Mercer Advisors Inc., a national Registered Investment Adviser (RIA), today announces the acquisition of Bell Wealth Management, a respected RIA firm located in Austin, Texas.
Bell provides comprehensive wealth management to affluent and high net worth clients, and has been helping people achieve their financial goals for over 20 years. The firm serves approximately 125 households with assets under management (AUM) of $200 million. This acquisition brings Mercer Advisors’ total offices to 37 and increases AUM to $15 billion.
Dave Welling, Chief Executive Officer of Mercer Advisors, stated, “We are delighted to join forces with Colin Bell, and the entire Bell Wealth Management team. Like Mercer, Bell has a long history of providing investment management and financial planning services to professionals in the medical community. Mercer Advisors currently serves over 1,500 physicians and dentists nationwide, helping these clients in multiple areas including tax planning, estate planning, asset protection, and corporate trustee advisory services. We look forward to working with Colin and his team to expand our footprint in Texas and to deepen our local talent pool.”
Colin Bell, President of Bell Wealth Management, added, “When we first began thinking about the possibility of merging with a larger firm, there were several names I thought might be a good fit. However, after a significant amount of research and discussion, it became clear that Mercer was the right partner for us. It really boiled down to a few key conversations with David Barton to see that our priorities and vision for the future were in alignment. While other firms could offer similar terms, what was most important to me was finding the perfect convergence of what is right for our clients, our employees, and our stakeholders. As a fiduciary, I believe that every decision we make must pass through a filter which asks ‘Is this good for the client?’ Mercer shares our values, our investment philosophy, and our passion for serving people. Therefore, we are very excited to continue our professional journey with Mercer Advisors.”
David Barton, Vice Chairman at Mercer Advisors and head of M&A, added, “We believe Mercer Advisors will be an excellent fit for Bell. First, our investment philosophies are aligned; we both focus on global asset allocation and factor-based investing, rooted in academic theory and validated by decades of empirical evidence. Second, we are both strong advocates for the fiduciary model, always putting clients’ interests first. These are the core beliefs that will allow us to work well together and will enable us to provide world-class wealth management to the people we serve. Lastly, we are pleased to extend our presence in Austin, a dynamic and growing market. Bell follows several other recent acquisitions in Texas–Dean Murray and Associates (Austin – 2017), Kanaly Trust (Houston – 2016) and Pegasus Advisors (Dallas – 2016). We think there is significant opportunity in this state and we look forward to the future.”
About Mercer Advisors
Established in 1985, Mercer Advisors Inc. is a total wealth management firm that provides comprehensive, fee-only investment management, financial planning, family office services, retirement benefits and distribution planning, estate and tax planning, asset protection expertise, and corporate trustee and trust administration services. Mercer Advisors is the parent company of Mercer Global Advisors, one of the largest independent Registered Investment Advisers and financial planning firms in the U.S. with $15 billion in client assets. Headquartered in Denver, Mercer Advisors is privately held, has over 300 employees, and operates nationally through 37 branch offices across the country. For more information, visit www.merceradvisors.com.
