RIA Edge Nashville
At RIA Edge Nashville, Corey Kupfer discussed alternatives to private equity for firms seeking a non-PE-backed aggregator model, while also breaking down the role PE serves in the RIA space, including how it’s structured, the types of deals it works best for, and the firms it’s best positioned to support.
A major theme throughout the conversation was the industry’s shift toward integrated operations and single-brand models. The driving force behind that trend is the public markets’ preference for businesses that can be replicated, scaled efficiently, and accelerated quickly.
While Corey doesn’t expect a significant wave of public offerings in 2026, he does see firms actively reshaping their business models now to become more attractive for future public market opportunities in the years ahead.
https://next.frame.io/share/b887a144-7652-48d7-a1cc-46779e7cd5a6/view/50276a3e-01a4-49a3-bb43-fe21efa0853b
RIAs explore litigation finance via SEI Access
As advisors look for alternative investments beyond traditional market drivers, litigation finance is emerging as a niche but closely watched asset class with high returns and high risks. Earlier this year, SEI expanded its alternatives marketplace, SEI Access, to include a litigation finance offering, highlighting growing interest in the space among sophisticated investors.
Corey Kupfer, Founder & Managing Partner at Kupfer., spoke with Andrew Cohen of InvestmentNews about the asset class’s potential for high returns, its low correlation to broader economic conditions, and why its risk profile may make it especially relevant for ultra-high-net-worth clients and multi-family office models.
Read the full piece: https://www.investmentnews.com/alternatives/rias-explore-litigation-finance-via-sei-access/266602
Kupfer Expands Transactional Practice With Addition of M&A Attorney Sara Mostafa
We’re excited to announce that Sara Mostafa has joined Kupfer. as Partner, bringing extensive experience advising RIAs, wealth management firms, and entrepreneurs on M&A, succession planning, contracts, and other strategic legal matters.
Sara has built a reputation as a trusted legal advisor to clients navigating complex transactions and operational challenges. At Kupfer, she will continue helping clients execute growth strategies, manage risk, and position their businesses for long-term success.
Her addition further strengthens Kupfer.’s commitment to delivering sophisticated legal counsel tailored to the evolving needs of founders, business owners, and growing companies across a variety of industries.
Read more: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20260518385357/en/Leading-Corporate-Attorney-Sara-Mostafa-Joins-Kupfer.
Hightower Sees Future With More 'Flagship' Firms
As consolidation continues across the RIA space, firms are increasingly focused on scaling through strategic partnerships.
Corey Kupfer, Founder & Managing Partner at Kupfer., spoke with Alex Ortolani of WealthManagement.com on what Hightower’s acquisition of The Bahnsen Group signals for the industry and how firms are thinking about growth, integration, and succession.
Read the full piece: https://www.wealthmanagement.com/ria-news/hightower-planning-more-flagship-firms-based-on-bahnsen-group-acquisition
RIA Buyers Say Slow Growers Must Prove Deal Will Boost Production
Alex Ortolani, reporter for WealthManagement.com, shares insight from Corey Kupfer, founder and managing partner of Kupfer., during a panel at RIA Edge Nashville on how advisors should think about private equity-backed deals, noting that “you have to understand what the private equity model is and what it isn’t, what it causes, and what the implications of it are,” says Kupfer.
Click here to read more
How AI Will Shift The Executive Pipeline
Brian Meegan, partner at Kupfer., is featured in Megan Poinski’s Forbes CEO Newsletter where he discusses how companies are integrating AI into their workforce as employees, new and existing, try to climb the corporate ladder “With the access and ability to digest the larger amount of information quickly in very specific scenarios, they’re really well positioned to leverage AI as a wisdom tool or an assistant in doing more complex work without as much support from the top level. The more people that can adopt that mindset as you go down from the CEO level is the target. That’s where the KPIs need to be reimagined so the pathway really starts to focus,” Meegan says.
To read more click here
Merrill moves to lift court stay as Dynasty arbitration fight intensifies
What's in store for the future of wirehouse breakaways? Corey Kupfer, Founder and Managing Partner at Kupfer., weighs in on the Merrill Lynch and Dynasty dispute, answering questions around how FINRA jurisdiction and advisor autonomy could shape the future of large-team transitions in a recent article from Andrew Cohen at InvestmentNews.
Read the full story here: https://www.investmentnews.com/regulation-legal-compliance/merrill-moves-to-lift-court-stay-as-dynasty-arbitration-fight-intensifies/265364
RIA Crystal Ball Reveals Creative PE Funding, Mid-Market Mergers and Big Breakaways
As larger wirehouse and national platform teams consider launching their own supported RIAs, infrastructure matters more than ever. In a recent article by Alex Ortolani in WealthManagement.com, Corey Kupfer, Founder and Managing Partner at Kupfer., explains that firms looking to attract these breakaway teams must deliver strong institutional capabilities. That means robust support for retirement accounts, stock plans, and stock plan administration, not just independence.
Read the article here: https://www.wealthmanagement.com/ria-news/ria-crystal-ball-reveals-creative-pe-funding-mid-market-mergers-and-big-breakaways
Hightower adds second chief compliance officer amid broader restructuring
Corey Kupfer, founder and managing partner at Kupfer., connects with Andrew Cohen at InvestmentNews about how private equity involvement has impacted how large-scale RIAs function, pointing to Hightower’s Signature Wealth Launch. “I believe that private equity investors are going to continue to push firms in this direction as single-brand more integrated models create more efficiencies, ease of scale, and enterprise value,” Kupfer says.
