Cresset unveils deal for 130-year-old family office Connable

Cresset is boosting its profile in the high-net-worth and ultra-high-net-worth space as it snaps up a storied family office in the Great Lakes State.

Cresset Asset Management announced its acquisition of The Connable Office, a venerable multi-family office based in Kalamazoo, Michigan with a history stretching back more than 130 years. The deal announced Friday will result in the combined firm managing over $52 billion in assets for high-net-worth and ultra-high-net-worth clients.

Established in the late 1800s as a single-family office, Connable has a long-standing tradition of serving multi-generational families, including its founding family, which has been refined for seven generations.

Organized as a private trust, the firm is noted for its stability and personalized service. "Cresset and Connable together are an outstanding cultural fit," Eric Becker, co-founder and co-chairman of Cresset, said in a statement. "We are the powerful combination of a firm with a 100+ year legacy and one that has been built for the next 100 years."

Connable’s team, led by Loyal Eldridge III, Kenneth Larason, James Melvin, and Bradley Weller, brings extensive experience in family office services, investing, and trust administration to Cresset. This partnership significantly enhances Cresset’s in-house services and scales its trust company services.

Connable clients will benefit from Cresset’s broad range of services, including a private investment program, family governance and education, risk management, and concierge services.

"We are excited to partner with the Cresset team and provide our client families with comprehensive services for another 130+ years," commented James Melvin, CEO of Connable. "Our firms share a client-first mentality and employ a holistic, team-based approach to client service."

With a shared commitment to serving HNW and UHNW clients for generations to come, the combined firm aims to offer personalized and high-touch solutions comparable to those enjoyed by the largest endowments and single-family offices in the country.

"Both Cresset and Connable have built the firms we wanted for our own families, and we are honored to share that with other successful families as well," Becker added.

In April, Cresset acquired two teams from JPMorgan in San Francisco, which oversaw roughly $5 billion in client assets at their former firm.