WPCG, Merit expand with latest multibillion-dollar RIA partnerships

Wealth Partners Capital Group and Merit Financial Advisors have made significant steps forward in their inorganic expansion strategies, with new partnerships in Kentucky and Idaho.

Wealth Partners Capital Group and private equity firm HGGC’s Aspire Holdings platform have taken a minority stake in MCF Advisors, a Kentucky-based RIA managing more than $3.3 billion in client assets as of December 31.

The investment is intended to support MCF’s expansion through both organic growth and mergers and acquisitions, according to a statement published Tuesday.

MCF’s management team will retain majority ownership and continue to oversee the firm’s operations.

Founded in 2004 by Chairman Bob Sathe and CEO Dave Harris – both veterans with more than 20 years' experience, according to their respective IAPD records with the SEC – MCF provides financial planning, investment management, tax advisory, estate planning, retirement plan consulting, and business advisory services. The firm has offices in Lexington, Covington, and Louisville.

The partnership aligns with HGGC’s broader strategy of backing firms in financial services, technology, and consumer-focused industries with valuations between $200 million and $1.5 billion.

WPCG and Aspire Holdings also came together for another deal in January, striking up a strategic partnership with $2 billion RIA Wealth Alliance in New York.

Meanwhile, Merit Financial Advisors – which also took a minority investment from WPCG and HGGC – has acquired Sanctuary Wealth Management and its subsidiary, Fiduciary Services, marking its first expansion into Idaho.

The deal, unveiled Wednesday, adds approximately $1.6 billion in assets to Merit’s platform.

Sanctuary specializes in investment advisory and portfolio management for private clients while also offering corporate retirement and investment solutions, including 401(k) plans. Fiduciary Services operates as a trustee for employee stock ownership plans.

Brett Robison, Gene Clay Esplin, and Joel Phillips, Sanctuary’s three owners – who all previously worked at Cambridge Investment Research, Triad Advisors, and Kalos Capital, according to their respective BrokerCheck records – will join Merit as wealth managers along with their team.

The acquisition is Merit’s thirty-fourth since taking a minority investment from Wealth Partners Capital Group and HGGC in December 2020. Aside from being Marit’s second-largest transaction to date, the Sanctuary deal follows its acquisition of Hershey Wealth Advisors last month, which expanded its assets by $233 million and added its fifth office in Pennsylvania.

Merit, based in Atlanta, manages $12.27 billion in client assets and operates more than 40 offices across the US.

The two multibillion-dollar partnerships announced in Kentucky and Idaho could represent the continuation of a trend highlighted by Echelon Partners. In its recently released 2024 RIA M&A Deal Report, the firm saw a surge in M&A activity involving targets with at least $1 billion in assets. It counted 140 such transactions last year, marking a 20.7 percent increase compared to 2023.

"While this still falls short of the total announced in 2021, the rebound is a sign that demand for platforms of this size is again increasing, driven by favorable market conditions and robust buyer interest," the report said.

Echelon identified three key reasons behind the rise of billion dollar-plus deals, including:

• Ongoing competition from major consolidators for at-scale add-ons;
• The rise of minority investments; and
• The propulsive effects of lower interest rates and market growth.