Cerity Partners has announced plans to merge with the Contant-Leit and Wacht Groups of Shufro Rose & Co., two New York City-based wealth advisory practices managing approximately $1.4 billion in assets.
The proposed combination will expand Cerity Partners’ presence in New York and bring additional experienced financial advisors and longstanding client relationships into its national wealth management platform.
The practices will operate under the Cerity Partners brand following completion of the proposed combination.
Their parent firm, Shufro Rose & Co., traces its wealth management history to 1938.
The Contant-Leit and Wacht Groups have developed their businesses through decades of financial advisory relationships with individuals and families.
Their principals bring particularly long tenures at Shufro Rose.
Stephen Leit joined the firm in 1984, John Contant joined in 1996, and Harvey Wacht joined in 2001.
Together, their experience spans multiple market cycles and generations of client relationships.
The practices report an average client relationship of approximately 21 years, reflecting the multigenerational nature of their wealth management businesses.
Their advisory services include portfolio management and comprehensive financial planning.
Clients receive assistance with retirement planning, estate and legacy strategies, insurance, taxes, education funding, and financial planning for successive generations.
The groups also emphasize research-based investment management tailored to individual client circumstances.
For Cerity Partners, the proposed combination will add an established advisory business with substantial experience serving individuals and families in New York City.
The transaction also creates opportunities to introduce the incoming groups’ clients to the firm’s broader financial planning and investment resources.
Cerity Partners intends to preserve the personalized client relationships developed by the two practices while providing additional specialists and institutional resources.
The combination reflects the firm’s approach to expanding through partnerships with established advisory teams whose business models emphasize comprehensive financial advice.
Cerity Partners’ broader organization provides investment management, financial planning, tax services, and other wealth advisory capabilities to clients with complex financial requirements.
By bringing the Contant-Leit and Wacht Groups into its platform, the firm expects to strengthen its presence in New York while expanding its relationships with multigenerational families and individual investors.
The incoming advisors will also gain access to additional professional resources that can support more specialized client needs.
However, the announcement describes an intended merger rather than a completed transaction.
The companies have not disclosed the transaction’s financial terms or a definitive completion date.
Houlihan Lokey is serving as financial advisor to the Contant-Leit and Wacht Groups, with Katz Teller providing legal counsel.
Lowenstein Sandler is serving as legal counsel to Cerity Partners.
The proposed combination would bring approximately $1.4 billion in additional advisory assets to Cerity Partners once completed.
KEY QUOTES:
“We are thrilled to welcome our new colleagues from the Contant-Leit and Wacht Groups whose commitment to personalized, comprehensive advice reflects everything we value at Cerity Partners. Their deep, multigenerational client relationships, commitment to their colleagues, and their presence in New York will strengthen our ability to serve individuals, families, and businesses.”
Claire O’Keefe, Head Of Partner Development At Cerity Partners
“We couldn’t be more excited to join Cerity Partners, a firm that shares the values that have guided our practice for decades: independence, diligence, and always putting clients first. As a part of Cerity Partners, our clients will receive the same personalized guidance from the same trusted team, now backed by a broader set of resources, expertise, and capabilities to help them achieve even more.”
John Contant, Principal And Senior Financial Advisor At Shufro Rose & Co.
