Lift-outs — the recruitment of entire adviser teams from one firm to another — aren’t new, but they are becoming increasingly common as competition heats up in the M&A space of registered investment adviser and wealth management firms.
Linda Paullin-Hebden, a Warner partner who co-chairs the firm’s Mergers and Acquisitions Practice Group, shared her thoughts on lift-outs in a conversation with M&A Confidential, published by Hue Partners.
“The market is crowded with over half of RIAs say they’re open to buying,” Paullin-Hebden said. “That competition is driving lift-outs as firms go straight to like-minded producers and teams. If you prepare well, structure smart and design incentives that retain the bench, you don’t just land a team — you build a durable growth platform buyers actually pay for.”
Paullin-Hebden organized her insights around three areas for properly structuring a deal:
- Before You Breakaway: Paperwork Wins Deals
- Structuring the Lift-Out: Choose Your Path (and Your Tax)
- The Talent Equation: Make Next-Gen Believe (and Stay)
“Lift-outs reward the prepared,” she said. “Do the legal homework, choose the right structure and align incentives. That’s how you turn a hot trend into a high-conviction outcome.”
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