CI Financial completes acquisition of interests in two U.S. wealth firms

TORONTO (July 8, 2020) – CI Financial Corp. (“CI”) (TSX: CIX) today announced it has completed the acquisition of strategic interests in two U.S. registered investment advisor (“RIA”) firms – Congress Wealth Management, LLC (“Congress”) of Boston and The Cabana Group, LLC (“Cabana”) of Fayetteville, Arkansas.

The transactions, which were first announced earlier this year, have added a total of $5.0 billion in assets to CI’s wealth management business. CI now holds interests in four U.S.-based RIAs with total assets of $8.1 billion.

“We have made rapid progress in building our U.S. wealth management business, becoming one of the  fastest-growing RIA platforms in the U.S. since we entered the market a few months ago,” said Kurt MacAlpine, CI Chief Executive Officer. “Our unique value proposition for RIAs is resonating in the market and I expect us to continue to realize strong growth going forward.

“Our wealth strategy is driven by our belief that the financial advisor is more important than ever as our clients’ financial lives become increasingly complex. RIAs constitute the fastest-growing segment of U.S. wealth management and these firms are an excellent complement to our Canadian wealth platform. Not only is there potential for synergies in investment and wealth planning services, but we are now able to offer true cross-border services to our Canadian clients.”

Congress provides wealth management and family office services to high-net-worth individuals, families, foundations, and endowments, with an emphasis on comprehensive and customized client plans. The firm was named to the Financial Times 300 Top Registered Investment Advisors list of 2019, the third time in four years it has received the award.

Cabana, which offers a comprehensive suite of investment management and wealth planning services, was ranked by Financial Advisor magazine as the fastest-growing RIA in the U.S. in 2018 and the second fastest-growing RIA in 2019. It is the parent company of Cabana Asset Management, which offers a highly successful lineup of risk-managed portfolios – the Target Drawdown Portfolios – to its retail clients and on a sub-advisory basis to RIAs and advisors across the U.S.

The Congress and Cabana transactions closed on July 2 and June 16, 2020, respectively. Terms were not disclosed. CI’s other RIA acquisitions include majority interests in Surevest, LLC, of Phoenix and One Capital Management, LLC, of Westlake Village, California.

CI’s RIA strategy supports two of CI’s three strategic priorities – globalizing the company and expanding its wealth management platform. CI’s other strategic priority is to modernize its asset management business.

About CI Financial

CI Financial Corp. (TSX: CIX) is an independent company offering global asset management and wealth management advisory services. CI held approximately $179 billion in fee-earning assets as of June 30, 2020. CI’s primary asset management businesses are CI Investments Inc. and GSFM Pty Ltd., and it operates in wealth management through Assante Wealth Management (Canada) Ltd., CI Private Counsel LP, WealthBar Financial Services Inc., BBS Securities Inc., The Cabana Group, LLC, Congress Wealth Management, LLC, One Capital Management, LLC and Surevest LLC. Further information is available at www.cifinancial.com.

All financial amounts in Canadian dollars unless otherwise specified.

The Financial Times 300 Top Registered Investment Advisers is an independent listing produced annually by the Financial Times. The FT 300 is based on data gathered from RIA firms, regulatory disclosures, and the FT’s research. The listing reflected each practice’s performance in six primary areas: assets under management, asset growth, compliance record, years in existence, credentials and online accessibility. This award does not evaluate the quality of services provided to clients and is not indicative of the practice’s future performance. Neither the RIA firms nor their employees pay a fee to The Financial Times in exchange for inclusion in the FT 300. This rating by the Financial Times is not indicative of our future performance and may not be representative of any one client’s experience.

This press release contains forward-looking statements concerning anticipated future events, results, circumstances, performance or expectations with respect to CI Financial Corp. (“CI”) and its products and services, including its business operations, strategy and financial performance and condition. Forward-looking statements are typically identified by words such as “believe”, “expect”, “foresee”, “forecast”, “anticipate”, “intend”, “estimate”, “goal”, “plan” and “project” and similar references to future periods, or conditional verbs such as “will”, “may”, “should”, “could” or “would”. These statements are not historical facts but instead represent management beliefs regarding future events, many of which by their nature are inherently uncertain and beyond management’s control.  Although management believes that the expectations reflected in such forward-looking statements are based on reasonable assumptions, such statements involve risks and uncertainties. The material factors and assumptions applied in reaching the conclusions contained in these forward-looking statements include that the investment fund industry will remain stable and that interest rates will remain relatively stable.  Factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from expectations include, among other things, general economic and market conditions, including interest and foreign exchange rates, global financial markets, changes in government regulations or in tax laws, industry competition, technological developments and other factors described or discussed in CI’s disclosure materials filed with applicable securities regulatory authorities from time to time. The foregoing list is not exhaustive and the reader is cautioned to consider these and other factors carefully and not to place undue reliance on forward-looking statements. Other than as specifically required by applicable law, CI undertakes no obligation to update or alter any forward-looking statement after the date on which it is made, whether to reflect new information, future events or otherwise.

For further information:

CI Financial Corp.
Murray Oxby
Vice-President, Communications
416-681-3254
moxby@ci.com