Richardson GMP Ltd has reached an agreement with Dundee Goodman Private Wealth, a division of Dundee Securities Ltd., to transfer a group of approximately 60 investment advisors, and their related staff, to Dundee Goodman.
The 60 advisors were originally acquired by Richardson GMP last October, when the firm acquired Macquarie Private Wealth Inc., the Canadian wealth-management arm of Australia-based Macquarie Group Ltd. The original deal included 185 advisory teams with $12.9 billion is assets under management. However, Andrew Marsh, president and CEO of Richardson GMP, decided that not every advisor would fit the Richardson model.
“During integration, we identified certain advisor businesses within Macquarie that were not a good fit with our business model focused on a disciplined approach to serving affluent families and entrepreneurs,” said Marsh in a press release. “We considered several options and are confident that this arrangement with Dundee offers the best outcome and opportunities for everyone involved, including clients.”
Under the $15 million deal, Dundee Goodman will take over the former Macquarie offices in Ottawa, Montreal and Victoria. A more limited transfer of advisors will take place from Richardson GMP offices in Vancouver, Calgary and Toronto to Dundee Goodman’s offices in those cities. Senior Dundee Goodman executives will travel to all six cities over the next week to explain details of the transaction and address questions and concerns.
For some advisors, this could be the fourth acquisition in a little more than 10 years. Macquarie purchased the wealth management firm from Blackmont Capital Inc. in 2009. Blackmont itself was created through its former parent company’s (Rockwater Capital Corp.) amalgamation of Toronto-based First Associates Investment Inc. and Calgary-based Yorkton Securities Inc. in 2002 and 2003 respectively. First Associates was rebranded as Blackmont in 2005.
“These advisors are highly sought-after professionals and we are confident that they will flourish at Dundee, another strong independent firm,” says Marsh. “We appreciate their support over the past few months and wish them every success in the future.”
The group of 60 Macquarie advisors manage portfolios with a combined value of approximately $2 billion. Upon completion of the transaction, Dundee Goodman Private Wealth will have about 100 investment advisors across Canada managing portfolios valued at more than $6 billion.
“This transaction marks a significant step forward in Dundee Corporation’s strategic plan to build its private wealth and capital markets divisions into first class entities,” said Ned Goodman, President and CEO of Dundee Goodman Private Wealth’s parent company, Dundee Corp. “We look forward to growing our assets and those of our clients over the foreseeable future. Our vision is to build long term increasing value in everything we do.”
Completion of the transaction is subject to a number of customary closing conditions, including regulatory approval by the Investment Industry Regulatory Organization of Canada. The transaction is expected to be completed during the first quarter of 2014. Staff and advisors joining Dundee Goodman will remain part of the Richardson GMP organization during the transition.