Ep 397: Powering Growth To $1.2B Of AUM With An Intentional Focus On (Local) Acquisitions Of Retiring Advisors With Jaime Benedetti

Financial Advisor Success

Michael Kitces

News, Business, Entrepreneurship, Business News

4.8 • 696 Ratings

🗓️ 6 August 2024

⏱️ 92 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

Jaime Benedetti is the Managing Principal of Benedetti, Gucer, and Associates and BEAM Wealth Advisors, hybrid advisory firms based out of Georgia and Louisiana that oversee a total of $1.2-billion in assets under management for approximately 900 households. Jaime's firm has uniquely expanded to over $1 billion in AUM over the last 20 years, largely through six strategic acquisitions of mixed fee-and-commission practices from retiring local advisors, which he successfully converted into ongoing, recurring revenue financial planning clients - an approach that has not only fueled growth but also streamlined the firm’s revenue model into a more predictable and sustainable framework.

Listen in as Jaime shares how he has skillfully managed the acquisition of firms with assets ranging from under $10 million to nearly $500 million, evolving from using personal funding sources to securing bank-financed loans that cover the full purchase price. He explains his strategic approach to converting acquired firms from commission-based to fee-based models, details his method for identifying potential acquisition targets through a combination of recruiters, marketplaces, and networking, and shares the importance of taking time to integrate new acquisitions thoroughly, which has not only retained clients but also attracted sellers who prioritize the welfare of their clients post-acquisition.

For show notes and more visit: https://www.kitces.com/397

Transcript

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0:00.0	Welcome to the Financial Advisor Success Podcast, where you go behind the scenes with
0:07.1	financial planner, speaker, and consultant Michael Kitsis to hear stories of how leading
0:12.4	financial advisors navigated the inevitable challenges that arise on the path to success
0:17.4	and get insight from leading industry consultants about how to break through to the next
0:22.2	level in your advisory business. And now here's your host, Michael Kitsas. Welcome, everyone. Welcome to
0:29.6	the 397th episode of the Financial Advisor's Success Podcast. My guest on today's podcast is Jaime
0:35.4	Benadetti. Jaime is the managing principle of Benedetti, Gutier, and associates, and also Bean
0:40.1	Wealth Advisors, a pair of hybrid advisory firms based in Atlanta, Georgia, and Covington, Louisiana,
0:45.6	that collectively oversee nearly $1.2 billion in assets under management for approximately
0:50.4	900 client households.
0:52.3	What's unique about Jaime, though, is how his firm has grown to
0:55.4	more than $1 billion in AUM over the past 20 years, in part by making a series of six acquisitions,
1:00.8	typically buying mixed fee and commission practices from retiring advisors in his local area and then
1:05.4	converting them into ongoing recurring revenue financial planning clientele. In this episode,
1:11.7	we talk in depth about how Jaime has managed the acquisition of firms ranging in size from under 10 million to nearly
1:16.6	half a billion in assets under management. How the way Jaime's firm has financed these deals has
1:21.5	changed over time from scraping together funds from family and personal credit for its first deal
1:25.8	to bank financing business loans for
1:28.1	100% of the purchase price today. And how Jaime's firm convinces clients of the acquired firms
1:34.1	who sometimes have only been served on a commission basis to transition to the firm's fee-based
1:38.9	model, including by emphasizing the lower costs and more comprehensive ongoing service that can come with this approach.
1:45.7	We also talk about how Jaime identifies potential firms to acquire, including how he leverages
	...

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