Move follows last year’s expansion of employee-owned firm’s footprint across fast-growing Pacific Northwest
The Alaska-based firm to brand as Coldstream and join existing team
Coldstream Wealth Management (“Coldstream”) announced a merger with LWM Wealth Management a Kenai, Alaska-based firm with approximately $170 million in assets under management. LWM, owned by Roy A. Wells CFP® and Mark Griffin CFP®, will operate under the Coldstream brand. Upon completion of the merger, Coldstream will have 26 financial advisors, 122 employees and more than $7 billion in assets under management.
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Coldstream’s expansion into Alaska reinforces its position as one of the top independent wealth management firms in the fast-growing Pacific Northwest. It comes on the heels of its recent mergers with Paracle Advisors (Mercer Island, Wash.) and Rosenbaum Financial (Portland, Ore.), and the firm’s office opening in Boise, Idaho.
Additionally, the transaction reflects Coldstream’s ongoing commitment to growing its business under an employee ownership model while shunning private equity funding – a stark contrast to much of the M&A activity that has defined wealth management in recent years.
“We’re excited to partner with Legacy and extend Coldstream’s reach into the important Alaskan marketplace,” said Kevin Fitzwilson, Coldstream’s Managing Shareholder. “Roy and Mark have built a vibrant independent practice over the years, thriving by providing an exceptional and customized wealth management experience to their clients. Their culture of service and integrity is a perfect fit with Coldstream’s core values, so we look forward to working together to support the hard-working people of Alaska’s investment and financial planning needs.”
Experienced Advisors Join Well-Respected Team
Legacy has built its business over the decades by providing ongoing investment management services to clients across Alaska, including high-net-worth individuals, trusts and estates.
After the merger, Mark, Roy and Michelle McGlasson (Client Services Associate) will join the existing Bellevue, Wash., team led by Coldstream co-founder Roger Reynolds. Roger also heads the firm’s Disabled Advisory Services group, a unique offering focused on providing customized wealth management and adaptive-oriented solutions for disabled individuals and their families.
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“Critical to our search for a new partner was making sure that the client-centric culture that Legacy has strived so hard to establish over the years remained intact,” Mark said. “In selecting Coldstream, we’re confident that will happen, with the firm set to deliver enhanced resources that will both boost our ability to deliver a top service experience to our clients across the country and allow us to remain approachable and true to our Alaska roots.”
He continued, “We did extensive due diligence and met with a number of firms before deciding we belonged with Coldstream. Their value proposition of providing comprehensive, transparent and objective advice through an employee-owned, independently operated firm structure convinced us that they were the right partner. We are excited to be taking this next step in the growth of our practice by merging with Coldstream and collaborating with Roger and his well-respected team of investment professionals.”
Roy added, “We feel so fortunate that this merger provides a smooth transition and enhanced services for our valued clients. Though changing names, we are proud of our research results: our legacy continues with Coldstream.”
Roger added, “I have a decades long history of working with clients based in Alaska, so I am excited to build on that by welcoming Mark, Roy and Michelle to Coldstream. Together, they have built an impressive business and served their clients with distinction. In joining my team, I am confident that they will be able to maintain the independent spirit that has driven their success and grow further by leveraging our size and scale to streamline their operations and offer even greater support.”
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