Corient is making its presence felt in the global wealth management space, now with the backing of an Abu Dhabi sovereign wealth fund and a fresh wave of capital to deploy. The firm announced yesterday that it has acquired Bristlecone Advisors, a Bellevue, Washington-based multifamily office managing roughly $2 billion in client assets.
This deal adds to a growing list of recent transactions for Corient, which is aggressively expanding both domestically and abroad. The company recently integrated a New England advisory group with $8 billion in client assets and revealed plans to purchase two European wealth management firms that collectively oversee $214 billion. If all these acquisitions close as expected, Corient’s total assets under advisement will climb to an impressive $430 billion—cementing its position among the largest independent wealth platforms in the world.
Founded in 1999, Bristlecone Advisors is a 19-person team that serves about 400 clients, according to regulatory filings. The firm employs eight registered advisors and has built a reputation for tailored planning and investment strategies for high-net-worth families and individuals in the Pacific Northwest. Managing Partner Kevin S. Berry said the Corient acquisition will allow Bristlecone to scale its offerings without compromising its boutique service model. “Joining Corient gives our team access to additional services, scale, and resources,” Berry said. “We’ll be able to enhance our operational capabilities and deepen our client relationships.” Terms of the transaction were not disclosed.
For Corient, the Bristlecone deal continues a remarkable transformation story. The firm’s current expansion is the product of both strategic timing and a significant shift in ownership. Its parent company, Toronto-based CI Financial, began a U.S. buying spree early in the decade, acquiring a series of independent registered investment advisors in an effort to establish a foothold in the American market. But the pace of that growth came at a cost. CI soon took on substantial debt, forcing the company to rethink its structure.
In 2023, CI Financial sold a minority stake in its U.S. wealth arm to lighten its balance sheet and attract external investment. Just a year later, in 2024, the company agreed to a full sale of its U.S. wealth business to a subsidiary of an Abu Dhabi sovereign wealth fund. The move provided a critical influx of capital and global backing that has now positioned Corient for accelerated expansion and stability under new ownership.
The firm’s current growth strategy appears to be aimed squarely at building scale, expanding internationally, and competing directly with the largest global wealth platforms. Its deal activity comes at a time when consolidation in the registered investment advisor space has reached record highs.
According to new data from DeVoe & Company, a consulting and investment banking firm specializing in RIA M&A, the third quarter of 2025 marked a historic high for deal volume in the wealth management sector. From July through September, DeVoe tracked 94 transactions—putting the industry on pace for its most active year on record.
That level of activity underscores the growing appetite among investors and strategic buyers for advisory firms with established client bases, recurring revenue, and scalable infrastructure. The forces driving consolidation remain consistent: rising compliance costs, intensifying competition, and the need for greater operational efficiency and digital capabilities.
For firms like Corient, the strategy is clear—build scale and leverage global capital to deliver an enhanced client experience. Backed by Abu Dhabi’s deep financial resources, Corient is positioning itself as a long-term consolidator in a market still dominated by fragmented, regionally focused RIAs.
Industry analysts note that the Bristlecone acquisition is indicative of Corient’s “hub-and-spoke” approach to growth—anchoring regional offices with established client relationships and local reputations, then supporting those teams with national-level infrastructure, technology, and investment management resources.
For advisors inside these acquired firms, joining Corient often means access to a deeper bench of investment expertise, expanded platform capabilities, and the kind of institutional-grade resources that can help them compete with the wirehouses while maintaining an independent mindset.
Bristlecone’s Pacific Northwest presence adds another key geographic component to Corient’s expanding footprint, which already spans much of the U.S. and parts of Europe. The firm’s client base of approximately 400 households represents a concentrated group of high-net-worth families and entrepreneurs—a demographic that aligns with Corient’s broader strategic focus on bespoke wealth management and multigenerational planning.
In interviews with industry observers, several have pointed out that Corient’s rapid dealmaking signals a new era of capital-backed independence within the RIA ecosystem. The infusion of sovereign wealth capital is a particularly notable development, as it brings long-term, patient funding into a segment traditionally reliant on private equity and short-term return cycles. That could give Corient an edge in pursuing larger, more complex acquisitions that require substantial upfront investment but promise sustainable cash flow over time.
While private equity has dominated the RIA M&A narrative for most of the past decade, sovereign and institutional investors are increasingly viewing the advisory space as a stable, cash-generating sector with durable margins and limited volatility. Corient’s new ownership reflects that trend—and could reshape expectations around deal structure, valuation, and long-term strategy across the industry.
For smaller advisory firms, the implications are twofold. On one hand, the surge in M&A offers a chance to partner with larger organizations capable of delivering advanced technology, compliance, and client service resources that can be difficult to replicate independently. On the other, it heightens competitive pressure for firms that wish to remain autonomous, particularly as larger players like Corient continue to expand their service models and geographic reach.
DeVoe’s latest quarterly report reinforces this momentum, noting that interest from both strategic acquirers and financial sponsors remains robust, even amid higher borrowing costs. Many buyers, the report notes, are taking a long-term view—seeing advisory firms not just as cash-flow assets, but as scalable platforms for diversified wealth solutions, including trust services, insurance, and alternative investments.
Corient’s global strategy suggests it sees the same opportunity. With $430 billion in potential total assets under advisement once its pending deals close, the firm is quickly ascending into the top tier of global wealth managers. Its international expansion plans in Europe could open new doors for cross-border planning, institutional partnerships, and family office services tailored to ultra-high-net-worth clients with global footprints.
As competition among mega-RIAs intensifies, the ability to integrate acquisitions smoothly and maintain client relationships through transitions will be crucial. Corient’s leadership appears aware of that challenge. The firm has emphasized cultural alignment, client continuity, and shared vision as priorities in its integration process—a key factor in retaining the entrepreneurial spirit that attracts many independent advisors to begin with.
The firm’s future acquisitions will likely follow a similar pattern: targeting established RIAs and multifamily offices with strong local reputations, experienced teams, and compatible client demographics. Corient’s deep pockets, combined with its global infrastructure, allow it to pursue transactions that balance scale with specialization—a mix that has become increasingly attractive in today’s evolving wealth landscape.
The broader M&A wave sweeping through the industry shows no signs of slowing. As 2025 progresses, industry watchers expect continued record-setting activity, fueled by succession planning pressures, rising valuations, and capital availability from institutional investors. Corient’s latest move is a vivid illustration of that momentum—and a reminder that the RIA space, once defined by independence and regional focus, is fast becoming a global, capital-intensive industry.
For advisors and firm owners, the message is clear: scale and strategy now matter as much as service and relationships. Whether through mergers, partnerships, or selective growth, the next era of wealth management will be defined by firms that can align both. Corient, powered by sovereign capital and an aggressive acquisition pipeline, is making an unmistakable statement—it intends to be one of them.
