Recruiting & M&A

Recruit Advisors and Source Acquisitions

With regulatory-grade data, not scraped profiles.

RIA aggregators, IBDs, and M&A teams need firm-level intelligence they can trust for due diligence — not marketing databases repackaged for deal sourcing. AllocatorBase gives you SEC-verified data on every registered investment advisor in the country, with scoring and pipeline infrastructure to manage your target list inside your CRM.

Why SEC Data Matters for RIA M&A

The RIA consolidation wave is accelerating. Aggregators like Focus Financial, Creative Planning, Hightower, and Wealth Enhancement Group are acquiring firms at record pace. IBDs are recruiting breakaway advisors from wirehouses. Private equity firms are backing wealth management roll-ups. Every one of these transactions starts with the same question: which firms are the right targets?

Most deal teams answer that question with scraped contact databases, conference badge scans, and word-of-mouth referrals. The data is inconsistent, the AUM figures are unverified, and there is no systematic way to score, pipeline, or track targets through a deal process.

Form ADV changes this. Every registered investment advisor files Form ADV with the SEC annually and updates it for material changes. This filing contains verified AUM, client counts, client type breakdowns, fee structures, custodian relationships, and regulatory history. AllocatorBase extracts, scores, and pipelines this data so your deal team can work from regulatory-grade intelligence instead of scraped estimates.

From Target Lists to Scored Deal Pipeline

AllocatorBase gives recruiting and M&A teams three things that contact databases don't: regulatory-grade firmographics, target scoring, and deal pipeline infrastructure.

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SEC-verified firm intelligence

Every RIA profile is built from Form ADV filings and IAPD regulatory data. Verified AUM, AUM growth trajectory, number of clients, client type mix (HNW, institutional, retail), fee structures, custodian relationships, CRD numbers, and filing history. No scraped data. No unverified estimates. Every data point is traceable to a public regulatory filing.

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Target scoring

Each firm receives a Probability Score (0–100) that you can configure for your acquisition criteria — AUM band, growth rate, geographic fit, client type alignment, custodian compatibility. The score ranks your targets so your deal team focuses on the highest-probability opportunities first, not the ones that happen to be at the top of a spreadsheet.

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Deal pipeline in your CRM

AllocatorBase installs pipeline stages into HubSpot or Salesforce that match the M&A workflow: target identification, initial outreach, introductory meeting, NDA/CIM, LOI, due diligence, close. Track every target through your deal process with the same infrastructure that capital formation teams use for fundraising pipelines.

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Pipeline velocity analytics

How many targets are in each stage? What is the average time from identification to LOI? Where are deals stalling? Velocity analytics give your leadership team visibility into the M&A pipeline that a spreadsheet tracker can't provide.

How Recruiting & M&A Teams Use AllocatorBase

RIA Aggregators

Screen Roll-Up Targets at Scale

Filter the entire RIA universe by AUM band, growth rate, geography, custodian, client type, and fee structure. Score targets against your acquisition criteria. Pipeline the top 50–200 into your CRM with deal-specific stages and track progression from identification through close.

IBD Recruiting

Identify Breakaway Candidates

Use Form ADV data to find RIAs with characteristics that signal recruiting readiness — specific AUM thresholds, certain custodian relationships, growth trajectories, or client type concentrations. Pipeline candidates in your CRM with recruiting-specific deal stages.

PE-Backed Platforms

Source and Diligence Wealth Management Acquisitions

Private equity firms backing wealth management roll-ups need regulatory-grade firmographics for target screening and preliminary due diligence. Form ADV data provides verified AUM, client counts, fee revenue indicators, and regulatory history — the foundation of any LOI model.

M&A Advisory

Build Deal Flow Pipeline for Wealth Transactions

M&A advisors sourcing buy-side or sell-side mandates in wealth management need a systematic view of the target universe. AllocatorBase provides the data layer and CRM pipeline to manage deal flow at scale — beyond the conference-and-referral model.

Form ADV Fields Available for M&A Screening

SEC-sourced data points relevant to recruiting and M&A
Data CategoryFields AvailableM&A Relevance
AUM & growthRegulatory AUM, discretionary vs advisory, AUM over timeTarget sizing, growth trajectory, revenue modeling
Client compositionNumber of clients, HNW count, institutional count, client type breakdownRevenue quality, client concentration risk
Fee structureFee schedule, performance fees, hourly/fixed feesRevenue model, margin estimation
Custodian relationshipsPrimary custodians (Schwab, Fidelity, Pershing, etc.)Integration complexity, platform compatibility
Regulatory historyCRD number, filing dates, amendment history, disclosure eventsCompliance risk, due diligence flags
Alternatives allocationPercentage of AUM in private funds, alternatives exposureSophistication indicator, cross-sell potential
Firm structureOwnership type, number of employees, office locationsIntegration planning, geographic expansion

AllocatorBase vs AdvizorPro for Recruiting & M&A

AdvizorPro has specific features built for recruiting that AllocatorBase does not offer. Here is an honest comparison.

