Private equity-backed Top 50 Firm Ascend today announced the acquisition of Sweeney Conrad in Kirkland, Washington, expanding its presence in the Pacific Northwest.
Sweeney Conrad was founded in 1980, and provides audit, tax, accounting and consulting services to businesses and individuals in the Seattle and Bellevue area. It adds 14 partners and 117 employees to the Ascend team. Terms of the deal were not disclosed.
"Our mission at Ascend is to empower independent firms to create permanent advantages in client service and talent strategy by inspiring and supporting transformation," Ascend president Nishaad Ruparel said in a statement. "Sweeney Conrad's leadership opted into this transformation journey from a foundation of strength that is worth paying attention to — a record of building a Top 150 firm largely organically; a client strategy that has always afforded ample opportunity to re-invest; a partner group that has, on average, two decades until retirement; and a standout reputation in a flourishing local economy. Our partnership allows Sweeney Conrad to make the most of those circumstances. Clients in the Puget Sound region will receive deeply personal service in increasingly modern ways, and the firm's next generation of talent will carry forward its special history while embracing innovations that make work more rewarding."
Ascend is an accounting platform based in Arlington, Virginia, that launched in January 2023 with the backing of private equity firm Alpine Investors. It targets firms with between $15 million and $50 million in revenue. Ranking No. 29 on Accounting Today's
"Ascend provides the cutting-edge technology, talent, and resources to maximize our potential as a thriving, future-ready firm, ready to take on the challenges of the rapidly changing public accounting industry," Sweeney Conrad CEO Sam North said in a statement. "We will be able to fully dedicate our attention to our clients because of the world-class tools and technology that we would otherwise need to spend significant time building in-house."
"Joining Ascend resonates with our values, as they share the same PeopleFirst approach that we have always been committed to," North continued. "It is important to us that Sweeney Conrad remain a place where people love coming to work, appreciate their clients, and help each other thrive. As part of Ascend, we will be able to provide ownership for our people earlier in their careers and to empower our team with the tools they need to best serve clients and have fulfilling careers without the challenges of a large national firm. We're still Sweeney Conrad, and that will not change. We'll always be the same firm, providing a consistent team year after year and building relationships for the long-term."
As is common with these kinds of deals, Sweeney Conrad will adopt an alternative practice structure, separating its non-attest and attest services.
This transaction is the latest in a series of M&A deals Ascend has made in the past year, including