To continue reading: https://www.investmentnews.com/ria-news/hightower-adds-second-chief-compliance-officer-amid-broader-restructuring/264810
$40B Arax Partners to 'Turn Up Dial' on Recruiting Breakaway Advisor Teams
In Alex Ortolani’s recent WealthManagement.com article, Corey Kupfer, Founder and Managing Partner at Kupfer., shares his perspective on the competitive landscape for recruiting breakaway advisor teams and the continued momentum around advisor movement.
Read the full story here: https://www.wealthmanagement.com/ria-news/-40b-arax-partners-to-turn-up-dial-on-recruiting-breakaway-advisor-teams
M&A surges in North American financial services, but bubble potential emerging
Corey Kupfer, Founder and Managing Partner at Kupfer Law, dives into how RIA markets are proving continuous resilience from market volatility as M&A remains robust, in a recent Mergermarket piece from Calvin Trice. Corey examines how recent dealmaking momentum may be contributing to emerging industry bubbles and could attract a new wave of buyers in 2026.
Read the article here: https://ionanalytics.com/insights/mergermarket/ma-surges-in-north-american-financial-services-but-bubble-potential-emerging/
Goldman Sachs Ayco adds Creative Planning to growing RIA referral program
In Andrew Cohen’s recent InvestmentNews article, Corey Kupfer, Founder and Managing Partner at Kupfer Law, discusses Goldman Sachs’ expansion of the Ayco referral program and highlights key considerations for participating RIAs.
Corey notes that it is still unclear whether firms will be required to have a custodial relationship with Goldman and emphasizes that both Goldman and participating RIAs should be careful not to breach fiduciary duties as referral programs expand, particularly when it comes to referral fees, revenue sharing and potential quid pro quo use of investment and lending solutions.
Read the full story here: https://www.investmentnews.com/ria-news/goldman-sachs-ayco-adds-creative-planning-to-growing-ria-referral-program/264746
RIA M&A poised for another record year in 2026, DeVoe finds
RIA leaders expect 2026 to mark another year of record-breaking deal activity for mergers & acquisitions, according to RIA M&A consultant DeVoe & Company.
DeVoe’s Annual RIA M&A Outlook released Monday found 54% of RIA leaders expect M&A volume to increase over the next 12 months, while 44% expect deal volume to remain steady. Only 2% of respondents expect deal volume to decline over the next 12 months, and this comes as 2025 was the most active dealmaking year on record for RIA M&A, according to DeVoe.
To read more click here
Top RIA execs make 9 bold predictions for wealth management in 2026
Mega-mergers between consolidators? An agentic AI revolution? Asset management brands throwing their weight into the space? Several industry heavy hitters make their calls for the year to come.
To read more click here
'Sudden' succession plan at Focus Financial draws skepticism
In Andrew Cohen's recent InvestmentNews article examining Focus Financial Partners' latest CEO transition, Corey Kupfer, Founder and Managing Partner at Kupfer., shared his perspective on the sudden switch and what the lack of communication around the changeover could signal about the situation.
Read the full article here: https://www.investmentnews.com/ria-news/sudden-succession-plan-at-focus-financial-draws-skepticism/263567
Private equity’s expanding footprint in RIAs: What advisors need to know for 2026
In Steve Randall's latest InvestmentNews article, Corey Kupfer, Founder and Managing Partner at Kupfer., dives into private equity's expanding footprint in RIAs, what advisors should be considering as they plan for a sale, common missteps, and more. For firms looking to remain independent, Corey suggests: “Stay close with their clients, emphasize value propositions that distinguish them from the PE-backed serial acquirers, and stay up with the times in terms of the client experience, technology, and clients’ desires and needs.”
Read the full piece here: https://www.investmentnews.com/practice-management/private-equitys-expanding-footprint-in-rias-what-advisors-need-to-know-for-2026/263666
What Will M&A Look Like in 2026?
How will 2025's record-breaking M&A market shape up in 2026? In Lilly Riddle's recent article in The Daily Upside, Corey Kupfer, Founder and Managing Partner at Kupfer., explores the forces that could reshape dealmaking in 2026 and how private equity will play a role.
Read the full story here: https://www.thedailyupside.com/advisor/practice-management/what-will-ma-look-like-in-2026/
LPL Financial investment in Private Advisor Group strengthens position as M&A force for RIAs
Corey Kupfer, founder and managing partner at Kupfer., shares insight into LPL’s minority ownership stake in PAG with Andrew Cohen at InvestmentNews. “LPL seems to be first focused on investing in firms already on its platform to help retain them in the face of minority and acquisition offers from competitors and PE firms directly. Most firms that have done that have moved to making investments and doing acquisitions of firms off the platform after they locked up their large internal teams,” Kupfer says.
Click here to read more: https://www.investmentnews.com/independent-broker-dealers/private-advisor-group-investment-deepens-lpl-as-ria-ma-force/263159
Shutdown Could Endanger Record Year for RIA Approvals
Corey Kupfer, founder and managing partner at Kupfer., speaks with Alex Ortolani from WealthManagement.com about how the shutdown may result in costly delays for some RIAs who had been preparing to launch. “We have several clients on hold, we have a number of firms we were ready to launch, and most of them are in limbo. Some firms are contorting their plans to make things work,” says Kupfer.
Click here to read more: https://www.wealthmanagement.com/regulation-compliance/shutdown-could-endanger-record-year-for-ria-approvals
Why Hightower Had To Change Course
Corey Kupfer, founding and managing partner at Kupfer., explains to Charles Paikert at Family Wealth Report how Hightower Advisors’ new Signature Wealth division is influencing branding in the RIA industry. “This is the direction in which the industry is moving. PE investors are going to continue to push firms in this direction as single-brand more integrated models create more efficiencies, ease of scale and enterprise value,” says Kupfer.
Click here to read more