Mesirow Buys flexPATH's 3(38) Business in Retirement Push

Mesirow has agreed to acquire flexPATH Strategies' 3(38) custom investment management business, WealthManagement.com reported. The Chicago-based, employee-owned financial services firm, with roughly $164 billion in assets under management and advisement, expects the deal to close in the fourth quarter. Mesirow declined to disclose the size of the business by assets.

The deal marks Mesirow's second acquisition in the outsourced fiduciary space this year, following its May purchase of LeafHouse Financial Advisors. flexPATH, based in Minneapolis, is a target-date fund provider; its 3(38) business handles fund selection for employer-sponsored retirement plans. In late 2025, flexPATH sold its collective investment trust business and brand rights to Great Gray Trust Company.

Mesirow's move deepens its retirement plan fiduciary platform, which serves about 10,000 financial advisors. The deal reflects a broader push by wealth managers to combine workplace retirement plan services with individual wealth management—a trend on display this week as OpenArc Corporate Advisory expanded its institutional workplace services.

For Mesirow, the flexPATH acquisition adds custom portfolio capabilities to its fiduciary solutions unit. For the retirement plan market, it is another sign of consolidation among 3(38) providers as scale becomes central to competing for plan sponsor mandates.

This is a bolt-on that strengthens Mesirow's existing fiduciary platform rather than a transformative deal. Buying flexPATH's 3(38) business likely gives Mesirow a deeper bench of custom portfolio talent and client relationships, but Mesirow's silence on asset size makes the multiple hard to gauge.

Mesirow's two acquisitions in one year signal an aggressive build-out in outsourced fiduciary services. With plan sponsors increasingly seeking a single fiduciary partner across retirement, HSA, and other workplace benefits, expect more RIAs and asset managers to buy rather than build 3(38) capabilities.

The deal is expected to close in the fourth quarter. Competitors tracking consolidation in the outsourced fiduciary space will likely watch how Mesirow integrates flexPATH's custom portfolio business.