Corient has agreed to acquire Seven Bridges Advisors, a New York-based registered investment advisor and multi-family office overseeing approximately $4.9 billion in client assets. The deal will expand Corient’s presence in New York and add a team specializing in comprehensive wealth management and private markets investing for entrepreneurs, founders, financial services executives and ultra-high-net-worth families.
Following completion of the acquisition, Seven Bridges’ principals will become Corient Partners. The firm will join a global wealth management organization with approximately $535 billion in assets under management and advisement.
Seven Bridges was founded by Larry Cohen, who serves as Partner and Chief Executive Officer. The firm’s multi-family office model is designed to help wealthy families coordinate investment management with broader financial, tax, estate and legacy planning needs.
Multi-family offices provide services similar to those offered by a dedicated single-family office but serve multiple families through one shared organization. The structure can give clients access to specialized investment, planning and administrative capabilities without requiring them to build and manage an independent office.
Seven Bridges has developed particular expertise in private markets investing, which may include private equity, venture capital, private credit, real estate and other assets that are not traded on public exchanges.
These investments can provide diversification and access to longer-term opportunities, but they may also involve reduced liquidity, longer holding periods and more complex due diligence than publicly traded securities.
Corient CEO and Founding Partner Kurt MacAlpine said Seven Bridges’ client-centered and team-based operating model aligns with Corient’s approach.
He also noted that the firm’s relationships with entrepreneurs, founders and technology executives will complement Corient’s existing practice serving those client groups.
Founders and business owners can have particularly complicated financial circumstances because a large share of their wealth may be concentrated in one company or illiquid asset.
Advisory needs may include preparing for a liquidity event, managing concentrated stock exposure, evaluating private investments, coordinating tax and estate strategies, and planning how wealth will be transferred to future generations.
Financial services and technology executives may also require specialized advice involving equity compensation, carried interest, restricted stock, deferred compensation and regulatory considerations.
The addition of Seven Bridges is intended to give those clients access to Corient’s broader investment management, wealth strategy and family office capabilities.
Corient operates through a private partnership structure modeled on professional services firms. Instead of organizing each client relationship primarily around one individual advisor, the model is designed to connect clients with specialists from across the organization.
The company believes this structure encourages collaboration among teams and allows advisors to draw on the firm’s collective capabilities when addressing investment, estate, tax, philanthropic and family governance matters.
Seven Bridges founder Larry Cohen said Corient’s partnership model and range of services were important factors in the decision to join the firm.
He said the structure will enhance the capabilities Seven Bridges can provide while giving its clients access to additional expertise and resources.
Once the transaction closes, Seven Bridges’ principals will participate in Corient’s partnership structure alongside more than 300 existing partners.
Corient was established in 2020 and has expanded to more than 2,700 employees globally. The firm focuses on ultra-high-net-worth and high-net-worth individuals, families and businesses.
Its services include investment management, wealth strategy and family office support.
The Seven Bridges transaction continues Corient’s expansion through the addition of established advisory firms serving affluent and complex client relationships.
For wealth managers, acquisitions can expand geographic reach, add specialized teams and increase assets under management. They may also provide acquired firms with additional technology, investment research, compliance infrastructure and succession planning resources.
Advisor continuity is especially important in transactions involving wealthy families because relationships may span multiple generations and involve detailed knowledge of each family’s businesses, investments and personal priorities.
Corient’s partnership structure is intended to retain the entrepreneurial leadership of acquired advisory teams while integrating them into a larger organization.
Houlihan Lokey is serving as the exclusive financial advisor to Seven Bridges, while Neal, Gerber & Eisenberg is acting as its legal advisor.
KEY QUOTES:
“Larry and his team have built a sophisticated practice serving wealthy clients with complex needs.”
“Their client-centered, team-based approach will fit in well at Corient. The team’s longstanding focus on entrepreneurs, founder and technology executives complements and expands Corient’s existing dedicated practice area serving these clients.”
Kurt MacAlpine, Founding Partner and Chief Executive Officer of Corient
“What drew us to Corient was its partnership structure, which puts collaboration first and gives every client access to the collective expertise of the firm.”
“This model, unique in wealth management, combined with the quality and breadth of services offered by Corient, significantly enhances what we can deliver to clients.”
Larry Cohen, Founder, Partner and Chief Executive Officer of Seven Bridges Advisors
