The established RIA services provider is joining forces with the leading modern custodian to accelerate a joint mission to make financial advice better, more affordable, and accessible to everyone

Altruist, the modern custodian for independent registered investment advisors (RIAs), today announced it has acquired Shareholders Service Group (SSG), an award-winning brokerage and custodial platform serving over 1,600 advisors across the US. The SSG leadership team brings a rich tradition and culture of best-in-class RIA custody services to Altruist. The acquisition will help the Fintech juggernaut double the footprint of its RIA-exclusive services and product offerings which already include digital account opening, trading, reporting, and billing.

"This acquisition enhances our mission to make financial advice better, more affordable, and accessible to everyone," said Jason Wenk, Founder and CEO of Altruist. "Our firms have strong alignment on the substantial value financial advisors add to their clients' lives and how we can empower them to reach more people."

Just weeks after the launch of Altruist Clearing – the RIA industry’s first all-in-one custodian – Altruist identified an opportunity to partner and integrate with fellow RIA service providers. After operating for over 20 years and scaling to thousands of advisors, the SSG leadership team was looking for the ideal partner for the next opportunity of growth and innovation. The decision to integrate with Altruist was clear – both companies share a mission focused on democratizing access to independent financial advice and share fundamental operating principles focused on customer service, exceptional value, and great client experiences.

Peter Mangan, Founder and CEO of SSG, added "When we started SSG in 2002, our goal was to be the most dependable and trusted partner to advisors, based on transparency in our pricing and service, and efficiency in our brokerage and reporting tools. Today we are very excited to be joining with Altruist in writing the next chapter in the RIA custody business as we empower advisors with the most cutting-edge technology and service platform.”

Advisors can expect zero disruption to their business as Altruist and SSG leadership maintain the existing relationship with Pershing. For advisors interested in getting access to Altruist’s all-in-one custodian and RIA platform, there will be seamless transition opportunities assisted by the Altruist client development team. Benefits for advisors who make the switch include tens of thousands of dollars in savings on software costs and dozens of hours in time savings each week. Those advisors will also benefit from continuous, high velocity product innovation that will help them grow their practice and meet the needs of newer generations of clients to come.

"Altruist and SSG have always emphasized continuous innovation, tech-enablement, and exceptional customer service enabling advisors to do more while paying less," said Mazi Bahadori, CCO and EVP of Operations of Altruist.

The combined momentum of the two companies will accelerate the 400% YoY growth rate Altruist experienced in the previous year. New advisors cite low barriers to entry with no asset minimums, streamlined client onboarding, and a consolidated software offering as primary reasons they chose Altruist over institutional incumbents such as Schwab and Fidelity.

“Altruist is rapidly emerging as the leader in the RIA custodian market, and the SSG partnership serves as further proof of their commitment to independent RIAs,” said Nick Beim, Partner at Venrock. “We know that together, Altruist and SSG will deliver what independent RIAs expect and need from a custodian in order to best serve their clients,” added Dan Skiles, President of SSG.

The transaction is subject to regulatory approval. The terms of the transaction have not been disclosed. Broadhaven Capital Partners is acting as exclusive financial advisor to Shareholders Service Group in relation to the transaction.

To learn more about how Altruist is revolutionizing financial advisory services, visit altruist.com and get started free.

ABOUT ALTRUIST

Altruist is the modern custodian for independent RIAs. Altruist combines a self-clearing brokerage firm with intuitive software for account opening, trading, reporting, and billing – all in one streamlined solution. With Altruist, you can create custom models, trade fractional shares, automate rebalancing, and share performance with clients using a modern mobile app. Learn more at https://www.altruist.com and follow Altruist on Twitter @altruist.

“Altruist Clearing” is a marketing name of Altruist Financial LLC. Altruist Corp (“Altruist”) offers technology and tools designed to help financial advisors achieve better outcomes. Advisory services are provided by Altruist LLC, an SEC-registered investment adviser, and brokerage related products and services are provided by Altruist Financial LLC, a member of FINRA/SIPC. Nothing in this communication should be construed as an offer, recommendation, or solicitation to buy or sell any security. Additionally, Altruist or its affiliates do not provide tax advice and investors are encouraged to consult with their personal tax advisors. Clearing and custodying are provided by Altruist Financial LLC. © 2023 Altruist Corp 3030 S La Cienega Blvd Culver City, CA 90232. For more on fees, see our fee schedule at https://www.altruist.com/legal.

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