Diversify, an advisor-founded wealth management platform in Sandy, Utah, said two practices in Texas and Massachusetts overseeing nearly $400 million combined in client assets recently joined its network.
In a news release, Diversify said the addition of Live Oak Investment Partners of Austin, Texas, and River Financial Group of Boston has lifted its total assets to more than $14 billion.
Founded in 2004 by Daniel J. Luke and CEO Ryan Smith, Diversity said in the release that the firm has eclipsed that asset mark without taking any outside institutional or private equity capital” or, as it states on its website, “At Diversify, we reject private-equity driven shortcuts.”
Diversify onboards advisors through two RIA platforms. Diversify Wealth Management is the firm’s equity partner platform where Diversify acquires advisors’ book of business and they take equity in the firm.
Under Diversify Advisory Services, its independent partner network, advisors affiliate with Diversify but retain ownership of their clients.
Both Live Oak and River Financial affiliated with Diversify last month.
Founded by Mike Hostick, Live Oak built and operated its RIA for the past seven years, Diversify said, adding that its new affiliate made the strategic decision to join its platform to leverage the scale and capabilities of an “institutional-quality platform” while offloading administrative and regulatory responsibilities.
Hostick, in a statement, said the much bigger Diversify has all the tools his team needs to expand and scale Live Oak. “I interviewed several firms and found that Diversify has one of most competitive compensation programs in the market while allowing their advisors the flexibility to run their businesses the way they want to.”
River Financial is led by founder Leo Rotman, who broke away from insurance broker-dealer New York Life Insurance Co., to join Diversify.
“I’ve spent more than two decades building River Financial Group to help families raising a child with a disability. Growing that kind of specialized practice requires a platform built for independence,” said Rotman. “Diversify gives me the flexibility and infrastructure to launch the next stage of River’s growth, while continuing to serve these families the right way.”
Diversify said being free of institutional or private equity partnerships is a draw for potential advisors as it provides “consistency of culture and leadership” and gives advisors “direct access to the people making decisions about the platform’s future.”
Noting Hostick’s and Rotman’s decision to join Diversify, Smith said, “These are some of the most important decisions advisors will make in their careers. At Diversify, these are not transactions, they are long-term partnerships that we treat with the care and respect that advisors deserve.”