Cetera Announces Agreement With Protective Life to Acquire Subsidiary Overseeing $12B AUA, $4B AUM
Cetera Financial Group has entered into a definitive agreement to acquire Concourse Financial Group Securities Inc. – a subsidiary of Protective Life Corporation. Based in Birmingham, Ala., CFGS comprises Protective’s affiliated retail distribution system, dually registered broker-dealer, and registered investment adviser. The acquisition is expected to bring approximately 350 financial professionals who oversee more than $12 billion in assets under administration and $4 billion in assets under management to the Cetera Wealth Partners community.
The transaction is expected to close in the first quarter of 2025, pending regulatory approval. Terms of the deal were not disclosed.
Upon closing, CFGS financial professionals will gain immediate access to the established community resources available through Cetera Wealth Partners, which will be complemented by the CFGS team resources at deal close.
“Cetera has a proven track record of acquiring and successfully integrating independent broker-dealers affiliated with insurance organizations, and Concourse Financial Group Securities represents a tremendous opportunity in today’s rapidly consolidating market,” said Mike Durbin, chief executive officer of Cetera Holdings.
“This transaction will enable us to strategically align the CFGS team within the existing Cetera Wealth Partners community while increasing Cetera’s scale and creating new opportunities for growth for CFGS advisers,” said Durbin.
Aaron Seurkamp, senior vice president of Protective and president of its protection and retirement division, noted how the purchase supports capacity for both entities – allowing Protective to focus on its core competencies in the life insurance and annuity businesses, while enabling Concourse Financial Group Securities financial professionals and clients to benefit from Cetera’s industry resources and support of advisers.
“Cetera’s established success transitioning similar organizations to their platform gives us great confidence in this deal and underscores why Cetera is the right fit for this business,” said Seurkamp.
“Cetera’s community architecture and proven succession solutions are a natural fit for our business and we have a significant alignment of shared strategic objectives,” added Libet Anderson, president of CFGS. “We look forward to a bright future together with Cetera.”
The acquisition represents the latest insurance company carve out for Cetera. In 2023, Cetera acquired Securian Financial Group’s retail wealth business, now Cetera Wealth Management Group, bringing approximately $50 billion in assets to Cetera. In 2021, Cetera acquired Voya Financial Advisors’ independent financial planning channel, now Cetera Wealth Partners, bringing approximately $37 billion in assets to Cetera. In 2019, Cetera acquired the assets of Foresters Financial’s U.S. brokerage and investment advisory business, now Cetera Investors, bringing approximately 500 advisors to Cetera.
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