Edelman Financial Engines, the registered investment advisor with more than $270 billion in assets under management, has acquired Soundmark Wealth Management, a Kirkland, Wash.-based RIA. with more than $453 million in client assets. This is Edelman's first deal for 2024 and expands its presence in the Pacific Northwest.
Soundmark, founded by Bill Schultheis, Principal and Senior Wealth Advisor, specializes in providing financial planning to medical and technology professionals and small business owners. It serves over 250 families.
“Our continued expansion across the United States, and in this case, the Pacific Northwest, enables us to partner with impressive firms that share our client's focus and core values,” said Suzanne van Staveren, executive vice president, chief financial officer and chief operating officer at Edelman Financial Engines, in a statement. “Bill and his team help us further expand our capabilities and areas of expertise, which we know are increasingly important in creating a personalized financial planning experience.”
This follows that of Edelman December acquisition of New England Pension Plans Systems, a full-service retirement plan advisory firm and its affiliated New England RIA investment consultants. The Providence, RI-headquartered firms manage a total of $1.5 billion for more than 500 clients, including individuals, trusts, estates and charities.
This deal represented Edelman's largest since then launching its current M&A strategy in 2021around the time the RIA was recapitalized with an investment from private equity giant Warburg Pincus, which valued the investment advisory firm at $7.3 billion.
Edelman is currently in an ongoing court battle against Mariner Wealth. Edelman initially filed her lawsuit v. Mariner in Kansas federal court late last year. In the original complaint, Edelman accused Mariner of luring 10 advisers and inducing them to break their employment contracts. Edelman claimed to have lost about $621 million in assets in the process.
Recently, Edelman tried to stop Mariner's efforts to dismiss the case, arguing that the firm “has created a business model that avoids the investment and success of its competitors.”