Wellington-Altus shareholders have voted in support of a deal to sell a 25% interest in the firm to U.S.-based private equity shop Kelso & Co. for just under $400 million.
The transaction will bring on a seasoned wealth management investor as a partner, and serves to confirm Wellington-Altus’s enterprise value at over $1.5 billion, Shaun Hauser, Wellington-Altus’s founder and CEO, said in an interview. It will also allow existing shareholders to liquidate some holdings, he added.
“We wanted to sincerely thank a lot of our advisors and our corporate employees and people that trusted us when we were much smaller,” something the deal accomplishes by putting “some cash in everyone’s jeans,” he said.
The transaction has been approved by close to 90% of Wellington-Altus shareholders so far, more than the two-thirds needed for it to pass. It still requires regulatory approvals, but is expected to be completed in early 2026.
“Alignment and partnership have been at the core of our investment approach for more than 45 years,” said Bill Frayer, partner at Kelso, in a release. “Wellington-Altus stands out for its innovative platform, entrepreneurial culture and strong management team, making it the firm of choice for independent advisors in Canada. We look forward to partnering with Shaun and team to support the company’s next phase of growth.”
Post-deal, Wellington-Altus will remain Canadian controlled. Kelso & Co. will join Cynosure Group as Wellington-Altus’s second U.S.-based private equity investor. Cynosure has already invested more than $100 million, and isn’t liquidating any of its 15% stake in the company as part of the deal.
Like Cynosure Group, Kelso & Co. is a long-term investor, Frayer said.
Hauser noted that Kelso & Co.’s investments into U.S.-based registered investment advisor firms Savant Wealth Management and Pathstone have been “wildly successful.”
“Serendipitously, the characteristics of those businesses are in line with ours,” he said. “When we go look at how those businesses have flourished once the partnership of Kelso took hold, we’re pretty excited about what it means for Wellington-Altus going forward.”
Specifically, Kelso & Co. will bring access to technology, as well as expertise in thought leadership, organizational structure, sales tactics, lead generation and more that Wellington-Altus can tap into Hauser said. After the deal closes, the firm’s executive committee plans to “prioritize where we can learn the most from our new partners and implement the best inside of our business,” he added.
“I think Kelso has access to different forms of success in the wealth management business in the United States that we would have the ability to tap into once this deal closes,” Hauser said.
Wellington-Altus currently has $40 billion in assets under administration, up from $35 billion at the end of last year.
Hauser said a private equity transaction for up to a 30% stake in Wellington-Altus was planned this year, and that the firm had a selection of potential partners.
“I was almost overwhelmed when we started the process in early 2025,” he said. “One of the interesting things was seeing how others view your business — learning how other seasoned investors like Kelso not only agree with your thesis on your business, but look at it with even greater appreciation and a different lens of growth that you maybe didn’t appreciate as much.”