RubinBrown merges with JMW & Associates

RubinBrown
Details: RubinBrown LLP, a Top 50 Firm based in St. Louis, has added JMW & Associates LLC, a firm in Overland Park, Kansas, in the Kansas City metropolitan area.

As part of the deal, JMW will join RubinBrown’s Private Client Services Group, which offers high-net-worth individuals and families, family office groups and their businesses tax and wealth advisory services. Six JMW partners and approximately 44 other team members will be joining RubinBrown and will continue to be based in Kansas City.

RubinBrown has 147 partners and ranked No. 44 on Accounting Today’s 2022 list of the Top 100 Firms. The firm has revenue of approximately $160 million. Financial terms of the deal were not disclosed.

“We are very excited to be joining forces with RubinBrown,” said JMW managing partner Anne Walker in a statement Tuesday. “This combination will allow us to continue to serve our clients, and deliver exceptional service with an expanded network of resources.”

JMW & Associates has been serving clients for over 15 years. The firm specializes in working with high-net-worth individuals and families, and family office groups on tax and wealth planning services. It also offers family and business tax services, including estate and transfer planning, succession planning, trusts, family limited partnerships, corporate and partnership income tax compliance and consulting.

“Our clients continually need help to navigate tax matters that impact their businesses and their families,” said RubinBrown chairman John Herber Jr. in a statement. “This combination reflects RubinBrown’s commitment to expanding our tax services practice and ensuring our clients have a trusted advisor for all of their needs, personal and professional.”

Last year, RubinBrown merged in Liberty Technology Advisors, a software consulting firm in Chicago. In 2020, RubinBrown added Wealth Management Advisors, a firm in Leawood, Kansas.

MGO combines with Eckhoff

Details: Macias Gini & O’Connell LLP, a Top 100 Firm based in Los Angeles, has added Eckhoff & Company CPAs and Advisors, a firm in San Rafael, California. 

As part of the deal, Eckhoff’s team of over 20 members will join MGO and Eckhoff managing partner Michele Hassid will join MGO as a tax principal and lead the San Rafael office. In addition, the Eckhoff Wealth Management practice will be joining MGO’s wealth management affiliate, MGO Private Wealth, bolstered by Bruce Frankel, managing partner of Eckhoff Wealth Management, adding a list of high-net-worth clients. Eric Briese will become a partner at Eckhoff Wealth Management.

“With complementary service lines and a like-minded commitment to providing team members with an amazing team member experience, we’re proud to welcome Eckhoff and its team members to MGO,” said MGO president and CEO Danielle Berg in a statement Tuesday. “California is a vital market for MGO’s growth and the addition of Eckhoff expanded our talent and resources in the Bay Area. MGO will continue to grow through strategic combinations with leading firms across key markets in the United States.” 

Financial terms of the deal were not disclosed. MGO ranked No. 59 on Accounting Today’s 2022 list of the Top 100 Firms, with $98 million in annual revenue. Eckhoff earned $3.6 million in annual revenue. MGO has more than 600 staff members, including 48 partners and three principals. Eckhoff has 22 staff members. 

Koltin Consulting Group CEO Allan Koltin advised both firms on the merger. “MGO is viewed by their peers nationally as having great leadership and a really cool culture — a melting pot for ambitious talent that wants to grow professionally,” he said in a statement. “They are one of the country’s fastest growing and most admired firms. Eckhoff was one of San Francisco’s most prestigious and sought after firms. They were continuously approached for a merger by other regional and national firms but loved the culture and depth of resources that MGO brought to the table.” 

Eckhoff dates back to 1955 and provides tax and accounting solutions to individuals and businesses across the San Francisco Bay Area. The wealth management business started in 2017 when Frankel joined the firm. 

“MGO quickly proved itself a like-minded partner that shares our values, our culture, and our commitment to providing world-class financial solutions,” said Eckhoff managing partner Michele Hassid in a statement. “We expect a seamless transition for our clients — they will continue to receive the dedication they expect from us now with a broader range of services to successfully manage their financial future.” 

Eckhoff clients will get access to MGO’s set of services, including assurance and advisory services, and specialty offerings like R&D tax credits, international tax, transaction advisory, and cyber and information security. 

“Our practice has always been about offering our clients more value through integrated services,” Frankel said in a statement. “With MGO, our power to provide our clients with specialty tax and advisory services increases exponentially.” 

Former Eckhoff staff will continue to work from the Bay Area as the newest MGO office in San Rafael. 

In 2019, MGO acquired Schwartz & Co., a firm in New York.

PYA acquires Crux Strategies

Pershing_Yoakley_Associates.jpg
Details: PYA, a Top 100 Firm based in Knoxville, Tennessee, has purchased Crux Strategies, a firm in Nashville, as an affiliate brand, bringing it into the PYA Enterprise where it will join affiliate firms Realty Trust Group, PYA Waltman Capital, and Intuitive MB.

Crux, a business advisory and consulting firm, was founded in 2015. The firm specializes in business intelligence, issues management, and data collection for clients. Crux works in corporate strategy, health care compliance, government relations and more. 

Crux founder C. Timothy Gary, an attorney and business executive who focuses on health care and government relations is joining PYA. He and senior vice president of government relations, Matt King, will retain ownership as well.

“Tim’s legal knowledge in the healthcare industry and Crux's work in data and business intelligence will greatly benefit our clients,” said PYA managing principal of consulting services David McMillan in a statement last month.

PYA, formerly known as Pershing Yoakley & Associates, has been providing management consulting and accounting services for over 35 years, helping clients with regulatory compliance, mergers and acquisitions, governance, business valuations and fair market value assessments, multi-unit business and clinical integrations, best practices, tax and assurance, business analysis and operations optimization. 

Financial terms of the deal were not disclosed. PYA ranked No. 86 on Accounting Today’s 2022 list of the Top 100 Firms, with $55.61 million in annual revenue, and approximately 32 partners and 374 employees.

“Joining PYA will allow Crux an opportunity to expand our capabilities — using data and business intelligence tools to provide strategic insight to our clients,” Gary said in a statement. “We look forward to joining the PYA Enterprise and working together to help our clients succeed.”
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