Merchant's FinLink taps Rafa.ai in professional matchmaking partnership

FinLink, the networking and growth platform for RIAs, broker-dealers, and other financial professionals, has announced a partnership to rebuild its platform as an AI-native marketplace aimed at helping advisors find deals, recruits and career opportunities — not just connections that go nowhere.

Its new strategic partnership with Rafa.ai will turn what began as a directory into what it describes as a networked operating system. The rebuilt platform is expected to use artificial intelligence across matchmaking, valuations, M&A simulations and talent sourcing to drive measurable revenue and career outcomes for users.

The platform formerly known as Succession Link, which is now majority controlled by Merchant Investment Management, is pitching the move as an answer to what it calls “graveyard” professional networks in financial services, where advisors create profiles and then rarely see new business or relevant introductions. Instead of relying on manual filters and static listings, the upgraded marketplace is meant to function more like an AI intermediary that continuously evaluates and routes opportunities.

“FinLink has always connected financial professionals. With Rafa.ai, we’re adding the intelligence that turns those connections into transactions,” Nicholas Gudz, co-founder of FinLink, said in a statement. “Advisors don’t need another tool. They need a platform that directly grows their AUM, reduces their costs, and makes their next deal happen faster.”

For advisors and firms, the partnership is slated to show up in several workflows. FinLink says its AI-driven matching engine will assess firm profiles, growth priorities, geography, culture, and economic fit to surface introductions that are more likely to result in deals. Merger and acquisition tools will let firms model post-transaction scenarios, analyze synergies and see how changes in revenue, staffing and expenses could affect enterprise value.

The company is also leaning into recruiting and succession planning. FinLink plans to roll out an AI-enhanced business directory alongside a revamped jobs marketplace focused on wealth management and financial services roles. Employers will be able to post openings and use intelligent matching to identify candidates aligned with their needs, while advisors and other professionals get a clearer view of opportunities that match their experience and goals.

“This will be the only place our industry comes to source talent built specifically for financial services,” said John Mikhaylov, chief operating officer of FinLink. Compared to generic job boards that “don’t understand the nuances of advisory firms, compliance-driven roles, or career paths in wealth management,” he said FinLink’s marketplace is “purpose-built for this ecosystem.”

Rafa.ai’s role in the partnership reflects a broader pivot from its founding mission. Built by a team of ex-Nvidia AI engineers, the business began life as RAFA, an AI-powered investing copilot launched in 2024 by fintech infrastructure provider Portal, aimed at retail investors across traditional and crypto markets.

Today the firm has a RAFA Pro offering, which its LinkedIn page holds out as an “Agentic Operating Platform” for wealth management firms, designed to unify client notes, portfolios, market data and documents into a single AI-driven command center.

“Networks like FinLink sit on massive, untapped potential,” said Chandra Duggirala, chief executive of Rafa.ai. With generative AI, he said, the company aims to “transform every interaction into a delightful and economically meaningful event: matching, valuation, hiring, M&A, while dramatically reducing the friction and cost of each.”