RIA Deals for 2021 Have Already Surpassed 2020 Total: DeVoe

News September 27, 2021 at 04:38 PM

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With 95 days left in the year, RIA merger-and-acquisition activity has eclipsed the 2020 full-year activity of 159 transactions, Devoe & Co. reported Monday. This new high-water mark makes 2021 the eighth consecutive record year of RIA M&A activity.

The third quarter will also hit a record high. With 59 transactions and a couple of days to go, the July-to-September period has surpassed the record 58 transactions in a quarter set in the first quarter of this year.

DeVoe & Co. noted that a new pattern of quarters with more than 50 transactions is starting to emerge, replacing the previous normal of 40 or more transactions.

"The amount of M&A activity and interest in transactions among advisors is truly unprecedented," David DeVoe, the firm's founder and chief executive, said in a statement. "High valuations, a newfound focus on solving succession and achieving scale, and concerns about looming tax increases are driving an acceleration of external sales."

DeVoe & Co. also reminded RIAs that its fifth annual M&A+ Succession Summit will take place Oct. 28 and 29 in San Francisco. Among the speakers will be senior executives of Charles Schwab, Beacon Pointe Advisors, Mercer Advisors, BNY Mellon | Pershing and Dimensional Advisors.

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