Deal fever hit RIA biz in 2010

Mergers-and-acquisitions activity among registered investment advisory firms picked up last year, reaching record levels in terms of both number of deals and assets involved, according to Schwab Advisor Services. In 2010, 109 deals involving RIAs took place, up considerably from the 70 deals done in 2009. Total assets involved in deals last year reached $156 billion. In 2009, that figure was closer to $100 billion. The 2010 numbers surpassed the past M&A peak in 2008, when 88 RIA transactions involving $137 billion in assets were completed. Since 2003, Schwab has tracked M&A activity involving firms with assets under management of more than $100 million. The firm released its year-end numbers today. RIA firms were the most common buyers last year, accounting for more than 50% of acquisitions, Schwab said. Advisory firms have been the predominant buyers since 2007. Consolidators and private-equity firms are also active in the market. The uptick in deals last year was “largely due to advisors putting these [mergers-and-acquisitions] discussions back on the front burner after spending the bulk of 2009 helping clients navigate the volatile market," David DeVoe, Schwab's managing director of strategic business development, said in a statement. One of the more notable acquisitions of the year was Aspiriant LLC's purchase of Deloitte Investment Advisors LLC, a fee-only RIA owned by Deloitte Tax LLP. The deal, announced in July and completed in September, involved about 40 investment advisers at Deloitte. Those advisers managed close to $3 billion in assets before Aspiriant acquired the Deloitte unit.