LPL to pay $2.7 billion for Commonwealth Financial

LPL Financial is buying the private wealth management giant Commonwealth Financial Network for $2.7 billion.

The purchase will add $285 billion in advisory and brokerage assets to the roughly $1.7 trillion LPL now has under management. It will also add as many as 2,900 advisors to LPL's current headcount of nearly 29,000. The transaction is expected to close in the second half of this year.

"As we've grown our business over the past 46 years, Commonwealth has placed a premium on delivering the industry's highest standards of service," Joseph Deitch, the founder of Commonwealth founder, said in a statement. "We've been diligent in finding a partner that shares our mission of prioritizing advisor needs above all else. LPL became the logical choice for our next chapter."

Deitch, who started Commonwealth in 1979, will have an advisory role on LPL's board of directors. Commonwealth CEO Wayne Bloom will meanwhile join LPL's management committee and report to LPL CEO Rich Steinmeier. He will also help start an office of advisor advocacy, charged with providing various types of support to financial advisors.

LPL has been on an acquisition and recruiting tear in recent years. LPL announced in February 2024 that it was buying Atria Wealth Solutions, bringing roughly $100 billion in assets under management and an additional 2,200 advisors.

It also was chosen the year before by the wealth management arm of the insurance giant Prudential to provide RIA, brokerage and custodial services. LPL was similarly selected by the wealth management unit of Chicago-based Wintrust Financial in a deal eventually expected to bring $16 billion in assets.

LPL's deal to buy Commonwealth was first reported by the industry publication CityWire.