Focus Financial Names New CEO

Focus Financial Partners has named Michael Nathanson as its new CEO. Nathanson, who’s been serving as the firm’s president since February, takes the reins from interim CEO Dan Glaser and will remain head of The Colony Group, an affiliated RIA. 

Glaser — tapped to lead the firm after founder and then-CEO Rudy Adolf stepped down in October — will serve as executive chair of the board; he is also an operating partner at Focus’ majority investment investor Clayton, Dubilier & Rice, which bought Focus for $7 billion last year.

Nathanson is “an exceptional leader in our industry, having grown The Colony Group into one of the largest and best-known firms in the independent space,” Glaser said in a statement.

He added that Nathanson has “been instrumental in executing our evolved strategy, delivering strong momentum on Focus’ hub expansion, setting our go-forward strategic vision, and identifying opportunities for collaboration across our business.”

In 2004, Nathanson joined The Colony Group — which had assets of $21.5 billion in December — as its CFO and general counsel, after working for nearly 13 years at the law firm Hale and Dorr; he became CEO of the RIA in 2006. Earlier, he earned a law degree from Harvard University and a master’s of law in taxation from Boston University.