M&A activity in the US registered investment advisor industry has bounced back in the third quarter of 2023.

Hightower has made a strategic investment in Resource Consulting Group, an RIA based in Orlando, Florida, with about $2.5 billion in assets under management (as of June 2023).

The Chicago-headquartered group is investing into a firm that has been around since 1988. RCG serves high net worth and ultra-HNW households and institutions. It has a credentialed staff of 30 employees. The team includes 13 certified financial planners, three certified public accountants, two attorneys and one certified financial analyst among its 17 advisory services professionals and 13 support personnel.

In the transaction, RCG was advised by Cambridge International Partners.

“Resource Consulting Group’s commitment to their clients, alongside their unwavering dedication to fostering personal growth of their employees aligns perfectly with our core values,” Hightower chairman and CEO Bob Oros said.

“The Hightower partnership allows Resource Consulting Group to maintain autonomy and the firm’s distinct identity while gaining the necessary resources to elevate our client service offering to new heights,” Resource Consulting Group founder Mike Davis said. 

Hightower has made 11 acquisitions this year, including GMS Surgent, a Pennsylvania-based, full-service CPA firm that Hightower advisors are able to leverage for tax advisory services for its clients. 

In other deals, Hightower made a strategic investment in Boston Hill Advisors, a $1 billion, RIA that is based in North Andover, Massachusetts. It has three offices in the state. In early June, it invested into Vigilant Wealth Management, a firm with offices in Portland, Maine and Portsmouth, New Hampshire. (It manages around $2.3 billion in client assets.) In February, it invested into Bickling Financial Services, a Lexington, Massachusetts-based registered investment advisor. As of June 30, 2023, Hightower’s assets under management were about $131 billion.

The developments are an example of the M&A and consolidation activity that has become a marked feature of the North American wealth management sector in recent years. M&A activity in the US registered investment advisor industry has bounced back in the third quarter of 2023 with 86 deals announced, a level not seen since early 2022, according to ECHELON Partners. The data suggests that a cooling of transactions amid higher interest rates has come to an end, at least for the time being.