Broker/dealer Osaic has agreed to acquire $13.5 billion fee-only registered investment advisor CW Advisors from its private equity owner, Audax Private Equity, and plans to bring the firm into its employee business channel.
CW Advisors, which has completed 10 acquisitions since 2023, will continue to operate under its existing brand and management team, but its 140 employees across 17 offices will now operate on the Osaic platform.
The move is a win for Osaic in the broker/dealer battle to bring on more advisors by building fee-only platforms for registered investment advisors. It is also a sign that the general managers of the private equity funds are beginning to cycle through their maturing stakes in large and growing RIAs, either monetizing the investment or swapping for equity. Audux, alongside CW Advisors’ management team, will hold a stake in Osaic, though specific terms of the deal were not disclosed.
According to the announcement, Scottsdale, Ariz.-based Osaic will provide CW Advisors with capital to continue growing. CW Advisors will also have access to Osaic’s wealth services through partner companies Premier Trust and Highland Capital Brokerage.
“Joining forces with Osaic represents a pivotal step forward for CW Advisors,” said Scott Dell’Orfano, chief executive officer of CW Advisors. “We’re grateful for the support we’ve received from our previous owner and are energized by the opportunity to grow our business with ongoing flexibility and strategic control.”
Private equity firm Audux invested in CW Advisors in 2023 and will continue to hold a stake in Osaic, according to an announcement from the Boston-based firm.
“The pace and volume of growth have exceeded even our own expectations, which traces back to the sense of partnership between Audax and the entire CWA team,” Jay Petricone, a managing director at Audax, said in a statement.
CW Advisors will continue to custody assets at Schwab and Fidelity and will remain part of their client referral networks, according to the announcement.
“CW Advisors brings tremendous strength in delivering an institutional-quality platform for fee-only RIA advisors at the upper tiers of the wealth spectrum,” Jamie Price, Osaic president and CEO, said in a statement. “Their scale, talent and infrastructure are highly complementary to our strategy of expanding Osaic’s presence across all models and segments of the wealth management industry.”
In February, Osaic brought on Payant Wealth Management Group to its employee affiliation model, launched in 2023.
Osaic, a portfolio company of private equity firm Reverence Capital Partners, currently has about 11,000 financial professionals in its network.
Ardea Partners was the lead advisor to CWA on the sale, and Houlihan Lokey was an advisor.
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