The M&A announcements are coming fast and furious to round out a very busy 2025.
This week, Wealth Enhancement acquired a registered investment advisor with a broker/dealer managing $2.2 billion in assets, Dynasty Financial Partners firm Procyon acquired a $500 million RIA in Michigan and Texas, and a doctor and healthcare professional-focused practice, Earned, acquired an Ohio RIA managing $900 million.
Those were just some of the deals booked this week. Below are more notable ones across the financial advice industry.
Lido Acquires $500M RIA in Home State of California
Lido Advisors, the acquisitive Los Angeles-based RIA that has grown to $38 billion in assets under management, has acquired Stuart Chaussée & Associates, a family-run wealth management firm based in Palos Verdes, Calif.
Stuart Chaussée is a fee-only firm founded in 1997, managing over $500 million in assets for high-net-worth clients. Stuart Chaussée runs the firm, which includes his son, an associate financial advisor.
Brightstar Law Group advised Stuart Chaussée on the deal, and Sidley Austin LLP advised Lido.
Lido is owned by a combination of employees and investors, Charlesbank Capital Partners, HPS Investment Partners and Constellation Wealth Capital.
401(k) Provider Vestwell Acquires 30,000 Retirement Plans from Guideline
Vestwell, a New York-based retirement plan and solutions provider, has agreed to acquire Accrue 401k, an entity formed after Gusto acquired the retirement plan business of Guideline 401(k).
Through the deal, Vestwell will add about 30,000 retirement plans and 350,000 plan participants to its platform. The additions will mean more plans to sync with its partners across payroll, financial services, and government savings programs.
Payroll human resources software firm Gusto initially acquired the plans in August, but they were not incorporated into its new 401(k) plan platform, according to the announcement from Vestwell. Guideline stated at the time of its sale that it was working with over 1 million savers.
Once the deal is complete, Vestwell will be the retirement plan platform for Accrue 401(k) clients who access their plans through payroll providers that are not Gusto, with Vestwell firms ranging from Intuit QuickBooks to Rippling to Paylocity, among others.
“Payroll connectivity is the foundation for workplace savings,” Aaron Schumm, founder and CEO of Vestwell, said in a statement. “Automatic integrations ensure employees can save effortlessly, and employers can offer instrumental benefits without added complexity.”
Guideline was started in 2015 as one of the first online 401(k) plan providers seeking to compete with legacy record keepers. Vestwell entered as a competitor in 2016.
MAI Capital Lands $527M Maryland-based RIA
MAI Capital Management, a Cleveland-based RIA that has more than doubled its assets under management and advisement this year to $69 billion, announced the acquisition of Lowe Wealth Advisors, an RIA based in Columbia, Md., serving approximately 470 households.
Lowe Wealth Advisors was formed in 1980 by Harold Lowe and two colleagues who were focused on fee-based financial planning. Harold’s son, Gregoy Lowe, joined in 1994 and is now vice president, chief compliance officer and chief operating officer.
Harold and Gregory Lowe will be senior managing directors at MAI, with the firm and its seven other employees taking on the MAI brand and gaining access to its network of human resources, operations, technology and marketing functions.
The RIA builds out MAI’s presence in the Baltimore area, while bringing a specialization in both ultra-high-net-worth families and small business owners, as well as medical and trauma care professionals, which provide financial planning that includes estate focus.
Lowe Wealth Management is MAI’s 19th acquisition since January 2024. The RIA is owned by Galway Holdings, its employees and minority investor Wealth Partners Capital Group.
Mercer Buys Oregon-based RIA
Mercer Global Advisors, an acquisitive Denver-based RIA, announced a second deal in December with the purchase of Thompson Advisory Services, a Portland, Ore.-based RIA managing approximately $260 million in client assets.
Troy Thompson founded the firm in 2009 to provide clients with investment management, financial and estate planning, insurance, tax strategies, and tax preparation services. The firm works with over 90 families via a four-person team that will join Mercer and take on the national RIA’s name.
“Portland is a key market for Mercer Advisors as we continue to expand our presence in the Northwest,” said Jessica Caruso, executive managing director at Mercer. “Troy and his team embody the fiduciary, planning-first philosophy we value in every partnership, and we’re excited to welcome them to Mercer Advisors.”
Mercer Advisors is the parent company of Mercer Global Advisors and is majority owned by Oak Hill Capital, Genstar Capital and Altas Partners, with employees holding the remaining equity. It has grown to over 1,400 employees and $90 billion in client assets since its founding in 1985.
