May 6, 2026
Louis Diamond Quoted
By Andrew Cohen
Advisors at The Retirement Planning Group will begin using the Cetera Planning Partners brand on July 15. Cetera said it expects Avantax Planning Partners to shift to the Cetera Planning Partners brand later this year.
Louis Diamond of advisor recruiting firm Diamond Consultants says that Cetera-owned employee-advisor practices will support a rising valuation for Cetera, which is majority owned by private equity firm Genstar Capital. Genstar first invested in Cetera in 2018, and made a reinvestment in 2023.
“From a valuation standpoint, those businesses that are fully owned employee advisors, are much more valuable. So if you put that into the broader Cetera ecosystem, it does bolster the overall value of Cetera,” said Diamond.
The entire Cetera network spans over 12,000 advisors with $640 billion in assets under administration and $294 billion in assets under management. Diamond said Cetera Planning Partners could mirror the strategy from RIA aggregator Focus Financial and its moves to consolidate firms under its Focus Partners Wealth brand.
“They’re potentially creating optionality for having something very valuable to sell, even outside of Cetera, if it’s very successful,” said Diamond. “It keeps the option alive, either when Cetera has a recap, or goes public. You have a more valuable segment of the business. You could spin it off, or you can sell it.”
