets survey.
Mergers & Acquisitions
MAI Adds LOC Investment Advisers In West Virginia And Florida
MAI Capital Management acquired LOC Investment Advisers, a fee-only RIA with offices in Hurricane, West Virginia, and Jupiter, Florida, in a deal that closed on Feb. 13. LOC has about $759 million in assets under management (AUM).
Founded in 1981 by Robert O’Dell and David Lanham, LOC said it is the longest-tenured RIA operating in West Virginia. They will remain involved as the firm integrates into MAI. LOC Managing Director Sean Mayberry will take on the role of Senior Wealth Advisor and Team Leader, overseeing advisors and client relationships.
O’Dell said, “When Dave and I founded this firm more than four decades ago, our goal was to build something that would outlast us, and continue to serve families for generations. Partnering with MAI fulfills that vision.”
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.”
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.”
Summit Merges With Premier Private Wealth, Launches Family Office
Summit Wealth Group in Colorado Springs, Colorado, merges with Premier Private Wealth (PPW), a Nashville-based RIA that oversees $470 million in AUM. With this deal, the company launches Summit Wealth Group Family Office Services, which provides ultra-high net worth and high net worth clients with services like investment oversight, estate and wealth transfer planning, advanced tax planning, family governance, multi-generational engagement and education, philanthropy and legacy planning.
Founded in 2022, Summit oversees $3 billion in AUM. The merger follows additions to Summit’s executive team, including Scott Wilkinson as Chief Compliance Officer, Chelsea Ganey as Chief Investment Officer and Seamus O’Brien as Head of Advisor Success.
“Our clients have always been at the center of every decision we make,” said Randy Morris, CEO of Summit Wealth Group. “The merger with PPW strengthens our commitment to our clients by bringing on deeper knowledge, broader capabilities, and a shared vision for delivering an exceptional client experience.”
Waverly Acquires Pure Portfolios, Adds $437 Million In AUM
Waverly Advisors in Birmingham, Alabama, purchases Pure Portfolios, an RIA in Lake Oswego, Oregon, that oversees $437 million in AUM. The deal marks Waverly’s debut in Oregon.
Pure Portfolios is led by Nik Schuurmans, Founder, President and Chief Investment Officer and Toby Weber, Chief Financial Officer. Both executives join Waverly as Partners and Wealth Advisors. The entire Pure Portfolios team also joins the company.
“For a firm established within the last decade, Pure has demonstrated exceptional growth and built a strong presence in its regional market,” said Justin Russell, President and CEO of Waverly. “The professionalism, discipline and intentional approach Nik, Toby and their team bring to the business are exactly the qualities Waverly looks for in new partners.”
CW Advisors Buys Rovin Capital, Establishes First Utah Office And Second Arizona Office
Boston-based CW Advisors (CWA) acquires Rovin Capital, an RIA that oversees $849 million in assets under management and advisement. Rovin operates offices in Lehi, Utah, and Mesa, Arizona.
The deal marks CWA’s second acquisition since Osaic purchased the company last August. It operates 23 offices nationwide, employs more than 160 professionals and oversees more than $16 billion in AUM.
“We are excited to welcome the Rovin team to CW Advisors,” said Scott Dell’Orfano, CEO of CWA. “Like CWA, delivering a superior client experience is their top priority. Their unwavering commitment to exceptional customer service along with their history of robust growth, make them a perfect complement to our firm.”
Arax Acquires GFP Private Wealth, Adds $1.5 Billion In AUM
Arax Investment Partners purchases GFP Private Wealth, a Cleveland-based RIA that oversees $1.5 billion in AUM. GFP will join Arax Advisory Partners, Arax’s Denver-based RIA.
Led by Carina Diamond, GFP serves high net worth individuals, families and institutions. Sally Gries founded the company in 1978 as Ohio’s first wholly woman-owned RIA, according to a news release. Colchester Partners served as financial advisor to GFP Private Wealth on this transaction.
“GFP Private Wealth has built a legacy of trust, quality and principled leadership,” said Haig Ariyan, CEO of Arax Investment Partners. “That legacy, which continues today, aligns perfectly with Arax’s values. We are excited to partner with GFP as the team continues to deliver enduring impact for clients across generations.”
Advisor Transactions
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 AUM 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.”
Promotions & People Moves
Sowell Names First Chief Development Officer
Sowell Management named Vincent Gimarelli as its first Chief Development Officer, reporting to newly appointed CEO Daryl Seaton. The Little Rock, Arkansas-based RIA said Gimarelli will lead growth strategy across business development, organic advisor recruiting, investment management growth and distribution, strategic relationships and M&A initiatives.
Gimarelli previously served as AssetMark Institutional Sales and Consulting Director. The firm said the role is designed to align business development and partnerships with longer-term expansion efforts.
Seaton said, “Vince’s more than three decades of experience will be an invaluable asset to Sowell as we embark on the next phase of our growth. We will leverage that expertise as we continue to drive scalable growth, strengthen enterprise partnerships, and align development efforts with our long-term vision and advisor-first philosophy.”
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.”
Research
F2 Outlook: Successful Technology Adoption Increasingly Important In Wealth Management
In wealth management, the line between winners and losers is increasingly defined by success in technology deployment, according to F2 Strategy. For its 2026 Wealthtech Outlook Report, the firm surveyed CTOs, COOs and CEOs at 85 RIAs, wealth managers, broker-dealers and asset managers on the topics of alternative assets, AI, custody and organic growth.
On alts, F2 noted that despite huge growth in the space, only 50% of firms use third-party technology tools to manage alternative investments. F2 recommends deploying tech to automate illiquid assets and speed ownership and reporting. F2 also noted that while 23% more firms year-over-year report using AI for daily tasks, savings on cost and time don’t necessarily translate to organic growth. In addition, F2 found that RIAs have adopted AI technologies at a faster rate than bank-based advisors.
“Under the backdrop of economic uncertainty, we’ll reach a moment when it becomes clear who built great technology. Market volatility will showcase those who’ve done it right,” said Doug Fritz, Co-Founder and Executive Chairman at F2 Strategy. “For our industry to be successful, we need to see broader adoption of technology to manage the growing alternative investments allocations and to power marketing engines because far too many firms are relying heavily on M&A to grow.”
Hamilton Lane: Private Market Investing To Soar In 2026
Interest in private market investments will soar this year, according to a global survey of RIAs and other wealth management professionals from Hamilton Lane. Eighty-six percent of the 390 wealth professionals surveyed by Hamilton Lane, in partnership with Wakefield Research, intend to increase their private market allocations this year, the firm said in “Focus: 2026 Global Private Wealth Survey.” Eighty-three percent of respondents said they saw private market risk versus reward as similar to, or reward as higher than, that of public markets.
A whopping 97% of private wealth professionals surveyed allocated 1% to 20% of their books of business to private markets at the time of the survey and most of them said they expected those allocations to grow in 2026, according to Hamilton Lane. Those allocations were private equity at 19%, private real estate at 18%, private credit at 16%, venture capital and growth at 16% and private infrastructure at 15%.
“This year highlighted a shift among private wealth investors and their advisors toward building more resilient portfolios, and the findings reflect what we’re hearing in the market today: private markets are viewed through a more nuanced risk‑reward lens than in the past,” said Beth Nardi, Head of U.S. Private Wealth at Hamilton Lane. “As we look across strategies, Venture Capital & Growth stands out as investors seek access to innovative, high-growth private companies, many of which are not available in the public markets.”
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