ALABAMA
CRI merges in Boohaker, Schillaci & Co.
Details: Top 100 Firm Carr, Riggs & Ingram LLC has merged in Boohaker, Schillaci & Co. Boohaker, Schillaci's offices will retain their current personnel and seven partners and operate under the Carr, Riggs & Ingram name.
"CRI's Birmingham office experienced double-digit organic growth this year, and this expansion perfectly aligns with our increasing client service and market demands," stated William Carr, chairman and managing partner of CRI. "Additionally, the Boohaker, Schillaci & Co. team enhances our firm-wide depth of expertise in key client industries."
Boohaker, Schillaci has served the greater Alabama area for more than 40 years, specifically with highly specialized tax expertise in the sectors of oil and gas, real estate, and timber.
FLORIDA
Cherry Bekaert adds part of CBIZ Miami office to its practice
Details: Top 100 Firm CBIZ said that it would close its current office in Miami, with a small number of the staff members relocating to CBIZ's office in Boca Raton, Fla., and the remainder joining a separate firm, Top 100 Firm Cherry Bekaert LLP, in its Miami office.
CBIZ attributed the move to the vagaries of the South Florida market. "The relatively small size of our Miami accounting office did not provide us with sufficient scale to provide our expected array and level of professional services to our clients in the Miami market," CBIZ chairman and chief executive Steven L. Gerard said in a statement. "This transaction will allow us to place our existing staff and clients in offices that are better able to serve their needs while we continue our search for a significant acquisition candidate in the Miami area that will provide us with a sufficient platform to distinguish ourselves from other high-quality firms."
Gerard emphasized, however, that his firm plans to stay in Florida. "CBIZ is committed to the Florida market and is making significant investments to expand our presence there," he said. "During 2014, CBIZ has made two strategic acquisitions in Florida, one in Tampa, and another in Delray Beach."
ILLINOIS
W&D and RZD to merge
Details: Warady & Davis LLP has agreed to merge with Rosenfeld Zweig & Donenberg Ltd. The combination will go into effect on Nov. 1, 2014. Ronald Zweig and James Donenberg will join the firm as partners.
Located in Deerfield, Ill., W&D provides a full range of audit, accounting, tax and consulting services and solutions to privately held businesses, owners, high-net-worth individuals and their families. Through its subsidiary, W&D Consulting LLC, it also offers business valuations and consulting services.
NEW HAMPSHIRE
Baker Newman Noyes adds Manchester firm
Details: Baker Newman Noyes has agreed to merge in the Manchester, N.H.-based firm William Steele & Associates PC. At that time, employees of WSA will relocate to the downtown Manchester, N.H., office.
NEW JERSEY
New Jersey firms merge
Details: Cullari, Carrico, Soojian, Burke LCC has merged with Levin, Bartlett, Swantic & Co. LLC of Franklin Lakes, N.J..
The combined firm will do business under the brand Cullari Carrico LLC. Levin, Bartlett, Swantic & Co.'s principals Dennis Bartlett and Michael Swantic will join Cullari Carrico.
NEW YORK
O'Connor Davies and Perl & Asch merge
Details: O'Connor Davies LLP has agreed to merge with Perl & Asch CPAs PC, a 26-year-old practice in Purchase, N.Y. The combination is to take effect on Jan. 1, 2015. Donald Perl and Leonard Asch will join O'Connor Davies as partners and will be based in O'Connor Davies' Harrison, N.Y., office.
With 2013 revenues reaching approximately $100 million, O'Connor Davies is ranked No. 32 on Accounting Today's 2014 Top 100 Firms list. The firm has seven offices, 85 partners and more than 500 professionals.
Janover combines with Liss Okun
Details: Janover LLC has increased its staff with the addition of team members from Liss Okun & Associates. The combination is expected to close at the beginning of 2015.
Aaron Goldstein, Leonard Okun, Joseph Tancer and additional staff members will join Janover's Garden City, N.Y., office. The growth will boost Janover's headcount to more than 140 staff, which includes 18 partners.
