CBIZ completes Marcum acquisition

CBIZ has completed its acquisition of Marcum LLP, creating a combined firm with approximately $2.8 billion in annual revenue.

The megadeal between Cleveland-based CBIZ and New York-based Marcum was originally announced in July with publicly traded CBIZ acquiring the non-attest assets of Marcum. Concurrent with the closing of the $2.3 billion cash-and-stock deal, the attest business of Marcum was acquired by CBIZ CPAs (formerly known as CBIZ MHM, short for Mayer Hoffman McCann), a national independent CPA firm with which CBIZ has had an administrative service agreement for over 25 years. Mayer Hoffman McCann announced in August that it was changing its name to CBIZ CPAs.

"We are pleased to have successfully closed the acquisition of Marcum, which represents a major milestone and new chapter for CBIZ, our people and our shareholders," said CBIZ president and CEO Jerry Grisko in a statement Friday. "Now, with over 10,000 team members, we will offer our clients an enhanced breadth of services and depth of expertise unmatched in our industries all aimed at helping them grow their business. With even deeper subject matter expertise, industry resources, service lines and insights, we can provide actionable advice and new and innovative data-driven products and solutions. We are excited to welcome the Marcum team to CBIZ and look forward to a bright future together."

Courtesy of CBIZ

CBIZ and MHM together ranked No. 11 on Accounting Today's 2024 list of the Top 100 Firms. CBIZ reported $1.6 billion in annual revenue last year. Marcum ranked No. 13 and has approximately $1.2 billion in revenue and more than 3,500 professionals. Combined, CBIZ will have more than 10,000 team members and over 135,000 clients. CBIZ provides finance, insurance and advisory services in more than 120 offices in 33 states, while Marcum has 43 offices in major markets across the U.S.

Last year, the Securities and Exchange Commission and the Public Company Accounting Oversight Board charged Marcum with systemic quality control failures and violations of audit standards, mainly in connection with its audits of special purpose acquisition company, or SPAC, clients. The SEC imposed a $10 million penalty, while the PCAOB simultaneously levied a $3 million penalty against the New York-based firm for violating its rules and quality control standards, its largest ever penalty against a firm that isn't part of a global network like the Big Four. The SEC later charged Marcum's national assurance services leader at Marcum LLP with failing to address and remediate a number of deficiencies in the firm's quality controls.

Both CBIZ and Marcum have participated in many M&A deals. CBIZ has done over 120 acquisitions since 2008. This year alone, in March, CBIZ acquired CompuData, a Philadelphia-based accounting solutions provider that specializes in software for small and midsize organizations. In February, the firm announced it acquired Erickson, Brown & Kloster LLC in Colorado Springs, Colorado, effective Feb. 1, 2024, while Mayer Hoffman McCann acquired the attest assets. In February of last year, CBIZ acquired the nonattest assets of Top 100 Firm Somerset CPAs and Advisors, an Indianapolis-based firm, while MHM acquired the attest assets.

In June, Marcum Technology, the tech arm of Marcum, acquired the IT Enhanced Managed Services division of Top 10 firm CliftonLarsonAllen. In May, Marcum acquired Croskey Lanni PC, a firm based in the Detroit area with an office in Boca Raton, Florida, and Simon, Krowitz, Meadows & Bortnick, a firm based in Rockville, Maryland. In February, Marcum merged in Powers & Sullivan, a firm based in Wakefield, Massachusetts. In January, Marcum acquired Federman, Lally & Remis LLC, a firm in Farmington, Connecticut. Last year, Marcum added McCarthy & Co., a Regional Leader headquartered in Blue Bell, Pennsylvania, and Melanson, P.C., a Regional Leader firm in Merrimack, New Hampshire. In 2022, Marcum merged in E. Cohen and Co., CPAs, a Regional Leader firm in Rockville, Maryland, and completed a megamerger with another top firm, Friedman LLP, as well as a merger with RotenbergMeril CPAs, a firm in Saddle Brook, New Jersey.