Compared for recruiting and M&A specifically
CapabilityAllocatorBaseAdvizorPro
Firm-level AUM (verified) SEC ADV-sourcedPartial verification
AUM growth trajectory From filing history
Client type breakdown From Form ADVPartial
Fee structure data From Form ADV
Regulatory filing history Full CRD/IAPD
Target scoring 0–100 configurable Lead scoring (fit)
Deal pipeline in CRM M&A-specific stages
Pipeline velocity analytics
Advisor-level production estimates
Personal signals (hobbies, alma mater) AI-tagged
Succession & transition signals
Regulatory risk flagsFrom ADV disclosures Detailed
Wealth team mapping (25K+ teams)
Published pricing From $750/mo

When AdvizorPro May Be the Better Choice for Recruiting

AdvizorPro has genuine advantages for advisor-level recruiting workflows. Be honest about your needs:

  • You need individual advisor production estimates — AdvizorPro provides rep-level data that AllocatorBase does not
  • Personal signals matter for your outreach — hobbies, alma mater, charitable involvement, and career background are AI-tagged on every AdvizorPro contact
  • Succession and transition signals are central to your sourcing — AdvizorPro identifies advisors facing M&A events, succession pressure, or regulatory friction
  • You need wealth team org charts — AdvizorPro maps 25,000+ teams across wirehouses, aggregators, and large IBDs with structure and reporting lines
  • You recruit individual advisors rather than acquiring entire firms — AdvizorPro's advisor-level intelligence is purpose-built for this workflow

See detailed comparisons

Firm-Level Screening + Advisor-Level Intelligence

The strongest M&A and recruiting workflows use both layers. AdvizorPro provides advisor-level intelligence — individual production, personal signals, succession readiness, team mapping. AllocatorBase provides firm-level screening and deal infrastructure — verified AUM, growth trajectory, client composition, fee structure, and a CRM pipeline that tracks targets through your deal process.

One is discovery and advisor-level context. The other is screening and pipeline execution. You can use both — the data subscription starts at $750/month, a fraction of a single M&A advisory retainer.

Need to build an M&A pipeline from scratch?

A $2,500 Capital Formation Audit can be scoped for M&A and recruiting workflows. We assess your current target screening process, CRM infrastructure, and pipeline management — then deliver a roadmap for building a systematic deal pipeline.

Learn About the Audit →

Common Questions from Recruiting & M&A Teams

AdvizorPro offers advisor-level intelligence including production estimates, personal signals (hobbies, alma mater, charities), regulatory risk flags, succession signals, and 25,000+ mapped wealth teams. These are genuine advantages for recruiting individual advisors. AllocatorBase offers firm-level regulatory intelligence grounded in SEC Form ADV — verified AUM, growth trajectory, filing history, custodian relationships, client type mix, and fee structures. AllocatorBase's strength is target screening and deal pipeline management: scoring acquisition targets, tracking them through deal stages in your CRM, and measuring pipeline velocity. If you need advisor-level personal data, AdvizorPro is stronger. If you need firm-level due diligence data and deal pipeline infrastructure, AllocatorBase fills the gap.
AllocatorBase's SEC-sourced data includes verified AUM, AUM growth over time, number of clients, client type breakdown (high-net-worth, institutional, retail), fee structures, custodian relationships, regulatory filing history, CRD numbers, and alternatives allocation percentages. This is the same regulatory data that institutional acquirers use for initial target screening and due diligence.
Yes. AllocatorBase's CRM integration installs pipeline stages directly into HubSpot or Salesforce. You can track acquisition targets from initial identification through outreach, LOI, due diligence, and close — with probability scoring that ranks targets by fit and velocity analytics that measure pipeline progression.
No. AllocatorBase provides firm-level data from SEC filings, not individual advisor production estimates. AdvizorPro is the stronger option for advisor-level production data, personal signals, and individual recruiting intelligence. AllocatorBase and AdvizorPro can complement each other — AdvizorPro for advisor discovery, AllocatorBase for firm-level screening and deal pipeline management.
RIA aggregators executing roll-up strategies, IBDs recruiting breakaway advisors, private equity firms acquiring wealth management platforms, strategic acquirers expanding geographic or AUM footprint, and M&A advisory firms sourcing deal flow for wealth management transactions.
Allocator Intelligence Data starts at $750/month ($9,000/year). A Capital Formation Audit is $2,500 one-time. Infrastructure Implementation is $25,000–$40,000. An Annual Partnership covering everything is $85,000/year. All pricing is published at allocatorbase.com/pricing. No placement fees, no AUM share.

Stop Screening Targets from Spreadsheets.

Start with SEC-verified RIA data at $750/mo, or scope a deal pipeline build with a diagnostic call.

Book a Demo →View Pricing