M&A roundup: Andersen, Platform expand

Andersen, the rapidly growing reboot of Arthur Andersen, has expanded its presence in Florida by opening a new office in Tampa where it's bringing in members of Reilly, Fisher & Solomon PA, a tax compliance and planning firm.

The deal will add 19 tax professionals and four managing directors from Reilly, Fisher & Solomon, who are joining as managing directors and employees of Andersen Tax LLC. The Tampa office will be Andersen's second in Florida in addition to West Palm Beach. Financial terms of the deal were not disclosed.

Reilly, Fisher & Solomon offers services in real estate and partnership taxation, S corporation and individual taxation, estate planning, trust taxation, business valuation and investment advice.

The expansion to Tampa is the latest part of Andersen's ambitious growth strategy in the U.S. and abroad. In the past year, the firm has grown its presence in the Midwest, Pennsylvania and Southern California, as well as launching a Global Valuation Practice in more than 20 countries in Latin America, North America, Europe and Asia.

Andersen has been expanding rapidly around the world since a group of partners from WTAS revived the Andersen name a decade ago by creating Andersen Tax. Former Andersen partner Mark Vorsatz and a group of 22 other former Andersen partners founded WTAS (short for Wealth and Tax Advisory Services USA Inc.) in 2002. As CEO, Vorsatz later renamed the firm Andersen Tax in 2014 after acquiring the trademarks and copyrights from Arthur Andersen LLP and Andersen Worldwide. Many of the firm's expansion deals have been in other countries as it built the Andersen Global network, but it has also been expanding in the U.S. under the shortened name Andersen. 

"Our client base in Florida, including high-net-worth individuals and large businesses, continues to grow, making Tampa an ideal extension of our global platform," said Vorsatz in a statement Tuesday. "From the Gulf Coast to the Atlantic Ocean, Floridians will have access to our independent tax guidance and a variety of multidisciplinary professional services, along with the high quality and service that our clients have come to expect from Andersen."

In January, Andersen added Reibman, a tax compliance and planning firm in San Diego. Last February, it added 45 professionals in Orange County, California, Des Moines, Iowa, and Pittsburgh. The firm added partners and professionals from Rickmeyer & Associates in Irvine, California; Vertical Advisors in Newport Beach, California; Hamilton Juffer & Associates and HJN Advisors in Des Moines; and Chemel Kornick & Mooney in Pittsburgh.

Andersen has more than 2,000 personnel and close to 300 managing directors in the U.S.