2 Boston-Area RIAs Merge to Form $1.2 Billion Firm

Argent Wealth Management and Pillar Financial Advisors announced that they have merged their like-sized and similary focused RIA firms effective Nov. 1 under the name Argent Wealth Management LLC.

David DeVoe of DeVoe & Co., whose firm provided strategic consulting and valuation work to both firms, said the deal was a “strategic transaction” under which the two firms will be able to leverage their “complementary services,” including the tax and estate planning expertise of Argent and Pillar’s financial planning expertise, to grow the combined $1.2 billion firm.

In addition, growth among the high-net-worth and ultrahigh-net-worth clients who are the focus of both firms will be driven, DeVoe said, by the “strong referral network” enjoyed by Argent through Fidelity. The firms’ typical clients have $5 million or more in assets, DeVoe said, and while they are concentrated in the Boston area, both firms have clients across the country.

“Each of these organizations are realizing the benefits of scale and the value of independence,” DeVoe said, “leveraging the benefits of larger, more scalable organizations.” In addition, the merger provides “a broader range of future succession options,” DeVoe said, and “expands the management team at both companies.”  Mergers like this, said DeVoe, “help mitigate the risk around a principal being hit by a bus, while creating greater career opportunities for the staff.”