June 16, 2020
Louis Diamond Quoted
By Erick Bergquist
Jim Dickson, founder and CEO of Sanctuary Wealth, told WealthManagement.com that his firm will roll out a new financing program for its partner firms to make their own sub-acquisitions, using Sanctuary’s capital. Sanctuary Wealth takes only a minority stake in the sub-acquisition, with the partner firm keeping a majority.
Louis Diamond, executive vice president and senior consultant with Diamond Consultants, said Sanctuary’s model differs from that employed by others like Focus Financial Partners, Hightower, Emigrant Partners and Merchant Investment Management, with straight equity for acquisition deals.
Focus and Hightower always take 100% of the equity in any RIA they take on, whether the latter is a partner or an acquisition by that partner. Emigrant and Merchant both start with minority stakes with each partner, and that doesn’t change when the partner takes Emigrant’s capital and goes on to buy other RIAs. Only Dynasty Financial Partners and Sanctuary take zero equity in their partners fron the outset and, once the partner acquires another RIA, maintain that zero equity position once the partner absorbs the sub-acquisition, he said.