Aquiline Capital Partners has bought RIA in a Box, a provider of compliance workflow solutions to wealth managers.
No financial terms of the deal have been disclosed by either party and it is unclear what stake the New York-based private equity firm has purchased.
Launched in 2005, RIA in a Box was acquired in 2011 by an investment group led by Will Bressman and GJ King. The company is software as a service (SaaS) provider of compliance solutions to the registered investment adviser (RIA) industry.
“RIA in a Box provides solutions for wealth managers to operate with greater efficiency while they manage the industry compliance burden. The company is at a nexus of two high-growth markets in the RIA and compliance industries, and we are eager to offer even more tools to serve this space,” said Will Bressman, CEO of RIA in a Box.
It assists with initial RIA registration, provides ongoing compliance software post-formation, and helps compliance officers at larger firms to oversee more complex organisations. The company also offers other SaaS-based services such as CRM, billing, and other operational tools for wealth managers. Approximately 2,000 RIAs of varying size across the US use the platform to increase compliance workflow efficiency.
Fowling the investment, Aquiline also announced the appointment of Barnaby Grist, a former senior executive at Schwab Advisor Services and Cetera Financial Group, as executive chairman of the board of RIA in a Box.
Grsit added: “The management team has built a market-leading business, and I see multiple opportunities to increase market penetration and expand the suite of services provided to clients. The company will pursue organic growth initiatives as well as an acquisition strategy in the wealth management software and compliance industry.”
RIA in a Box provides compliance services to over 1,500 firms. Its team of former regulators has SEC and state-level investment adviser regulatory expertise and can answer compliance questions, review marketing documents, provide CCO training, or help prepare for an audit.
For all service levels, its assist with all Form ADV amendments, offering hands-on compliance consulting time and assisting with individual adviser registrations. In addition, all firms gain access to its MyRIACompliance online RIA compliance software platform which allows firms to more efficiently and proactively manage compliance.
Aquiline Capital Partners invests in businesses across the financial services sector in banking and credit, insurance, investment management and markets, and financial technology and services. Its portfolio includes client lifecycle management platform Fenergo, payments processing business Clear2Pay, and insurance broker Simply Business.
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