The RIA M&A market is on track for a record-breaking year, with deal volume and transacted assets reaching new highs through the third quarter, according to Echelon Partners’ latest RIA M&A Deal Report.
The surge in activity is being driven by a mix of strategic acquirers, a steady flow of private equity capital, and a growing appetite for both mega-deals and mid-sized transactions.
Through September 30, Echelon counted 345 transactions across the industry, a 44.4% increase from the same period last year and already surpassing the previous full-year record of 341 deals set in 2022. The third quarter alone matched the all-time high for quarterly activity, with 125 announced transactions.
Total transacted assets reached approximately $1.2 trillion for the quarter, up 44.9% from the prior quarter. Echelon estimates that the full-year total could reach 440 deals, positioning 2025 as the most active year in the sector’s history.
The report notes that “3Q25’s volume was 68.9% higher than 3Q24’s volume and 45.3% higher than 3Q23’s volume,” highlighting the acceleration in dealmaking over the past year.
This year’s surge has been marked by a wave of large-scale transactions. Thirteen deals in the third quarter involved sellers with at least $20 billion in assets, surpassing the previous quarterly record.
Among the standout transactions were Creative Planning’s pending acquisition of SageView Advisory Group, with $238.6 billion in assets, and Corient’s cross-Atlantic double-deal involving Stonehage Fleming and Stanhope Capital Group, with $175 billion and $40 billion in assets respectively.
On the financial buyer side, Stone Point Capital and CPP Investments acquired a majority stake in OneDigital, a $143 billion hybrid RIA and retirement plan provider. Madison Dearborn Partners also made headlines with its acquisition of several NFP wealth management entities, totaling $67.6 billion in assets.
Strategic acquirers have dominated the deal count, accounting for 91.2% of transactions in the third quarter. Merit Financial Advisors and Carson Wealth led the pack with 14 deals each year-to-date, followed by Wealth Enhancement Group, Mariner Wealth Advisors, and Mercer Advisors, each with 10 deals.
Private equity remains a significant force in the RIA M&A market, although its approach is shifting. The third quarter saw 11 direct private equity investments, a slight dip from the prior quarter, but the year-to-date total of 34 is already ahead of last year’s pace. PE-sponsored investments now total 231 transactions for the year, surpassing the previous record of 215 set in 2024.
Echelon notes that “the rising share of PE-backed strategic activity underscores the expanding role of private equity in driving strategic M&A.” In the third quarter, 75.4% of strategic acquirer deals involved a buyer with private equity backing, up 8 percentage points from the prior quarter.
While the average assets per deal dipped to $1.1 billion in the third quarter (excluding mega-deals), the 2025 average is expected to remain just below the four-year average of $1.7 billion. Notably, 41.6% of deals this year have involved targets with over $1 billion in assets, and the industry is on pace for a 7.4% increase in average deal size compared to 2024 .
Corient led the way in $1 billion-plus transactions in the third quarter, completing six such deals, followed by Focus Financial Partners, Creative Planning, Constellation Wealth Capital, Mariner Wealth Advisors, and Arax Investment Partners.
With 440 deals projected for the year and a continued influx of capital from both strategic and financial buyers, the RIA M&A market shows no signs of slowing. The report suggests that as competition for quality firms intensifies, buyers are diversifying their acquisition strategies, targeting both large and mid-sized firms to maintain growth momentum.
“Buyers will continue to pursue a more diverse mix of acquisition targets to maintain growth momentum,” the Echelon report said, reflecting a market that is both consolidating and expanding its reach.
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