People Moves Related to "Focus Financial pivots to breakaway strategy with Fidelity recruit"
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Michael Nathanson's new post as Focus CEO could create an 'apparent conflict' with his duties at Colony Group, which is snapping up billions in Focus RIA assets -- but 'partners' now have one of theirs in the power seat
May 1, 2024The CEO of Colony, the $22-billion Boston RIA, is buying $10.4-billion GW & Wade from Focus, making him buyer and seller, as he takes the reins as first permanent Focus CEO since Rudy Adolf.
With RIA valuations ticking down and successions ticking up, Focus Financial deep sixes 'drunken sailor' pause, forgoes buyback plan and adds a CEO
Aug 13, 2022CEO Rudy Adolf sees a 'softening' in multiples after a couple of frothy years when CI Financial dominated headlines and big RIA deals
Young superstar of KKR's meteoric rollup, Beacon Pointe, steps out as CEO and settles in as board chair, while rock solid No. 2 Matt Cooper takes over day-to-day duties
Mar 4, 2026Shannon Eusey, 55, took the Newport Beach RIA to $65 billion from $20 billion in less than five years, and her replacement was head of M&A that fueled the run.
Adam Birenbaum assumes the CEO hotseat at Focus Financial, becoming third chief executive in three years as Michael Nathanson steps down in 'plan' he 'designed'
Dec 13, 2025The 47 year-old St. Louis phenom takes over from the 58 year-old ex-Colony CEO but with the same steep challenge of making 70 autonomous RIA units work more collaboratively, while adding more RIAs.
The upper RIA echelon mass-exit is now at 25 execs and counting -- for 25 'reasons' -- but it's hardly a coincidence, analysts say
Jun 7, 2024Burnout and EBITDA weigh on CEO-types as never-ending exits claim Ron Carson, Aaron Klein, Bernie Clark, Rudy Adolf, Bill Crager and Tim Buckley.
Adam Birenbaum's calls 'Colony' deal -- to create $100-billion super-RIA -- a 'mandate,' but it's also likely a 'prelude' to larger strategic objective, M&A expert says
May 7, 2024The 46-year-old CEO of Buckingham Wealth's 'long game' approach keeps paying dividends; it comes down to his approach to relationships
Focus Financial makes 'abrupt' CEO call, lets Rudy Adolf go into 'retirement,' with 'no solution in place;' the eighth RIA chief executive unseated since June as VCs move in -- where is the EBITDA?
Oct 24, 2023Clayton, Dubilier & Rice closed on its $7-billion purchase of the roll-up on Aug. 31 -- with no hint that its parting of the ways with legendary 60-year-old founder was in the offing.
Goldman Sachs-Creative Planning deal is bleeding defectors -- 16 more last week, report says -- auguring a 'potential disaster,' analysts warn
Oct 4, 2023Dozens of former 'United Capital' advisors are fleeing at once, but Peter Mallouk is still battling to keep them, and Goldman Sachs may play legal hardball, sources say.
Dan Seivert's ripping success in RIA M&A deals has odd side effect of having some sidearm staff leave for new vistas
Jul 20, 2021Carolyn Armitage and Mark Bruno left to mutual benefit, while Echelon Partners roars on, feeding the beast of deal-crazed RIA buyers and sellers.
Elliot S. Weissbluth, Hightower Advisors mastermind, cashes out and vacates chairman role as Pershing's ex-CEO Lisa Dolly takes a board seat
Feb 19, 2021The Chicago rollup's founder got paid better by doing the second-stage exit and the new cast on the Board also includes Bob Oros ascending to chair and Darrell Horn of Green Square Wealth Management joining
Looking past Covid-19 pandemic, Louisiana RIA buys $1-million building after hitting $1 billion in AUM and hiring the town's mayor
Dec 17, 2020Summit Financial Wealth Advisors was sold to Focus Financial in 2014, growing its assets by $400 million since then but keeping staffing about the same
A 20-year Merrill Lynch veteran got Sanctuary Wealth to $10 billion in AUA in 15 months with no outside capital and no time in bed: 'Nobody's slept since April'
Aug 15, 2019Jim Dickson also recruited HighTower talent, Amit Dogra, to bring the old HighTower brokerage model and execute it as HighTower veers toward buying RIAs
New-look Hightower hires Abby Salameh and takes a 'Hurley-style' stake in a $4.8 billion DFA RIA
May 3, 2019The Chicago roll-up gets a chief marketing officer who gets RIAs as it becomes part-Dynasty, part- Fiduciary Network in adopting a very 2019 deal structure for LourdMurray
As Bob Oros-led HighTower reboots, it bags an ex-Goldman RIA, hires two, makes a CMO imminent, and clarifies mission
Mar 20, 2019The new CEO will need to somehow weave together the debris of the first roll-up run and the new one to the satisfaction of RIAs and the hundreds of people already inside the HighTower umbrella
Bob Oros starts his CEO life at HighTower Advisors with a town hall meeting and clear authority
Jan 8, 2019The former Fidelity RIA chief now runs his formerly largest RIA client, from Chicago, and with Elliot Weissbluth as chairman, 'inorganic' asset and 'evangelist'
HighTower gets a new CEO, to be revealed later, as Elliot Weissbluth moves upstairs
Sep 13, 2018Elliot Weissbluth's move upstairs ends an era, as Thomas H. Lee's reign begins in earnest, and Mark Cabezas comes in as M&A head.