The $1.6 billion Pinnacle Advisory Group has acquired the $200 million Enrichment Group, a Miami-based RIA.
Pinnacle is a private wealth management firm headquartered in Columbia, Maryland.
According to Michael Kitces, Pinnacle's director of financial planning research and a partner with the firm, the acquisition combines two very like-minded business cultures.
"We've always been aware of each other and that we have a lot of similarities," Kitces said in a phone call with ThinkAdvisor, adding, "Both of us are very deep on financial planning for our clients. There was just a natural affinity of the cultures of the two firms, which made it very easy to come together."
The Enrichment Group's similar philosophy on financial planning along with its tactical investment management process made the acquisition process "much, much easier," Kitces said.
"There are a lot of RIAs out there, but there are only a limited number that really combine together the investment management process and the financial planning offering to clients," Kitces said in a phone call. "So it's always exciting to us to find a firm that aligns to our own views about … really doing financial planning for clients. It's a great fit and opportunity."
Both Kathleen Day, CEO and founder of The Enrichment Group, and her husband, Pat Day, vice president of The Enrichment Group, expressed similar sentiments.
"[W]e had to find a merger partner that we knew would share our approach and continue our work," Pat Day said in a statement. "We were looking for an ethics-driven firm with high client engagement, a focus on financial planning, and strong investment management. In Pinnacle we found that firm."
