Cerity Partners strikes upper-high-net-worth deal

Chicago-based RIA Cerity Partners is bolstering its profile with a key private wealth segment as it inks a merger with Denver-based Agility, known for its outsourced chief investment officer services.

This collaboration aims to extend Cerity Partners' service portfolio, notably to nonprofit entities, ultra-high-net-worth individuals, and family offices. Once sealed, the deal will see the firm manage roughly $100 billion in client assets, it says.

Agility, previously under Perella Weinberg Partners Capital Management, specializes in providing outsourced chief investment officer solutions to a diverse clientele, including endowments and foundations, as well as health care organizations.

Post-merger, it will become Cerity Partners OCIO, integrating its seasoned investment professionals and its acclaimed OCIO practice with Cerity Partners' extensive wealth management services.

In the aftermath of the deal, Agility's investment team will also establish an OCIO investment committee within Cerity Partners.

While the OCIO industry has seen a nine percent decline in AUM from its year-end 2021 record, the space is expected to grow 16 percent within the private wealth universe through the end of 2027 as firms seek to provide a more institutional-caliber experience, according to a February report by Cerulli.

Kurt Miscinski, CEO of Cerity Partners, hailed the partnership as a strategic move.

“We are thrilled to welcome the Agility team, which brings nearly two decades of experience and unparalleled expertise in serving nonprofit organizations, businesses and ultra-high-net-worth clientele," Miscinski said in Monday’s statement announcing the merger.

From Agility's perspective, the merger represents an opportunity to extend the successful strategy it executed under its previous firm.

"We are excited to join Cerity Partners and look forward to building upon the success that we had within Perella Weinberg Partners Capital Management for the last 17 years," said Chris Bittman, partner, CEO, and chief investment officer at Agility.

Bittman sees both continuity and positive change ahead for Agility, which he said “will preserve the elements of our investment research … while benefiting from the additional scale and services that Cerity Partners can provide.”