CI Financial buys 19th U.S. RIA in 18 months

Toronto-based RIA aggregator CI Financial marked its 19^th deal in the United States Monday with the announcement of the acquisition of Radnor Financial Advisors, a Wayne, Pennsylvania-based firm with $2.6 billion under management.

The acquisition pushes CI’s total U.S. RIA assets to approximately $68 billion.

The transaction is expected to close in the third quarter. Terms of the transaction weren't disclosed.

CI, which made its first U.S. acquisition in January 2020, is a Canadian financial services conglomerate with $247 billion in total assets under management.

“Radnor Financial Advisors is an exemplary RIA that is well recognized for its best-in-class client service and team,” Kurt MacAlpine, CI chief executive officer, said in a prepared statement.

“For over 30 years, Radnor has delivered a suite of services that encapsulate wealth and investment management,” he added. “We look forward to helping them expand their services and continue to deliver for their incredible client base.”

The Radnor deal follows CI's acquisition last month of Dowling & Yankee, a San Diego-based wealth and investment firm with $5.1 billion. In March, CI acquired Brightworth, an Atlanta-based RIA with $4.7 billion in client assets.

After notching a dozen deals in 2020, CI kicked off 2021 with the January acquisition of Segall Bryant & Hamill, a Chicago-based firm with more than $23 billion in assets under management and advisement.

MacAlpine has made it clear that his mandate is to gobble up market share in the U.S. wealth management space, where valuations keep climbing and the pace of consolidation has been breaking records for at least the past half dozen years.

While already a publicly traded company listed on the Toronto Stock Exchange, in November CI dually listed on the New York Stock Exchange to help facilitate U.S. acquisitions.

“The timing for this listing makes sense, given the rapid growth in our U.S. wealth management business,” MacAlpine said at the time of the NYSE listing.

“As we continue to execute on our strategic priority to globalize our company, listing CI’s common shares on the NYSE will broaden our investor base and increase our corporate profile in the U.S. market,” he continued. “It will also support the continued acquisition of U.S. wealth management firms by allowing us to offer CI Financial stock as part of the purchase price, an attractive option for many sellers.”