narayan
Beacon Pointe Advisors, a registered investment advisor based in Newport Beach, Calif., has announced its first deal of the year with the acquisition of an RIA previously owned by iM Global Partner, a Paris-based asset management network that bought the firm in 2021.
Litman Gregory Wealth Management has left iM Global to join Beacon Pointe with its staff of 18 people and offices in Larkspur and Walnut Creek, Calif., as well as St. Louis. Litman Gregory, which was founded in 1987 by Ken Gregory and Craig Litman, has grown to $2.7 billion in assets.
The deal brings Beacon Pointe’s own assets under advisement to $61 billion, which has grown partly from a dozen deals the firm penned last year. The acquisitive RIA is majority-owned by its management team, including CEO Shannon Eusey. Private equity firm KKR acquired a minority stake in the firm in 2021.
Litman Gregory is focused on high-net-worth individuals and families, with expertise in financial scenario analysis, goal-based planning, tax strategy, estate and legacy planning, charitable and philanthropic giving, and risk management coordination.
It brings Beacon Pointe its first office in Missouri, though it adds to the large RIA’s footprint in Northern California.
Parent iM Global acquired Litman Gregory in 2021, in part, to distribute its investment offerings, which include mutual funds, active ETFs and SMAs, it announced at the time. The firm distributes its products through equity partnerships with independent investment firms in Europe, the United States and Latin America.
A Beacon Pointe spokesperson said via email that the RIA may still work with iM Global on investments for clients.
“While our institutional manager research and due diligence process enables us to offer a curated, best-in-class lineup of traditional and alternative investment managers and strategies, we generally allow new partners to continue working with the managers and products that have historically supported their success,” the spokesperson said. “Our role in Investment research is to equip advisors with the broadest possible opportunity set to help clients achieve their goals.”
Litman Gregory’s seven managing directors will all be moving over in the transaction, with no one departing the firm, according to the spokesperson.
“We are entering an era in which financial advisory talent is not easy to come by,” Beacon Pointe President Matt Cooper said in a statement, adding that Litman Gregory “brings five CFPs, two CFAs and one CDFA to a prominent geographical location where Beacon Pointe is already strong, deepening our regional expertise and leadership in a highly attractive market.”
Piper Sandler & Co. and law firm Seward & Kissel LLP advised iM Global and Litman Gregory on the transaction.
admin
