Billionaire Nicholas Schorsch and other managers at RCS Capital Corp. (RCAP) know how to get mergers and acquisitions done before the long Martin Luther King Day weekend.
The group announced plans to buy the independent broker-dealer J.P. Turner of Atlanta for $27 million, one day after reporting plans to buy Cetera Financial Group for $1.15 billion.
J.P. Turner has about 400 financial advisors and 50 insurance agents, according to the latest Investment Advisor survey, vs. 6,600 advisors at Cetera.
The deal "represents another important step in realizing RCAP's strategic vision to become the leading financial-services firm focused on the direct-investment sector," Schorsch, who is executive chairman of RCAP, said in the statement.
Industry observers generally agree, but point out such growth does involve some conflicting business interests that can get "tricky" at times.
"This reminds me of a quote from Eric Schwartz, chairman and CEO of Cambridge Investment Research," said recruiter Jonathan Henschen, in an interview with ThinkAdvisor.
"Schwartz said in the past, 'The independent space is going to look different in 15 years, when there are going to be seven or eight firms that control 90% of the space.' That quote will need to be modified to 90% of the independent space will be controlled by Schorsch!"
