CI Financial dominates RIA buyers with its 13th deal of 2020

Toronto-based CI Financial continues to gobble up large chunks of the U.S. advisory market with its purchase of a majority ownership stake in RGT Wealth Advisors, a Dallas-based firm managing $4.7 billion in client assets.

This marks the 13^th acquisition of a U.S. registered investment adviser for CI since it crossed over Canada's southern border into the U.S. in February.

Once its purchase of RGT is completed, the addition will bring CI’s U.S. advisory assets to approximately $21 billion, and total North American wealth management assets to $63 billion.

This is the second deal the Canadian wealth management conglomerate has announced since it listed its shares on the New York Stock Exchange last Wednesday.

CI has been a public company listed on the Toronto Stock Exchange since 1995 under the ticker CIX, but Chief Executive Kurt MacAlpine said the NYSE listing under the ticker CIXX will provide the company with another means of paying for RIAs.

As MacAlpine said during his recent guest appearance on The InvestmentNews Podcast, the U.S. market is ripe with acquisition opportunities and CI has designs on becoming a dominant player in the space.

“The timing for this listing makes sense given the rapid growth in our U.S. wealth management business,” MacAlpine said.