Creative Planning Accelerates Retirement Advisory Ambitions with SageView Acquisition

Creative Planning, a leading independent wealth management firm, announced its agreement to acquire SageView Advisory Group, a nationally recognized retirement plan consultant and RIA. The transaction brings together Creative Planning’s wealth advisory platform with SageView’s institutional retirement consulting expertise, resulting in a scaled, diversified RIA serving thousands of plan sponsors and tens of thousands of individual clients.

Deal Summary

Acquirer: Creative Planning, based in Overland Park, Kansas, offering comprehensive financial planning, investment management, retirement, tax, and trust services.

Target: SageView Advisory Group, headquartered in Newport Beach, California, with a strong focus on 401(k), defined benefit, and other retirement plan consulting, plus wealth management.

Scale & Size: The merged entity will oversee approximately $640 billion in assets, serving over 80,000 wealth clients and nearly 11,800 retirement plans across the U.S. and internationally.

SageView Footprint: SageView reported about $250 billion in combined AUM and assets under advisement (AUA) as of mid-2025, with presence across 36 offices.

Ownership Transition: Private equity investor Aquiline, which held a majority stake in SageView since 2021, will exit at closing.

Leadership: SageView President Jon Upham, with decades of experience growing institutional retirement business, will lead Creative Planning’s combined Retirement Solutions division.

Closing Timeline: The deal is expected to close in the fourth quarter of 2025.

Industry Context

This acquisition reflects a broader consolidation trend in the wealth and retirement advisory space. As defined-contribution plans mature, sponsors demand more than basic fiduciary advice - they want integrated, strategic retirement-plan solutions. At the same time, RIAs are under pressure to offer both institutional retirement and private wealth services. By integrating SageView, Creative Planning accelerates its transformation into a dual-pillar firm: one that serves both high-net-worth individuals and large plan sponsors.

Such scale is increasingly valuable. Larger clients want sophisticated retirement architecture, while individual clients benefit from continuity, planning, and trust services. The combination of these businesses under one roof is a powerful differentiator in a crowded RIA market.

Lower-Middle-Market Roll-Up Perspective

From a roll-up strategy viewpoint, this deal illustrates several key dynamics:

Why This Sector Is Attractive for Roll-Ups

Conclusion

Creative Planning’s acquisition of SageView represents a powerful convergence of retirement plan advisory and wealth management under a single national RIA platform. The scale of $640 billion in combined assets and the retention of SageView’s senior leadership make it a transformative deal.

For RIAs in the retirement space, this transaction shows the strategic value of partnering with a scale-led platform committed to both institutional and individual clients. For Creative Planning, it strengthens its competitive position and accelerates its long-term ambition: to be a market leader not just in wealth, but in retirement and plan sustainability.

For investors and industry watchers, the deal underscores the appetite for integrated RIAs and validates the roll-up thesis: the future of advisory lies in firms that can serve both individuals and institutions at scale.