Bronfman E.L. Rothschild acquires Highline to create $3.6B firm

In the latest deal between billion-dollar-plus registered investment advisers, Bronfman E.L. Rothschild said Tuesday it had acquired Highline Wealth Management, creating a combined $3.6 billion firm. Highline has approximately $1.4 billion in assets under management, according to its latest ADV filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. Bronfman brings about $2.2 billion to the table, according to its ADV. The combined firm has 33 advisers. Neal Simon, who founded Rockville, Md.-based HighLine in 2002, will become CEO of the combined firms and join the Bronfman executive committee. Mr. Simon said in an interview that he had not been looking for this specific deal but was introduced to Bronfman around nine months ago by a shareholder of HighLine. He decided that the acquisition would help to bring new products and services to clients, provide scale to get better pricing with custodians and allow the combined firm to continue quickly growing the business now that he had the backing and capital of Bronfman to help with additional acquisitions. “We have deep pockets behind us,” he said. “And if there's the right opportunity in the Midwest and Northeast, we're interested.” (More: "Advisers with assets of more than $1 billion are outperforming their peers") Bronfman previously had been led by its executive committee. The firm was formed in 2013 when the family offices of Matthew Bronfman and E.L. Rothschild partnered together and purchased Baker Tilly Investment Advisors. The Highline Wealth Management name will be retired in the coming months. Financial terms of the acquisition were not disclosed. The deal is the latest in a number of large mergers and acquisitions by registered investment advisers. Bronfman also recently acquired Lake Country Wealth Management. In June, First Republic Bank acquired Constellation Wealth Advisors, a $6.1 billion RIA. That move came after several other large acquisitions, including a deal for $6 billion Baker Street Advisors in January, and a $60 million deal for Banyan Partners, a $4.3 billion RIA, in July.