EP Wealth Makes Second Deal of 2025 with Colorado Acquisition
Torrance, Calif.-based EP Wealth Advisors’ first acquisition outside its home state was in Colorado in 2015. Its second deal of 2025 brings it back to that state with the acquisition of Denver-based Holben Group.
Holben Group was founded in 2006 and has grown to about $190 million in assets under management through financial planning and investment for individuals and families, including many first responders, according to the firm.
Holben Group founder Jeffrey Holben and partner Clinton Demming will join EP Wealth as vice presidents, advisors and partners, and team member Patricia Parker join as a wealth advisor. The new team will work with EP Wealth Regional Director Jon Moore and Colorado’s larger EP Wealth team.
EP Wealth has more than 47 offices in 16 states and manages over $31 billion in assets.
F.L.Putnam Adds $330M Firm in Virginia
F.L.Putnam Investment Management announced its first move of 2025 by acquiring a Reston, Va.-based registered investment advisor overseeing $330 million in AUM.
AOG Wealth Management founder Frederick P. Baerenz and a nine-person team will join F.L.Putnam with its practice serving high-net-worth individuals, companies, pension plans, trusts, and donor-advised funds. The firm works with clients in Virginia, Washington D.C., and Maryland.
“Our combination with AOG demonstrates our commitment to providing value-added services to our current clients while enhancing our team with talented advisors in new locations where our clients live and work,” Tom Manning, CEO of F.L.Putnam, said in a statement.
Through the deal, F.L.Putnam will also become the investment manager of Baerenz’s AOG Institutional Fund, which provides institutional investors access to alternative investments, including real estate, private credit and private equity.
Baerenz will be president of the fund, noting that the move to F.L. Putnam, while good for his team’s growth, will also enable him to focus on “building a world-class interval fund.”
The deal is Lynnfield, Mass.-based F.L.Putnam’s fifth acquisition in the past 12 months, bringing its office presence to 10 nationally.
Cetera Brings on Advisor and Industry Educator Tim Clairmont
Cetera Financial Group announced that advisor Tim Clairmont is joining the firm with $235 million in assets under administration and his ClearFP Advisor Program, which provides educational resources and training to advisors.
Clairmont will keep his firm name, Clear Financial Partners, which provides financial planning and investment advice to firms and individuals.
“I’ve been looking for the right broker/dealer and RIA partner for a very long time,” Clairmont said in a statement. “When you work with a broker/dealer and an RIA partner, you need to have a firm that has the resources to be significant while still having the forward-thinking mentality to adapt and fly in this rapidly changing landscape.”
Clairmont founded Clear Financial Partners in 1997 and launched the advisor program in 2017 to train, assess, consult and provide practice development tools and strategies.
Ameriprise Snags Former LPL Shop in Tennessee
RIA Highland Wealth Management, with offices in Tennessee, is taking its $210 million in client assets from LPL Financial to Minneapolis-based Ameriprise Financial.
After an “extensive search” for a new broker/dealer, Highland Wealth lead Lee Hooks said the firm chose Ameriprise for client satisfaction, technology and independence backed by Ameriprise’s brand and platform.
“We have big goals for growth and believe Ameriprise will help us get there,” Hooks said in a statement.
His team includes financial advisors Adam Kock, Clyde Allen III, Kathryn Haislip Lintz, Mike Wickberg and Whitney Shimatsu. They will work with Ameriprise Franchise Field Vice President George Varones and Ameriprise Regional Vice President Trish Moll.
LPL Welcomes Shorepoint Wealth Management
LPL Financial has hired another advisor, former Wells Fargo advisor Justin Lotano, who had been overseeing about $250 million in client assets.
Lotano, based in Colts Neck, N.J., will join LPL’s broker/dealer, RIA and custodial platforms. He will be joined by financial advisor Joe Burgard, registered representative Kevyn Marteniz and two staff members.
“We are a young team, with an average age of about 30, but we have a great level of experience guiding individuals into a more successful retirement,” Lotano said in a statement, noting they specialize in assisting clients through divorce and other life transitions.
