PLANADVISER - July/August 2018 - 23

Examining Two Industry M&As
A shared vision for the future drives deals
IN a deal that combines two fiduciary
training and technology solution
providers, Fi360 has acquired the Center
for Fiduciary Management (CFFM).
Talking through the motivation behind
the acquisition, Bill Mueller, Fi360 CEO,
says that compatible corporate cultures
and a shared vision for the long-term
future were both top factors in getting
the deal done.
" I first met Scott Revare, founder
and CEO of CFFM, more than a year
ago, and it became evident quite quickly
that he had a similar corporate outlook
to ours-one that's very client-serviceoriented, "
Mueller says. " I got the feeling
right away that [CFFM] understands
where the industry is going. The process
unfolded all the better as we found out
that they have some key pieces of the
puzzle that we didn't. "
In particular, Mueller says, he looks
forward to integrating CFFM solutions
such as FirmPlus, an investment
due diligence platform, as well as RFP
Director, a research and RFP management
platform, and Stable Value Navigator,
a third product that offers data
and insight about stable value funds
along with an opportunity to compare
advisers' fund choices.
On the same day Fi360 announced
its acquisition of CFFM, PLANADVISER
also spoke with Cathy Clauson, senior
vice president for investment product
management, retirement plan services
at the advisory tools and solutions
provider AssetMark. The conversation
marked the third anniversary
of an important acquisition in that
company's development-Aris Corp.
of America, which provided financial
solutions to advisers and their clients.
" That integration effort started with
the relatively easy migration of the highnet-worth
business, " Clauson observed.
" But the next task was moving the
retirement plans business, which they
had been running since 1974. It's really
interesting to look back because, at
that stage, the plans and relationships
were all still highly manual and highly
customized, client by client. "
The Aris retirement advisory
business had started as an entirely
in-house operation conducted by a
single attorney and staff actuary.
" They would just build out single
plans for clients, " Clauson says. " They
would build you whatever plan you
wanted, and we inherited that. So our
issue was that we had great expertise
and great advisers coming on board
who really knew the retirement business
inside and out, but it was not scalable
at all. "
Clauson and company spent over
a year-most of 2016 and into 2017-
studying that business and mapping it
over to a more scalable solution.
Another interesting advisory market
development came in the form of an
announcement
from broker/dealer
(B/D) Cetera Financial Group, which
revealed the launch of a new 401(k)
practice development program tailored
for its advisers-both those currently
serving retirement plans and those
seeking to expand into this market.
According to that firm, the program
features a " robust curriculum of live,
web-based training sessions supplemented
by industry-leading resources
and tools. " It has been developed with
Nationwide Financial and KnowHow
401(k).
Reflecting the language used by
Fi360 and AssetMark, Cetera says its
new program " demonstrates a longterm
commitment to supporting
retirement-plan-focused advisers
by
expanding the firm's existing offerings,
and it will help to extend our focus on
holistic advice to more participants. "
-John Manganaro
LPL's Long-Range View
A more scaleabe, universal solution is planned
WHEN Bill Beardsley, head of the retirement partners business at LPL, joined that
company some five years ago, there were perhaps 300 advisers in the business
who could be considered 401(k) plan experts.
Since then, both the number of retirement specialists at LPL and the number
working in the broader adviser marketplace has grown substantially. In the last
year alone, the LPL Retirement Partners program has attracted some 200 new
advisers, with 1,600 members now working on LPL's " hybrid platform. " Nearly
1,000 other advisers support retirement plans on the company's corporate platform,
and, overall, more than 6,000 in LPL's total adviser pool touch at least one
retirement plan.
With these numbers in mind, one can understand the frustration among LPL
leadership at the suggestion that their decision to close the Worksite Financial
Solutions program signals that the firm is turning away from retirement plan
services. " Worksite was a solution that was great for what it was, but we have
come to believe that we need something that's more scalable and that can be
more broadly adopted across our business, " Beardsley says. " That's what we're
building out right now, so I encourage your audience to stay tuned. "
He adds: " This is why you have heard the leadership here at LPL talk about
building a more unified sales structure. We continue to focus on this. "
-John Manganaro
planadviser.com july-august 2018 | 23
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PLANADVISER - July/August 2018

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