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NewsM&A

Creative Planning acquires $2.2B Syracuse RIA Rockbridge

The 23-employee firm keeps its client relationships and gains access to Creative Planning's in-house tax, legal and trust services.

$2.2BSyracuse RIA Rockbridge

At a glance

  1. The $2.2 billion book is roughly 0.3% of the $710 billion in assets under management and advisement that Overland Park, Kan.-based Creative Planning reports.
  2. Rockbridge clients keep their current advisors, who can now draw on Creative Planning's tax preparation, estate planning, legal, trust and retirement plan services, according to the announcement.
  3. Creative Planning also picks up capabilities in financial planning, investment management, estate planning, insurance and business succession planning, the firm said.

Creative Planning acquired Rockbridge Investment Management, a fee-only RIA in Syracuse, N.Y., with about $2.2 billion in client assets and 23 employees, the firm announced Wednesday.

The $2.2 billion book is roughly 0.3% of the $710 billion in assets under management and advisement that Overland Park, Kan.-based Creative Planning reports. Terms were not disclosed. Creative Planning's Form ADV filed July 10, 2026 lists $295.6 billion in regulatory assets, 320,323 accounts and 1,650 employees, a narrower measure than the firm's count of assets under management and advisement.

Rockbridge clients keep their current advisors, who can now draw on Creative Planning's tax preparation, estate planning, legal, trust and retirement plan services, according to the announcement. For the 23 people joining, the sale adds specialists they can put in front of existing clients, while the client relationships themselves stay with the advisors who hold them.

Creative Planning also picks up capabilities in financial planning, investment management, estate planning, insurance and business succession planning, the firm said.

Rockbridge's most recent Form ADV describes an employee-owned firm, with CEO Patrick Rohe and Managing Partner David Carroll holding the largest stakes and Charles Schwab as custodian. Its roots go back to 1991, when Craig Buckhout and Bob Ryan started an advisory firm focused on corporations and institutions. Rohe joined in 2009 from Wells Fargo, with a little over a year of advisor experience, to work with small businesses, individuals and families; Carroll arrived in 2014; Rohe became CEO in 2020, according to his LinkedIn profile and the firm's website. Alaris Acquisitions advised Rockbridge on the move.

A year of add-ons outside U.S. RIAs

The Rockbridge deal comes after a year in which Creative Planning's majority owner and CEO, Peter Mallouk, branched out beyond U.S. RIA acquisitions. The firm made two U.K.-based acquisitions, including London-based MASECO LLP, which has 123 employees, WealthManagement.com reported. In July it acquired an insurance brokerage based in Summit, Mo., specializing in commercial insurance, surety and risk management. In September it agreed to acquire an institutional consulting and investment research firm overseeing $4.3 trillion in assets for public and private retirement plans, endowments, foundations and insurance companies. That deal is slated to close in January 2027.

Reported by the M&A desk from WealthManagement.com and Form ADV (SEC IAPD). Published . Corrections

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