Certain traits consistently stand out to buyers—strong organic growth, a solid management team, and profitability—but there are many more variables to consider.
By Harris Baltch
Nov 10, 2025 3:11 pm EST
As co-head of Dynasty Investment Bank, I spend much of my time evaluating RIA firms for potential mergers and acquisitions. Over the years, I’ve seen firsthand that there’s no single formula for what makes a firm an attractive candidate—every RIA is unique. Certain traits consistently stand out to buyers: strong organic growth, a solid management team and culture, and healthy profitability. But the reality is more nuanced.
Harris Baltch is co-head of Dynasty Investment Bank PHOTO: COURTESY DYNASTY FINANCIAL PARTNERS
Some firms may have plateaued in growth yet possess ingredients—talented teams, loyal clients, and a strong culture—that make them appealing if the deal is structured properly. Buyers weigh factors ranging from client demographics and concentration risk to technology infrastructure and succession planning goals.
I wanted to explore these dynamics more deeply, so I recently spoke with several executives from firms across the Dynasty network who are actively involved in M&A. I consolidated their main points, plus my thoughts, below. I hope our perspectives shed additional light on what makes a firm desirable—and what can derail a deal.
What qualities do you look for in an RIA firm that makes it a strong M&A candidate?
PHOTO: COURTESY TRITONPOINT PARTNERS
Harold Hughes, CEO, TritonPoint Partners: I look for a track record of revenue growth, operating leverage growth, and successful reinvestment in the business—not just expense control. I want to see high quality client relationships and for that I look at retention rates, multigenerational relationships, and client referrals. To assess operational control, I look at succession plans, technology, and process around decision-making.
I will consider plateaued firms—those that have stopped growing—as strong prospects for acquisition for a couple of reasons. First, if they truly want to break through the plateau, and have been trying unsuccessfully, and there is a fix that we can identify and implement. I’ll also consider it if the issue appears to be due to a generational cycle. We can take the time to add significant value with a complete succession plan and financing.
Two things make an RIA more attractive to buyers. First, that the sum of the combination of these traits such as client type, niche, or operational setup is greater than the parts. Second, is if the operational setup is poor and the firm is successful in client type, or has an excellent niche despite the operational setup, so there is room for improvement.
The most common deal breakers are unrealistic expectations particularly around multiples and payouts. Incomplete financials and cultural differences are other issues. Most founder/leaders have an incomplete picture of the actual culture that the junior and support people live every day.
The main advice I would give to RIA founders who want to prepare their firm for acquisition in the next year is to understand where you are strong and what you need to improve. Craft your story with that knowledge and transparency. Improve what you can control and know what you need that you could get from an acquirer because a year isn’t a lot of time.
PHOTO: COURTESY PROCYON
Phil Fiore, CEO, Procyon: What I look for, most important, is an acquisition target that believes that we, as a collective, are better together. If they believe a deal is just about them making us better, or just about us making them better, then that would be a significant cultural disconnect.
They need to eliminate the “this is our team” approach. At Procyon we have a “one team one dream” approach and we don’t have silos. So, adapting to that philosophy is a major component of any deal.
Plus, the business must be planning based and at least 90% annuitized. Advisors should truly be the financial captains of their clients, not pushing product but rather being paid based upon the advice they give. We aren’t the place for financial advisors or business owners to come to retire. They still have to want to grow their business and our job is to unlock that power.
Plateau firms are incredible targets for us as it allows us the opportunity to unlock what we know is inside these great businesses. With our “Rolls-Royce” infrastructure and support systems we can unlock the hidden potential of these plateaued RIA’s and get them to truly spread their wings and look outwardly as to how to build a much more scaled business.
The advice I would give to RIA’s that want to do M&A is make sure you are really M&A ready. M&A doesn’t end when the transaction is consummated. The work has just begun in teaching the team to embrace our philosophy and the Procyon Way. It takes a village to get this right.
One other thing I would urge is to define what you want your firm to look like in three-to-five years. Decide what type of people make up the firm and go get them. If you let the deal dictate what your firm looks like you will have a firm that is built on a very weak and unstable foundation.
PHOTO: COURTESY OF DAYMARK WEALTH PARTNERS
Mike Quin, CEO, DayMark Wealth Partners: Things that make an RIA more attractive to buyers are organic growth and growth in net new assets, average client size, and average length of client relationship. We also look at the client mix—business owners, executives, and household generations.
Deal breakers are a bad culture fit, unrealistic expectations from sellers on valuation, and due diligence that doesn’t align with the story the CEO is telling.
The advice I would give to RIA founders who want to prepare their firm for acquisition in the next year: Institutionalize everything.
My take: The top three qualities I look for in an M&A candidate are the organic growth profile, management team composition/culture, and profitability.
As for plateaued firms, it depends. Some firms have plateaued in growth because the owner is focused on succession but may still have a really good team to service clients, a great culture, and a desirable client base. For those types of RIA profiles, deals can still be accretive so long as they are structured correctly with the appropriate incentives for the owners, such as building in a client retention structure for a period time.
Each RIA has its own unique attributes and traits. That is why if you have met one RIA, you have met one RIA.
Here are a few deal breakers: Misalignment on valuation expectations, a buyer unwilling to provide adequate reverse diligence, a buyer misrepresenting terms of a deal between term sheet and what it says in definitive documents, a seller underperforming on client consent thresholds, and a seller unwilling to become a W-2 employee versus a 1099.