Centre Street Partners announced the launch of Accretus, a technology-enabled real estate transaction services platform, anchored by the acquisition of Atlanta Deferred Exchange (ADE), an Atlanta-based Qualified Intermediary specializing in 1031 exchanges.
The launch marks the first publicly announced investment from Centre Street Partners Fund II. Accretus is designed to serve one of the largest and most fragmented categories in real estate services, where more than $100 billion in annual 1031 exchange value flows through the U.S. market.
Founded in 2008 by Ron Raitz, Atlanta Deferred Exchange has become one of the largest independent Qualified Intermediaries in the United States. The company facilitates more than 600 exchanges annually and handles approximately $500 million in exchange proceeds for property owners across all 50 states while maintaining a near-100% customer satisfaction rate.
Accretus will be led by Chief Executive Officer Adam Friedman, who spent nearly a decade at BlackRock and most recently served as a director on the firm’s AI & Analytics Engineering team. ADE founder Ron Raitz will remain a minority shareholder and join the Accretus board of directors alongside Centre Street Partners managing partners Abie J. Cohen and Jonathan Kerstein, and operating partner Julian Gutman.
Centre Street Partners said the platform will pursue a growth strategy centered on investments in operational infrastructure and acquisitions that broaden the suite of services available to clients. Under Accretus, ADE plans to expand beyond the Southeast and increase its geographic reach while enhancing its capabilities for investors and advisors across multiple asset classes and transaction types.
Centre Street Partners was founded in 2022 by Abie J. Cohen and Jonathan Kerstein and focuses on lower middle-market buyouts. The firm partners with technical operators to modernize legacy service businesses and has previously invested in AI and AI-enabled companies including OffDeal, Bridge Defense, and Arcee AI.
KEY QUOTES:
“Centre Street Partners is built around the conviction that highly trusted, profitable professional services providers like ADE stand to benefit disproportionately from the value created by technology in the coming decade. Atlanta Deferred Exchange has built the type of outstanding reputation and level of client trust in the marketplace that results from decades of consistent, high-quality service. It’s in this context that we’re particularly excited about ADE as the foundation for Accretus, which will execute on a proven playbook that pairs world-class technical talent with investments in operational infrastructure and long-term growth, and an M&A-led approach to expanding the suite of services we provide to our valued clients.”
“Our deliberately measured, team-centric approach resonates with a specific kind of operator, and Adam Friedman is exactly that kind of leader. He has a unique combination of customer focus, operating discipline, and technical heft that epitomizes what world-class leadership looks like in the AI age, and we’re thrilled to have him lead Accretus.”
Jonathan Kerstein, Managing Partner, Centre Street Partners And President, Accretus
“Accretus is on a mission to become the leading integrated transaction services platform for real estate. 1031 exchanges sit at one of the most tax and time-sensitive points in the real estate investment lifecycle, and the provider landscape today is fragmented, manual, and largely under-resourced. ADE gives Accretus a profitable, trusted foundation to build a platform that preserves ADE’s laser focus on serving real estate investors and their advisors with a level of trust, speed, and sophistication that is missing at scale in today’s market.”
Adam Friedman, Chief Executive Officer, Accretus
“ADE has spent decades earning the trust of our clients and their advisors through the dedication of our exceptional team, and I’m excited about the firm’s growth prospects under Centre Street Partners’ stewardship. This is a significant moment for ADE, and Centre Street Partners and Adam are the ideal partners to take what we’ve built and scale it nationally. I’m proud to remain a shareholder and a Board member for the exciting journey ahead.”
Ron Raitz, Founder, Atlanta Deferred Exchange
