Mercer announces fourth RIA acquisition in 8 days

Mercer Global Advisors is kicking off 2021 as the top acquirer of registered investment advisers.

On Wednesday, the $25 billion Denver-based aggregator announced its fourth acquisition so far this year of an RIA with at least $800 million in client assets. The deal for Scottsdale, Arizona-based Rowland Carmichael Advisors, which serves 240 clients with more than $850 million in assets, follows three other announcements in the past eight days.

The deals announced previously include: Kays Financial Advisory, an $800 million Atlanta-based firm; Atlanta Financial Associates, an $815 million firm also based in Atlanta; and McGee Wealth Management, an $800 million firm based in Portland, Oregon.

Like Mercer, Rowland Carmichael is marketed as a multifamily office. The RIA was founded in 1986 by Tim Rowland and David Carmichael.

“David and I have built a family office business with a team of dedicated professionals that share that level of commitment and excellence to our valued clients,” Rowland said in a statement. “While we have a strong team and great next generation talent and leadership, David and I realized that we needed to find a like-minded partner that could not only provide a business continuity plan for us, our clients, and staff, but also help us scale and leverage of our operation.”

Dave Barton, who heads transactions at Mercer, also said the deal was largely about helping the RIA attain scale, even though the firm had grown into a comprehensive wealth management business.

“What they lacked, however, was the requisite scale and leverage they wanted so they could spend more time doing the things they loved like serving clients and winning new ones,” Barton said in the statement. “Like many business owners, wearing multiple hats drains your time and talent, and it prevents high quality professionals from maximizing their highest and best use.”

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