M&A roundup: CRI and Citrin expand

Details: Carr, Riggs & Ingram LLC, a Top 25 Firm based in Enterprise, Alabama, has merged in Travani & Richter, a firm in Jupiter, Florida.

Travani & Richter has specialized in providing tax compliance and consulting services for high-net-worth individuals across South Florida for nearly 20 years. Joining CRI will enable the firm to expand its offerings to other services such as business valuations.

CRI, for its part, will be able to expand its footprint in Florida. “Increasing our presence along Florida’s Treasure Coast has always been a part of our strategic growth plan,” said CRI chairman and managing partner William Carr in a statement Wednesday. “The addition of Travani & Richter’s rich tax compliance and consulting capabilities for high net worth individuals, small businesses, and family foundations to our existing skilled teams in the Southern part of the state only enhances the client service delivery and technical expertise for our client base in Martin, Palm Beach and St. Lucie counties.”

Financial terms of the deal were not disclosed. CRI ranked No. 22 on Accounting Today’s 2021 list of the Top 100 Firms. The firm earned $355,552,176 in annual revenue last year. CRI has 372 partners and 2,066 staff members. Travani & Richter earned $1.5 million in annual revenue. It has two partners and nine staff members who will be joining CRI.

Koltin Consulting Group CEO Allan Koltin advised both firms on the deal. “In addition to being one of the largest women-owned CPA firms in the greater Palm Beach area, Travani & Richter is one of the most sought-after firms when it comes to sophisticated tax planning advice,” Koltin said in a statement. “The founders (Misty and Darline) were attracted to Carr, Riggs & Ingram’s amazing culture of innovation as well as their deep investments in technology, training, and commitment to outstanding client service. Carr, Riggs & Ingram continues on their incredible journey of being the fastest-growing first-generation firm in the Southeast as well as their mission of attracting and growing top talent along the way.”

Last November, CRI expanded in Georgia by adding Brooks, McGinnis & Co., a firm in Atlanta. In September, CRI expanded in North Carolina by adding Sharrard, McGee & Co. The firm traditionally does a great many M&A deals, but that was its first post-pandemic deal since January 2020, when it added Crabtree, Rowe & Berger, a firm in Huntsville, Alabama.

Details: Citrin Cooperman, a Top 25 Firm based in New York, has merged in Massarsky Consulting, a copyright economics consultancy that works in the music industry helping music publishers and recording labels with valuations.

As part of the deal, Massarsky Consulting partners Barry Massarsky and Nari Matsuura will join Citrin Cooperman as partners and co-leaders of the firm’s new Music Economics and Valuation Services Practice, along with other team members, including Elon Altman and Jake DeVries. The Massarsky Group will also join Citrin Cooperman’s Entertainment, Music, and Sports Practice, led by Citrin partner Matthew Segreto.

The deal comes as a number of prominent songwriters and performers have sold off their music catalogs for hundreds of millions of dollars in recent years to major entertainment companies, including Bruce Springsteen’s sale to Sony, Bob Dylan’s deal with Universal, Paul Simon’s with Sony, Tina Turner with BMG, the estate of David Bowie with Warner Chappell Music, and Stevie Nicks with Primary Wave.

“Barry’s reputation in the entertainment industry precedes him,” said Citrin Cooperman executive chairman Joel Cooperman in a statement Wednesday. “His name is synonymous with the economics of music and his group will be a fantastic addition to our firm.”

“Nari has single-handedly revolutionized the custom and practice of music valuation study and supports most of the institutional funds transacting in this market,” said Citrin Cooperman CEO Alan Badey in a statement. “In 2021 alone, she has led over 300 music asset valuations valued at over $6.5 billion.”

Financial terms of the deal were not disclosed. Citrin Cooperman ranked No. 23 on Accounting Today’s 2021 list of the Top 100 Firms. The firm earned annual revenue of $350 million. Citrin has 1,240 partners and staff, while Massarsky has two partners and two staff members who will be joining the firm.

Massarsky Consulting was founded in 1992 and provides strategic counsel to owners of music copyrights, as well as valuation, litigation economics and performance income review.

“We’re thrilled to have the Massarsky Group be part of the Citrin Cooperman team,” said Massarsky Consulting founding partner Barry Massarsky in a statement. “It was important for us to find a firm with a deep understanding of the same music industry copyright interests for which we are so well-aligned for the last 29 years. We wanted a partner that truly creates the new resource capacity for our important work ahead.”

“Joining Citrin Cooperman was the natural next step for our firm given its growth, and together we can fully serve the continually rising demand for our services in the music industry,” partner Nari Matsuura said in a statement. “We are so excited to begin 2022 as part of their team.”

Last November, Citrin added OLC Management Inc., a California-based business management firm in the entertainment industry. In January, Citrin expanded in Los Angeles by merging in accounting firm Goren, Marcus, Masino & Marsh. In 2020, Citrin Cooperman added LGSH in Los Angeles and Homes, Lowry, Horn & Johnson in Fairfax, Virginia.