Janover is ranked as one of the top Mid-Atlantic accounting firms by Accounting Today. Founded in 1938, the firm has offices in Manhattan and Garden City, Long Island. They provide services to a broad range of business and individual clients, and specializes in real estate, retail/wholesale, professional services, entertainment, financial services, construction and family owned businesses. The firm has expertise in all phases of auditing, accounting, taxation and consulting services.
Mengel Metzger Barr & Co. bulks up
Details: Russ and Russell Barone, formerly of Barone, Siciliano & Co., will join the Mengel Metzger Barr & Co. team.
In light of the new addition, Mengel Metzger Barr & Co. opened a new branch at 475 North Main St. in Canandaigua. Longtime Mengel Metzger Barr & Co. employee Kristina Stamatis will rejoin the firm to manage the new Canandaigua office. Stamatis will help coordinate the transition process to ensure full continuity in areas of client service and communication.
Sanders Thaler Viola & Katz adds Eliot H. Lebenhart
Details: Sanders Thaler Viola & Katz LLP, a regional firm in Jericho, N.Y., has added Eliot H. Lebenhart CPA PC of Plainview, N.Y. to its roster. Sanders Thaler Viola & Katz LLP will retain its current name and continue to market itself as Sanders Thaler.
With this merger, the firm will expand its practice areas by providing tax, accounting and business management services to the medical, sports and entertainment industries.
KPMG acquires GTM
Details: KPMG LLP has acquired the global trade management practice from EntryPoint Consulting LLC.
The EntryPoint team will join KPMG's trade and customs practice, enabling the Big Four firm to provide both regulatory and technology consulting under one umbrella. The addition of EntryPoint's SAP GTS consulting and systems implementation services will strengthen KPMG's proficiency in assisting multinationals enhance their investment in global trade management systems. The acquisition builds on KPMG's experience with SAP business and technology integration services and solutions. EntryPoint's global trade management practice is one of the market's leading SAP GTS partner practices in the U.S.
OHIO
Libman, Goldstine, Kopperman & Wolf joins Bober, Markey, Fedorovich
Details: Libman, Goldstine, Kopperman & Wolf has agreed to merge with Bober, Markey, Fedorovich. The merger closed on November 1. Financial terms of the deal were not disclosed. The combination will bolster Bober, Markey, Fedorovich throughout Northeast Ohio and leverage new client and service opportunities for the two firms. The converged firm will comprise more than 100 employees and 47 CPAs.
BDO USA adds SS&G
Details: Top 10 Firm BDO USA LLP has made a major expansion in the Midwest with the addition of more than 375 staff, including 36 partners, from Top 100 Firm SS&G Inc. and its SS&G Parkland subsidiary.
The combination of BDO and SS&G is subject to customary closing conditions and is expected to be completed on Jan. 1, 2015. SS&G Wealth Management, SS&G Healthcare and Paytime Integrated Payroll Services are not part of the transaction and will continue to serve their clients as independent entities.
SS&G partners and employees are based throughout the Cleveland, Akron, Columbus, Cincinnati and Chicago markets. SS&G provides a full range of accounting and consulting services to a diversified client base with significant strength in the manufacturing, distribution, restaurant, health care, nonprofit, real estate and technology industries.
"We already generate significant revenue in Ohio, but we never had an office in the state," Wayne Berson, CEO of BDO USA, said in a statement. "This transaction provides a major strategic addition to BDO, as it fills a gap in our geographic coverage of the Midwest."
Berson explained to Accounting Today that BDO was looking for opportunities with a number of firms, and what they found in SS&G was its industry niche in the restaurant space. "We know that no other national firm has pursued the restaurant industry," said Berson. "For us this was an opportunity to get into a marketplace that no one else has staked a claim for, certainly not at the national level. The restaurant industry itself is very specialized on the accounting and tax side. It's not something that a generalist can handle."
