Merit Financial Advisors has acquired The Bridgeway Group, a Southern California wealth management firm overseeing approximately $900 million in assets. Bridgeway has offices in Pasadena and Covina and is led by longtime partners Matt Dupon, Sean Montgomery, and Scott Miller. Its nine-person team provides financial planning and investment management services with a particular focus on retirement planning.
The transaction represents Merit’s 61st acquisition and its ninth partnership of 2026. Bridgeway is also the sixth team formerly affiliated with Commonwealth Financial Network to join Merit following the announcement of Commonwealth’s acquisition by LPL Financial.
All Bridgeway employees are joining Merit. Dupon and Montgomery will become Wealth Manager, Partner, while Miller will serve as Area Director, Wealth Manager, Partner.
Bridgeway spent 13 years affiliated with Commonwealth Financial Network and grew approximately 22% annually over the past five years through market appreciation, acquisitions, and organic growth.
The firm has historically generated organic growth largely through referrals from clients and professional relationships, including attorneys and CPAs. The partners expect to use Merit’s marketing, technology, operational, and growth infrastructure to expand while reducing administrative responsibilities.
Bridgeway rebranded as Merit Financial Advisors when the transaction closed on July 31, 2026. Financial and legal terms were not disclosed.
Atlanta-based Merit has more than 55 offices nationwide and approximately $30.1 billion in total assets as of July 20, 2026, including $22.982 billion in advisory assets, $3.32 billion in brokerage assets, $2.65 billion in employer plans, and $1.8 billion in ESOP assets.
KEY QUOTES:
“Bridgeway brings together many of the qualities we look for in a partner: a deeply client-centric culture, a strong financial planning orientation, an experienced multi-generational team and a genuine desire to continue growing. Matt, Sean and Scott are entrepreneurial partners who want to invest in the future of their business and in Merit. Combined with the addition of Pradel Financial Group in the Seattle area earlier this year, Bridgeway gives us another outstanding team and further strengthens our growing presence on the West Coast.”
David Wahlen, Executive Vice President/Strategic Partners at Merit Financial Advisors
“We knew we were going to make a transition, so it made sense to step back and ask where we wanted to go from here. We have built a strong business and want to keep growing, but continuing at this pace requires greater infrastructure and support. Merit gives us that support while allowing us to maintain the independence that has always been extremely important to us.”
“So much of owning a growing firm becomes HR, insurance, marketing, operations and other responsibilities that have little to do with why we entered this profession. If we can spend more time serving clients and doing the work we enjoy, and less time on the things that pull us away from that, we believe it makes us a better firm and gives us greater capacity to grow.”
Matt Dupon, Wealth Manager and Partner
“We had an incredibly positive experience at Commonwealth for many years, so our standard for what came next was very high. What I liked about Merit was the service, the people, the accessibility and the feeling that you are part of a community rather than simply a number in a much larger organization. Those qualities mattered a great deal to us.”
Sean Montgomery, Wealth Manager and Partner
“For me, one of the most exciting parts of joining Merit is what it can mean for the next generation of our business. We have always operated much like a family business, where clients can reach the people they know and trust. Merit has that same accessibility while giving us a much broader set of growth, marketing and career-development opportunities.”
Scott Miller, Area Director, Wealth Manager and Partner
