Private equity-backed deals in wealth management remain robust, with firms actively investing in the sector. Recent activity includes Leon Financial Network providing growth capital to Tocqueville Asset Management, Berkshire Partners investing C$1.775 billion in Harbourfront Wealth Group, and HGGC and Wealth Partners Capital Group investing in Crewe Advisors. Advent International and the Abu Dhabi Investment Authority previously invested $3 billion in Fisher Investments.

Experts suggest the wealth sector's evolution, with RIAs going public, will drive larger acquisitions due to cost of capital advantages. While AI is expected to be disruptive in client origination and service delivery, human advisors remain crucial, with clients preferring personal interaction over robo-advisors. Large firms with scaled IT budgets have a competitive edge in leveraging AI for growth.

In other news, Carlyle made its debut investment from its new aerospace platform by acquiring Secturion Systems, a hardware encryption solutions provider. This move signals increased PE-backed deal activity in the aerospace and defense sectors. Many older, family-run businesses are becoming acquisition targets as original owners retire and heirs show less interest in operating the companies.