"BDO has always admired SS&G for their great culture, rapid growth, industry specialization, women in leadership positions, and their innovative approach to running the firm," said Allan Koltin, CEO of Koltin Consulting Group, who advised both parties on the combination. "SS&G leadership was very careful to make sure they found a firm that put people and clients first and had the kind of entrepreneurial culture that would allow their people to thrive."
Several partners from SS&G will be taking on leadership roles at BDO. SS&G chief executive officer Robert Littman will be joining the BDO USA board of directors and will also be taking on a new role at BDO as managing partner of Ohio, with all Ohio-based office managing partners reporting to him.
SS&G founders Mark Goldfarb and Gary Shamis will also be joining BDO. Goldfarb will serve as Ohio managing partner for key client relationships and growth strategies and Shamis will serve as national strategy and growth advisor in BDO USA's national office, while maintaining his presence with Ohio clients.
PENNSYLVANIA
Arnett Foster Toothman and Carbis Walker agree to merge
Details: Arnett Foster Toothman PLLC and Carbis Walker LLP have agreed to merge and will take on the new name of Arnett Carbis Toothman LLP come Jan. 1, 2015. Arnett Carbis Toothman's Pennsylvania offices will include locations in New Castle, Pittsburgh and Meadville, complementing West Virginia offices in Charleston, Bridgeport, Buckhannon, Morgantown and Lewisburg, as well as Columbus, Ohio.
The two firms share similar historical timelines. Arnett Foster Toothman was established in 1950 and grew to employ 160 people. Carbis Walker was formed in 1946 and employs 105.
The management teams of both firms will remain intact and will continue their leadership roles with the new firm.
THE SOUTHEAST
Elliott Davis and Decosimo merge
Details: Top 100 Firms Elliott Davis and Decosimo said in late October that they plan to merge at the beginning of 2015 to create one of the largest regional firms in the U.S.
The merger, which will take effect on Jan. 1, 2015, will create a combined firm named Elliott Davis Decosimo. The deal will create the fifth largest accounting firm in the South, with total annual revenues of $108 million and more than 800 professionals. Elliott Davis, based in Greenville, S.C., had annual revenues of $64.1 million in fiscal year 2013. Joseph Decosimo & Co., based in Chattanooga, Tenn., had revenues of $38.2 million.
The combined firm of Elliott Davis Decosimo will have 17 offices across seven states, as well as the Cayman Islands. Shareholders of both firms approved the merger in a unanimous vote. Financial terms of the deal were not disclosed.
Under the terms of the deal, Rick Davis, who is currently managing shareholder of Elliott Davis, will lead the new firm. Decosimo managing principal Nick Decosimo will serve on the Executive Committee, which will include representatives from both firms.
TEXAS
Ryan to acquire WTP Advisors
Details: Global tax services firm Ryan has signed an agreement to acquire another large tax services firm, WTP Advisors. The transaction was expected to close by the end of November. Under the deal, WTP co-founders Michael Minihan and Ian Boccaccio will join Ryan's executive leadership team as principals, with Boccaccio also serving as practice leader of Ryan's international tax practice. Certain assets associated with WTP, including the WTP Exchange and Worldwide Trade Partners LLC entities, will remain independent and are not included in the deal. Financial details were not disclosed.
WISCONSIN
Assurity River Group joins Wipfli LLP
Details: Top 100 Firm Wipfli LLP added Assurity River Group to the firm. Upon completion of the acquisition, Assurity's associates will join Wipfli's risk advisory and forensics services practice.
Assurity River Group was established in 2002 and provides security and business continuity planning services to clients across the Upper Midwest.
"Assurity River Group has an established track record of providing security and business continuity planning services to businesses in the Upper Midwest," said Bob Cedergren, partner-in-charge of Wipfli's risk advisory and forensic services practice, in a statement. "This combination will enhance our risk management and information security practice capabilities and strengthen our ability to serve clients."
Jeff Olejnik, CEO of Assurity River Group, added, "Assurity River Group's leaders and associates are excited about this combination. Together with Wipfli, our combined risk advisory services practice will be positioned well to continue to be a leader in providing the value-added risk management, information security and business continuity services our clients have come to expect."
