(Bloomberg) — Dynasty Financial Partners, a provider of back-office services to independent investment advisers, won backing from BlackRock Inc. and JPMorgan Asset Management as it looks set to accelerate growth.
The minority equity raise values the dynasty at about $800 million, according to a person familiar with the matter, who asked not to be identified discussing private details. The firm did not disclose the size of the deal, which also included previous investors.
Dinasty provides trading, financing, investment banking and recordkeeping software to advisors – primarily those leaving brokerages to become independent. With M&A activity accelerating in the investment advisory market, Dinasty plans to make more use of its investment banking arm. It also plans to make significant investments in technology.
“Firms on our platform and in the ecosystem in general are getting bigger and more sophisticated, and as a result the deals they're doing are getting bigger and more sophisticated,” Chief Executive Shirl Penney said in an interview. “We have a very strong investment banking group, but some of these deals need capital.”
BlackRock and JPMorgan Asset join existing strategic investor Charles Schwab Corp., which also participated in the round. Also participating in the deal were longtime Dynasty investors such as the Glick family office and Dynasty board members, including American Express chairman and former CEO Harvey Golub, Penney said. The company used its investment banking arm for the transaction.
The deal comes amid a tumultuous time for Dynasty's St. Petersburg, Florida base. The already battered west coast of the state is preparing for the arrival of Hurricane Miltona potentially catastrophic storm capable of toppling homes, leveling trees and causing power outages that could last weeks to months.
“I signed the deal in the middle of a hurricane, literally as the water was hitting the window of my house,” said Penney, who has a home on St. Pete Beach, a barrier island west of St. Petersburg.
To contact the author of this story:
Suzanne Woolley in New York at (email protected)