Wealth.com has entered into a new strategic partnership in the RIA industry, this time with Merit Financial Advisors, a national wealth management firm that supports both the independent broker-dealer and RIA models.
Based in Atlanta, Merit has over 40 offices and manages nearly $12 billion in assets. While it specializes in high- and ultra-high-net-worth clients and their families, it also serves families further down market.
Wealth.com’s co-founder and chief partnership officer, Matt White, said the collaboration represents another step forward in the firm's effort to bring estate planning resources to more advisors and their clients across the United States.
“The partnership provides Merit advisors with advanced estate planning digital resources, enabling them to more fully service their clients and enhance their practices,” White said in an interview with ThinkAdvisor. “A partnership like this is also further validation of the work we are doing to expand our platform and deliver estate planning services that advisors want and need.”
The Merit partnership follows other recent announcements from Wealth.com, including a strategic investment from Edward Jones, the closing of its Series A funding round and new backing from Google Ventures.
“This collaboration will allow Merit’s advisors to unlock new opportunities, deepen client relationships and create long-term value with a modern, tech-forward approach to estate planning,” White added.
Joe Cilley, head of financial planning at Merit Financial Advisors, added in a statement that Merit’s mission is to enrich the lives of those the firm serves and to create “the ultimate client experience.”
“Integrating with Wealth.com enhances our ability to deliver on that mission by equipping our advisors with an industry-leading digital tool that simplifies estate planning and helps families to secure their legacies,” Cilley said.
An Expanding Offering
Wealth.com is competing effectively on the current strength of its platform, White said, but the vision is to “keep pushing forward in the years ahead” in terms of new services and greater support for advisors.
“How we can ensure that vision is successful is by continuing to invest in scalable technology, but we also need to provide support via deep legal expertise and an internal team that enables advisors to deliver their services efficiently and with confidence across a diverse client base,” White said. “Our vision also fits in with the growing demand for holistic financial planning.”
White noted that Wealth.com is hiring human experts while also deploying capital toward the development of artificial intelligence tools and other tech-based capabilities.
