February 8, 2021
Willkie advised Cetera on the transaction.
On February 8, Cetera Financial Group announced it has entered into a definitive agreement to acquire certain assets related to the independent financial planning channel of Voya Financial Advisors (VFA). Through this acquisition, VFA independent financial professionals providing holistic financial planning to 385,000 retail customers with nearly $40 billion in assets will become part of Cetera.
Cetera's exclusive focus on the delivery of financial advice and its ability to accelerate growth for its financial professionals aligns with the goals of VFA's independent network. With today's announcement, the team and independent financial professional network from VFA will form a distinct business within Cetera, as part of Cetera Advisor Networks. Cetera will have over $300 billion in assets serving more than 3.1 million retail customers and accounts.
Cetera Financial Group is a leading financial advice firm serving individuals, families and businesses across the country through independent financial advisors as well as trusted tax professionals and banks and credit unions. It is headquartered in El Segundo, California.
Voya Financial, Inc. (NYSE: VOYA), serves the financial needs of approximately 13.8 million individual and institutional customers in the United States. With $7.5 billion in revenue in 2019, the company had $657 billion in total assets under management and administration as of Sept. 30, 2020.
The Willkie team was led by partners Jeffrey Poss and Manuel Miranda and included associate Thomas Sharkey.
