Wellington-Altus Financial Inc. is seeking a private equity partner to buy 20% to 30% of its advisors’ shares.
Wellington-Altus wants to thank the advisors that trusted them in the early stages of the business, Shaun Hauser, CEO and founder of Wellington-Altus, said in an interview. “When we were smaller, there was more risk in our model. And we want to recognize that incredible trust and loyalty [by] putting some hard dollars in their jeans.”
The firm will begin to look for an investment partner early in the 2025 fiscal year, and aims to close the deal next summer, Hauser added.
Last December, U.S.-based alternative asset manager Cynosure Group injected $40 million into Wellington-Altus in a second-round growth equity investment, which raised Cynosure’s stake in Wellington-Altus to 15%.
With a cap of 30% for the new partner, Wellington-Altus will maintain its status as a Canadian-controlled private corporation, Hauser said.
There’s a high probability that the partner will also come from the U.S., but Hauser said the firm is open to the right investor from anywhere in the world.
Although the secondary transaction will primarily benefit shareholders, the investment partner is expected to bring a wealth of expertise and industry connections to help Wellington-Altus grow, Hauser said. “We want to just rinse and repeat the characteristics that we were fortunate enough to find with the Cynosure Group. And we want to find that in a new collection of folks that have the same qualities.”
Wellington-Altus has been on a growth spree in recent months. It acquired ICPM business in Ontario in August, established a $100-million line of credit with Ares in September and launched a new subsidiary in October. The firm’s has $35 billion in assets under management, up from $25 billion.