There’s a new boss joining Beacon Pointe – a firm continuing to expand via acquisitions and making a name for itself as one of the larger wealth management players. Our US correspondent analyzes developments and talks to the new CEO.

Expect mergers and acquisitions to keep driving Beacon Pointe Advisors’ impressive growth now that long-time M&A head and president Matt Cooper has been tapped as the new CEO.

Cooper is ascending to the top job as Shannon Eusey, the chief executive and co-founder of the Newport Beach, California-based RIA, transitions to become chair of the firm’s board of directors after leading the firm for 24 years.

(Main picture shows Eusey and Cooper.)

Cooper has been one of the industry’s biggest M&A advocates and busiest buyers, helping to propel Beacon Pointe to more than $60 billion in assets under management from less than $1 billion in his 16 years as head of M&A. 

Last year Beacon Pointe was the industry’s third most active buyer, acquiring 12 firms, behind only Wealth Enhancement, which bought 14 firms, and Mercer Advisors, which bought 13. In January, Beacon Pointe wasted no time getting busy this year, acquiring The Financial Advisors, a $1.2 billion Massachusetts-based RIA.

No let up
“Matt has been a driving force behind Beacon Pointe’s growth,” said David DeVoe, CEO of the eponymous RIA M&A strategic consulting firm. “He built a disciplined M&A engine that attracts high quality partners and has combined strong strategy with real execution. M&A has become a core strength of the firm because of his leadership.”

Despite intensifying competition and rising valuations, Cooper told Family Wealth Report he has no intention of letting up. “Beacon Pointe views M&A as a material part of our business going forward,” Cooper said. “Regardless of the competition, we are going to lean in when we believe a firm is a great fit.”

Cooper, a 24-year Beacon Pointe veteran, will continue to be involved in dealmaking. “M&A will have a straight line to me and I will participate in the process,” he explained. “Jacob Vick and Jack Cooper, both senior directors on the team, will handle most day-to-day responsibilities as they have for the past year, which was our most productive to date. They are both experienced and very good at what they do.”

Relentless but fair
Cooper’s preoccupation with M&A began around 2011 after reading a white paper by industry observer – and sometime participant – Mark Hurley predicting massive industry consolidation, driven in large part by aging RIA founders who did not have a succession plan.

Cooper also honed his skills as member of aRIA, a prestigious industry study group that included such high-profile industry executives – and  active M&A acquirers – as Ron (now Omani) Carson and Savant Wealth Management’s Brent Brodeski.

Beacon Pointe began to buy opportunistically, and Cooper acquired a reputation as a relentless, but fair, negotiator who was able to establish a rapport with acquisition prospects. After closing the deal, Beacon Pointe enhanced its standing in an increasingly crowded M&A field by smooth integration and delivering impressive tech stacks and asset management capabilities.

The turning point came in 2021 when deep-pocketed private equity firm KKR acquired slightly over half of the RIA, buying out Abry Partners, Beacon Pointe’s first PE partner in the process. Thanks to KKR’s growth capital, Cooper’s M&A expertise and dozens of acquisitions, Beacon Pointe’s AuM has tripled in five years.

Sweet spot
“Everything we do is geared around alignment, including our private equity partner,” Cooper said in a 2024 M&A webinar sponsored by Advisor Growth Strategies and published in Family Wealth Report. 

“A lot of times when you hear about these outsized multiples for investments in platform firms, they come with a lot of preference and structure that favors the PE firm versus the client and the team and the other shareholders. So, it was important for us that our partner be a common shareholder, that we could work well with them as people, and that they had internal resources that made us better.”

What kind of firms does Beacon Pointe target? 

“Size wise, $300 million to $3 billion is kind of our sweet spot,” Cooper said. Firms should be planning-oriented, focused on the relationship with the client and creating value. What we’re really looking for are confident, self-starting creative entrepreneurs really that have amazing EQ and humility to work very well in a large group of people. No jerks allowed.”

Eusey’s “personal decision” and legacy
Eusey launched Beacon Pointe in 2002, working with her father, Garth Flint. She has been one of the most prominent female executives in the industry and one of the few to head such a large firm. Stepping down as CEO was “a thoughtful and personal decision,” Eusey said in a statement, that will allow her “to focus even more on vision, governance, and strategic stewardship." 

Eusey “leaves an incredible legacy,” DeVoe said. “She is a true trailblazer, built Beacon Pointe into a leading firm and helped elevate the broader RIA industry.”

KKR partner Chris Harrington called Beacon Pointe's success over the past two decades “a testament to Shannon's leadership, thoughtful approach and focus on delivering excellence for Beacon Pointe clients.” 

Beacon Pointe has not yet initiated “an active search”for a new president, said company spokesperson and chief marketing office Alli Warner. “We are currently in a thoughtful strategic planning phase as we evaluate the future structure of our leadership team,” Warner said.