RBC Dain to acquire Ferris Baker

RBC Dain Rauscher Inc., the wealth management unit of Royal Bank of Canada, has agreed to buy Ferris Baker Watts Inc., a broker-dealer in Washington. The terms of the transaction were not disclosed, though the deal is expected to be completed in the middle of the year. Ferris Baker is an employee-owned full-service broker-dealer with $18.5 billion in assets under administration and has 900 employees, including 330 financial advisers-with offices in 10 states. "[Ferris Baker] represents a strong strategic and cultural fit for the U.S. wealth management business of RBC, and will significantly expand our presence in the Eastern, Midwest and Mid-Atlantic regions — all important markets for us," said John Taft, president and chief executive of RBC Dain Rauscher, according to a statement. RBC Dain Rauscher Inc. of Minneapolis has nearly $500 billion of assets under administration and more than $160 billion of assets under management.