167 announced RIA transactions in H1 2026 set a new record and extended activity growth to a seventh straight quarter, even as deal prices stopped climbing.
Buyer discipline among large private-equity-backed consolidators is capping multiples, with one-fifth expecting valuations to decline over the next six months and nearly three-quarters seeing a wider buyer-seller expectation gap.
20 times EBITDA remains achievable for well-managed RIAs with about $5 billion in assets, while fast-growing $1 billion firms can still fetch very high-teen multiples; outsized prices for the biggest sellers are skewing smaller firms' expectations.
Less than a 30% chance exists of a mega-merger between RIAs with more than $50 billion each in assets over the next year, leaving the acquisition sweet spot in the $1 billion-to-$5 billion range.
Hightower, Savant and Beacon Pointe led consolidators with eight acquisitions each through June, underscoring that succession, scale and growth goals are still driving deals even without ideal market conditions.