Houlihan Lokey pulls the lever on Waller Helms Acquisition

Global investment bank Houlihan Lokey has agreed to acquire Waller Helms Advisors , an independent advisory firm that provides investment banking services to clients in the insurance and wealth management sectors. The deal is expected to be completed before December 31, 2024, following regulatory approvals.

Founded in 2014, Chicago-based Waller Helms provides advisory services in connection with mergers and acquisitions, private capital raising, and valuation services, advising clients primarily in the insurance and wealth management sectors. Since its founding, the firm has advised on more than 230 transactions with over $40 billion of aggregate value. Recent notable transactions include the sale of Century Equity Partners’ portfolio company, DOXA Insurance, to Goldman Sachs Asset Management; The Mather Group’s recapitalization by The Vistria Group; and BenefitMall’s sale to Truist Financial Corporation on behalf of the Carlyle Group.

Waller Helms’ nearly 50 financial professionals, including 13 Managing Directors, will join Houlihan Lokey’s Financial Services Group.

Waller Helms CEO James Anderson will join as a Managing Director and Global Co-Head of the Financial Services Group alongside Jeffrey Levine, Global Head of Financial Services. In addition, John Waller and David Helms, Co-Founders of Waller Helms, will also join as Managing Directors to further support and enhance the firm’s coverage efforts for its clients across the financial services sector. The acquisition adds financial professionals in Chicago, New York, Miami, and the greater Atlanta area.

Based on LSEG data, the newly combined group is now ranked as the No. 1 advisor for global M&A transactions in 2023 across the insurance, asset management (including wealth management), and financial services sectors (excluding depositories).

In Houlihan Lokey’s recent earnings call, CFO Lindsey Alley highlighted the firm’s focus on inorganic growth, stating that they have 300 to 400 subsectors within the industry. Some are strong, while others are underweighted, making acquisitions or strategic hires a priority. “And if we find the right person through an organic hire to help us become strong in that subsector, we will. And if an acquisition makes the most sense, we’ll pull that lever. And so really, the whole strategy is filling up those underweighted sectors in industry, and we believe there are hundreds of them.”