Creative Planning, the Overland Park, Kansas-based mega-RIA, has acquired Rockbridge Investment Management, a fee-only fiduciary wealth manager in Syracuse, New York. The deal adds approximately $2.2 billion in assets under management and brings Rockbridge's 23 employees into the fold, according to a Wednesday announcement.
Creative Planning reports more than $780 billion in assets under management or advisement as of June 30, 2026, though its regulatory AUM—the figure reported to the SEC—stood at roughly $296 billion in a July 2026 filing, per AdvizorPro data. The acquisition continues a busy 2026 for the firm, which has expanded well beyond traditional retail advice.
Rockbridge, founded in 1991, offers retirement and financial planning, investment management, estate and insurance planning, business succession planning, and tax coordination. Its clients will retain their current advisors while gaining access to Creative Planning's affiliated tax preparation, legal, trust, and retirement plan services. Peter Mallouk, Creative Planning's president and CEO, said in the announcement that Rockbridge's reputation in Central New York for in-depth planning and thoughtful client experience mirrors the firm's own approach.
Rockbridge CEO Patrick Rohe and Managing Partner David Carroll framed the sale around client demand for coordinated services like estate planning and tax preparation. In a joint statement, they said joining Creative Planning allows them to bring a fully integrated experience—including dedicated CPAs and estate planning professionals—to clients and the Syracuse community, maintaining the same focus on client experience and responsiveness.
Creative Planning's 2026 deal calendar
The Rockbridge acquisition is the latest in a string of deals. In September, Creative Planning agreed to buy RVK, a Portland, Oregon-based institutional investment consultant advising on approximately $4.3 trillion in client assets, in a deal expected to close in January 2027. In July, it picked up Kansas City commercial insurance brokerage Lovell Insurance Group. Earlier this year, the firm made its first overseas moves with Swiss RIA Baseline Wealth Management and London-based Maseco, which manages more than $5 billion. It also added Seattle's Duncan & Haley, with about $660 million in assets. In 2025, it bought retirement plan consultant SageView Advisory Group.
When private equity firm General Atlantic took a minority stake in February 2020, Creative Planning managed $50 billion. The firm's growth has been fueled by a mix of acquisitions and organic expansion, and it now employs more than 1,000 employee partners, as noted in a recent event tied to a Barack Obama appearance.
Fee-only fiduciaries losing asset share
The Rockbridge sale lands as the fee-only fiduciary model—where the advisory fee is the only compensation a firm receives from clients—cedes ground to larger, more diversified rivals. Recent research by Cerulli Associates found that true fee-only independent RIAs held 34% of assets among RIAs managing $5 billion or more at year-end 2025, down from 42% in 2020. While the number of fee-only fiduciary firms has grown to 121 from 83 over five years, a 7.8% compound annual rate, independent RIAs with insurance capabilities grew 37.3% a year to 36 firms from seven, and hybrid RIAs with brokerage businesses climbed to 186 from 104.
Clients appear to reward the model, however. Cerulli found that 73% of affluent investors whose advisor must always act in their best interest are satisfied and not seeking a new provider, compared with 48% of those whose advisor may recommend products that put the advisor's interests first. This dynamic is part of a broader trend in which affluent investors prioritize planning over portfolio management, according to Cerulli.
Creative Planning's aggressive acquisition strategy, including the RVK deal, positions it to compete across the wealth management spectrum. As Cerulli has noted, scale alone won't secure enterprise RIAs' edge; service breadth is becoming key. The Rockbridge acquisition adds depth in the Northeast, a region where Creative Planning has been expanding its footprint.
