Merit Financial, one of the country’s most acquisitive registered investment advisors by deal count, has made its eighth deal of the year by acquiring a former Commonwealth team called Global Wealth Advisors.
According to an announcement on Tuesday, the deal will add additional offices to Merit’s footprint in Lewisville, San Antonio, Angleton, and Snyder, Texas; Naples, Fla.; and Canonsburg, Pa.
Global Wealth Advisors, which was run by President Kris Maksimovich, will also bring $860 million in client assets to Merit. Maksimovich and Managing Partner Chris Powers will join Merit as regional directors and partners, bringing their 14 team members along.
The firm had been with broker/dealer Commonwealth, now part of LPL Financial, for over 17 years, according to filings.
“We weren’t actively looking to make a change, but based on recent developments at our broker/dealer, we decided to seize an opportunity and make a change that’s better for our clients and team,” Maksimovich said in a statement. “Joining Merit will help us maintain our personalized approach while expanding our presence in Texas.”
With the deal, Merit now has seven offices in Texas, a state it has targeted for client opportunity and growth. The firm, which is backed by a minority stake from Constellation Wealth, has a combined $19.94 billion in client assets.
In a report released Tuesday, Fidelity Investments’ M&A team ranked Merit as having completed the second most deals from July 2024 through June 2025, with 13, behind Focus Partners Wealth at 16. The firm rose ahead of several other serial acquirers in Fidelity’s top 20 by deal count during what it reported was a record-breaking first half since it started tracking deals in 2015.
“Merit Advisors jumped to the number two position in this cohort after the hiring of a new head of M&A and recently announced a recapitalization event, welcoming a new investor,” Fidelity wrote.
Merit’s client asset draw, however, was much smaller at $4.7 billion than some of its larger competitors. Focus, for instance, dealt for assets of $53.7 billion, and Wealth Enhancement, which came in third by deal count at 11, brought on $11.4 billion, according to Fidelity.
Global Wealth Advisors is one of a number of advisor teams that have left Commonwealth after the announcement of the LPL acquisition. That deal was completed in August, but the full integration of advisors onto LPL’s platforms will not be complete until the fourth quarter of 2026, according to the San Diego-based broker/dealer.
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