Merit Financial Advisors and Prime Capital Financial are extending their tax capabilities as they each mark their first move for the 2026 deal season.
Merit Financial Advisors is deepening its push into tax-focused planning with the acquisition of SSC Wealth and a long-term partnership with SSC CPAs + Advisors.
The Atlanta-based RIA has acquired SSC Wealth, the wealth management arm of SSC CPAs + Advisors, adding a business that manages about $259.6 million in assets and primarily serves high-net-worth individuals and business owners with a strong emphasis on tax strategies and business valuation.
Four professionals from SSC Wealth are joining Merit, including wealth manager and partner Bert Falley and Michele Hammann, who will become a regional vice president and partner at Merit while retaining her role as chief strategy officer at SSC CPAs + Advisors.
In a statement, Rick Kent, chief executive at Merit, framed the deal as a way to deepen organic growth rather than simply add scale.
“This is not a traditional acquisition,” he said, highlighting his firm's partnership with "one of the most respected CPA firms in the country.”
SSC Wealth has historically worked with clients who already use SSC CPAs + Advisors for tax planning, creating a built-in pipeline of households with complex tax and succession needs. The accounting firm employs more than 95 professionals and focuses on advanced tax planning, business succession strategies and accounting services for complex situations.
Brian Lang, chief executive at SSC CPAs + Advisors, said the cultural and planning philosophies of the two organizations lined up.
“Merit’s people, values, and team approach to advising mirror our own, and that alignment ultimately benefits the clients we serve,” he said.
SSC CPAs + Advisors will remain a fully employee-owned, independent accounting firm; Merit is not acquiring the CPA business.
Prime Capital Financial is also leaning into tax as a growth driver, acquiring Bradshaw Rogers Financial Partners in Salisbury, North Carolina.
Bradshaw Rogers, founded in 2006, oversees about $600 million in assets and offers planning-led wealth management with integrated tax strategy for clients across Salisbury, the Piedmont-Triad and southwest North Carolina.
Founders Trent Bradshaw and Brandon Rogers are joining Prime Capital as partners along with five other team members, bringing the firm’s national headcount in the Carolinas to include offices in Asheville, Charleston, Charlotte, Raleigh and now Salisbury.
The deal follows Prime Capital’s recent launch of its Tax Advisory practice and fits into a broader strategy to build a planning and tax platform that can support both individual clients and business owners. Bradshaw Rogers’ offering spans financial and retirement planning, investment and risk management, and tax coordination.
“Prime Capital Financial continues to identify firms that share our planning-first mindset and commitment to client service,” chief executive Glenn Spencer said in the announcement, adding that the Bradshaw Rogers team brings a “strong tax-focused approach that complements our recent expansion into tax services.”
From the Bradshaw Rogers side, the move is framed as a way to add scale without sacrificing culture. “Our decision to join Prime Capital Financial centered on our ability to remain client-centric while gaining additional scale and support,” Bradshaw said.
Bradshaw Rogers will keep working closely with existing clients while tapping into Prime Capital’s broader resources, infrastructure and national platform.
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