United Capital ‘Rolls Up’ Paragon Investment Management

Paragon has been ranked four consecutive years on the Barron's Top 100 Independent Financial Advisors list.

"By leveraging United Capital's platform, our office will be able to spend less time on the administrative, accounting and regulatory areas of running a financial advisory business and more time focused on the most important aspects of our client relationships," Burns said.

United Capital and its affiliates advise on $15 billion in assets and has 41 offices located around the country.

Pershing Advisor Solutions CEO Mark Tibergien noted last summer that 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.