MAI Capital pushes into Atlanta with Waypoint Wealth deal

Cleveland-based registered investment advisor MAI Capital Management has acquired Waypoint Wealth Counsel, an Atlanta-based fee-only firm.

The deal to acquire the independent firm managing roughly $490 million for more than 100 households marks MAI's entry into a market it has "long viewed as strategically important," according to MAI Chairman and CEO Rick Buoncore.

Waypoint was founded in 2014 by Brad McGrew and Matthew Woods, who built the firm around affluent and ultra-high-net-worth entrepreneurs, business owners, executives and multigenerational families. Prior to co-founding Waypoint, McGrew was registered as an investment advisor with Morgan Stanley and Citi, according to his investment advisor record with the SEC.

Waypoint has leaned into private-market access for clients through two proprietary alternative investment funds as demand for exposure to opportunities beyond public markets has grown.

"Brad, Matthew and their team have built an exceptional firm by combining institutional-caliber services with deeply personalized relationships," Buoncore said in a statement on Monday. "That client-first culture aligns naturally with MAI."

Woods and McGrew will stay on as Market Leaders at MAI. Woods pointed to Atlanta's concentration of entrepreneurs and generational wealth as the draw for a national platform.

"Through MAI's platform, including its Evoke ultra-high-net worth team, we're looking forward to the added depth and investment expertise, particularly as it relates to delivering on the needs of the clients we are fortunate to serve," Woods said.

MAI has inked more than 20 deals since January 2024, and it's pushed even further to extend its national reach in recent months. In June, it revealed that Dallas-based Service Academy Capital Management joined its Evoke platform, which gave the veteran-founded firm access to MAI Capital's family office resources for tax, estate and lifestyle planning.

That same week, it unveiled a deal to acquire Saybrook Wealth Group, a Connecticut-based RIA overseeing some $273 million in assets. Founded by a veteran with history at Edward Jones and UBS, it serves a client base that includes high-net-worth individuals and families, executives, retirees, and commercial construction professionals, as well as a focus on families who have dependents with special needs.

This past spring, MAI announced a landmark investment from private equity giant Carlyle Group, which took a controlling stake in the firm at a valuation topping $2.8 billion. At the time, Buoncore said he expected the Carlyle capital to fuel another wave of deals in markets including Atlanta, Texas, Denver, Chicago and Boston.

“We're the only controlling interest they [Carlyle] have in the wealth management business, so hopefully there'll be opportunities to meet some of their portfolio management companies for opportunities for new business and things like that,” Buoncore told InvestmentNews at the time.

As of April 30, MAI and its affiliated advisors managed approximately $77.3 billion in total client assets.