Fisher Investments Strikes Deal With Advent

Advent International struck a deal to acquire a minority stake in money-management firm Fisher Investments.

The details

The deal was announced Sunday afternoon, confirming an earlier report by The Wall Street Journal.

Advent along with the Abu Dhabi Investment Authority have agreed to invest between $2.5 billion and $3 billion in Fisher, the companies said. The deal values Fisher at about $13 billion.

“This unique transaction, unlike common private-equity deals, solves any untoward death-tax problems allowing Fisher Investments to continue as a private investment advisory firm in the ways that it has before until after my death,” Ken Fisher, the company’s founder, said in an interview. “With a partner that wants to be part of us, as we are, without changing us.”

The context

The deal marks the first outside investment in Fisher, with previous ownership limited to family and employees. Fisher himself will maintain ownership exceeding 70%.

The Journal reported earlier this year that Advent was in talks to acquire Fisher. In response to that story, Fisher said the company “is not being bought by Advent International, or anyone else.”

Fisher manages more than $275 billion for more than 150,000 clients around the world, including 120,000 U.S. private clients.

The firm manages money for pension funds, governments and college endowments, and has a sizable 401(k)-advisory business. Billionaire Ken Fisher founded the firm, known for its ubiquitous advertisements, in 1979.

The rationale

For Advent, the deal would add to its roster of investments in the financial-services sector.

Last year, the firm appointed Tricia Rothschild as an operating partner focused on new investments in wealth and asset management. Rothschild previously spent more than 25 years at Morningstar.

In April, Advent agreed to buy Canadian payments processor Nuvei in a deal valued at about $6 billion including debt.

The private-equity firm amassed some $25 billion in 2022 for its latest buyout fund. Private-equity M&A is on the upswing compared with a quiet 2023 as firms grapple with challenges including elevated interest rates.

Write to Lauren Thomas at [email protected] and Laura Cooper at [email protected]