M&A is reshaping advisor expectations—and LPL’s playbook

The M&A market for advisors could move towards more minority investments for smaller-scale advisory firms with under $1 billion in assets, LPL’s SVP and head of business development strategy Jared Fingeret told InvestmentNews.

“I don't think there are many great options currently for those advisors to sell a minority stake or get some capital to go out and do something, whether it's hiring or acquiring or whatever it might be,” said Fingeret. “Advisors have limited options to sell a minority stake or access capital for growth—whether hiring or acquisitions,” said Fingeret. “It’s a challenge we’re focused on addressing.”

Fingeret explained that advisors with $3 billion to $5 billion in assets are more likely to currently have broader minority investment suitors. Some investors that frequently provide minority stakes to advisors include Joe Duran’s Rise Growth Partners, Merchant, Emigrant Partners, Constellation Wealth Capital, and Concurrent Investment Advisors.

The trend is shifting, however. Echelon's Q3 RIA M&A Deal Report shows the average AUM for minority investments dropped from $9.2 billion in Q2 2025 to $3 billion in Q3—a 68% decline.

Advisors have few options to monetize part of their business without giving up significant control,” said Fingeret. “Historically, debt has been the primary liquidity path for those unwilling to sell outright—a gap we’re focused on addressing.”

Sellers have become increasingly younger in the M&A market, as their reasons for being acquired have shifted beyond succession planning.

“I think we're seeing plenty of advisors that are earlier on in their careers selling to some of these sponsor-backed groups. I don't think that was the case 10 years ago. Most deals were driven by a desire for monetization for succession planning purposes, or monetization for de-risking your net worth as an advisor,” said Fingeret.

“Advisors that are under the age of 50 are having these conversations because they feel like multiples are the highest they've ever been, and they've been staying steady. Am I going to be stronger with a larger national type aggregator than without that firm? Can I grow with them and grow my own enterprise value?”

This article was produced in collaboration with LPL.

This material has been created and designed for licensed financial professionals.