Cetera inks deal for hybrid RIA Concourse Financial Group Securities

Cetera Financial Group is adding another notch to its broker-dealer acquisition record as a life insurance and annuities firm based in Alabama looks to focus on its core businesses.

On Tuesday, Cetera announced a definitive agreement to acquire Concourse Financial Group Securities, a subsidiary of Protective Life Corporation. The deal, expected to close in early 2025 pending regulatory approval, will see approximately 350 financial professionals from CFGS, overseeing $12 billion in AUA and $4 billion in AUM, transition to the Cetera Wealth Partners community.

Based in Birmingham, Alabama, CFGS operates as a dually registered broker-dealer and RIA. The acquisition represents a strategic move for Cetera, which has a history of integrating independent broker-dealers linked to insurance organizations.

Mike Durbin, who joined Cetera Holdings as CEO from Fidelity in May last year, emphasized the importance of this acquisition in the context of the broader industry.

"Cetera has a proven track record of acquiring and successfully integrating independent broker-dealers affiliated with insurance organizations, and Concourse Financial Group Securities represents a tremendous opportunity in today’s rapidly consolidating market," Durbin said in a statement Tuesday.

The gap between the haves and have-nots in the broker-dealer space has only widened in recent years. A recent report by Cerulli estimates 93 percent of BD assets are in the hands of the top 25 firms by AUM, while the top 10 largest BD firms have brought roughly three-fifths of advisors in the segment into their stable.

Durbin said his firm's latest deal will help align CFGS professionals within Cetera Wealth Partners while expanding the firm’s scale and creating new growth opportunities for CFGS advisors.

Meanwhile, Aaron Seurkamp, senior vice president and president of Protective’s Protection and Retirement division, highlighted how the deal aligns with its focus on core business areas.

"This transaction allows Protective to focus on our core competencies in the life insurance and annuity businesses, while enabling Concourse Financial Group Securities financial professionals and clients to benefit from Cetera’s industry-leading resources and support for today’s top advisors," Seurkamp said while emphasizing Cetera's "established success transitioning similar organizations to their platform.".

This is Cetera’s fourth acquisition of an insurance-affiliated broker-dealer in the last five years, a trend that has bolstered the firm’s scale and stature in the wealth management industry. Its previous deals include Securian Financial Group’s retail wealth business in 2023, Voya Financial Advisors’ independent planning channel in 2021, and Foresters Financial’s US brokerage and advisory business in 2019. 

Libet Anderson, president of CFGS, expressed optimism about the transition, citing shared goals between CFGS and Cetera.

"Cetera’s community architecture and proven succession solutions are a natural fit for our business, and we have a significant alignment of shared strategic objectives. We look forward to a bright future together with Cetera," Anderson said.