Focus Financial Partners, one of the largest partnerships of independent wealth management firms, announced Monday the acquisition of Seattle-based registered investment advisor Merriman LLC.
Merriman is a leading fee-only wealth management firm in the Pacific Northwest, with more than $1.5 billion in client assets. The transaction boosts Focus Financial to almost $60 billion in client assets, reinforcing the company's continued growth. The deal went into effect on Dec. 31.
The acquired company serves more than 2,000 clients in 49 states, with the majority concentrated in the Pacific Northwest. Founded by Paul Merriman in 1983, it offers comprehensive wealth management, including financial planning and investing, retirement, insurance, estate/wealth transfer, income tax and charitable giving strategies. Merriman has 36 employees, nine of whom are financial advisors, and the partnership is expected to allow the advisors to take a larger stake in the company.
According to Pershing Advisor Solutions CEO Mark Tibergien, more such RIA M&A activity can be expected, to the point where the entire RIA industry may come to resemble the accounting firm landscape of large national firms, then smaller regional firms, local practices with multiple partners and solo practitioners.
"This emergence of the elite ensemble firms, like an Aspiriant or an Oxford—Focus Financial Partners or United Capital or HighTower could fit into this category"—will have a structure like independent broker-dealers, though their business models are much different, Tibergien said in August.
