Cerity Partners, the New York-based registered investment advisor with more than $206 billion in client assets, said Thursday it has agreed to acquire two firms: Palo Alto, California-based Cornerstone Capital and Echo Wealth Management, which serves the Minneapolis area. The combined additions bring roughly $1.7 billion in assets under management, with Cornerstone contributing about $1.4 billion and Echo about $337 million.
The deal deepens Cerity's presence in Silicon Valley, where it already serves a number of technology executives and venture-backed entrepreneurs. Cornerstone, founded in 1978, focuses on high-net-worth individuals, families, charitable foundations and endowments, offering investment management, financial planning, and estate and tax coordination. The firm has built a multigenerational client base over nearly five decades, a point emphasized by Claire O'Keefe, partner and head of partner development at Cerity. "Cornerstone Capital has spent nearly 50 years building the kind of deep, multigenerational client trust that can't be manufactured, only earned," she said in a statement.
Brad Dinsmore, a partner at Cornerstone, said the firm sought a buyer that would preserve its client-first approach while expanding the resources available to its clients. "In Cerity Partners, we found a firm that shares our values and gives our clients access to resources – in tax planning, estate planning, and beyond – that we couldn't offer on our own," he said.
Echo Wealth Management, founded in 2015 by advisor Echo Huang, brings a different specialty. The firm, which has about $337 million in AUM, started with a focus on tax planning and has evolved to serve corporate executives navigating equity compensation, restricted stock units, employee stock purchase plans and deferred compensation. Huang said clients will continue working with the same team while gaining access to Cerity's broader capabilities. "Our clients will continue working with the same team they know and trust while gaining access to Cerity Partners' broader resources and specialized capabilities," she said.
The Minneapolis acquisition marks Cerity's first entry into that market, which O'Keefe called a priority. "Minneapolis is an important growth market for our firm, and Echo's talented colleagues, strong reputation, and longstanding relationships within the community make them an ideal fit," she said. The Echo deal follows a similar transaction in July, when Cerity agreed to merge with Portland-based Cordant Wealth Partners, a $371 million practice that also focuses on technology employees with equity compensation.
Cerity's acquisition pace has been brisk in 2026. The firm started the year with deals for Austin Private Wealth in Texas and SOL Capital Management in Maryland. In February, it moved into institutional consulting through a merger with Seattle-based Verus Investments, which oversees about $1.2 trillion in client assets. According to Echelon Partners' first-quarter 2026 RIA M&A Deal Report, Cerity completed five deals totaling about $22.7 billion in acquired assets, with three involving sellers with more than $1 billion in AUM.
In September, Cerity agreed to combine with West Des Moines-based Gilbert & Cook, its first move into Iowa, and days later announced a deal for two Manhattan advisory teams from Shufro Rose. The firm's growth has been supported by private equity. In 2022, Lightyear Capital rolled part of its equity into Genstar's Cerity stake rather than exiting, a move Echelon highlighted as an early example of a sponsor staying invested through the next ownership cycle. "In total, there have been seven recapitalization events so far this year that were direct transactions by a financial acquirer," Echelon said in its Q2 2026 RIA deal report, emphasizing "the faith these PE investors have in the future of the consolidation trend in this industry."
As of mid-2026, Echelon projected about 500 transactions for the full year, which would surpass 2025's record of 466. The continued pace of M&A underscores the appetite for scale and specialization among RIAs, with Cerity's latest double-deal adding both geographic reach and niche expertise.
