Southern California’s EP Wealth acquires Coulston Financial of Marin County
A Southern California-based financial company has acquired Coulston Financial Services of Mill Valley.
The deal raises Torrance-based EP Wealth’s managed assets by $80 million, the firm announced April 26. Cliff Coulston, the 80-year-old financial planner who started Coulston Financial in 1997, will oversee the integration of the two firms.
He will assume a role with EP Wealth as senior wealth adviser to assist transferring his 45 clients, some of which are within his own family. Coulston staffer Missy Westbrook will also stay on board as an administrative assistant, according to company officials.
“I’m excited. My clients will continue to get the kind of service I’ve provided, but (EP Wealth’s) services go beyond financial planning,” Coulston said, pointing to tax advice and estate planning services. “When I connected with EP Wealth, I was very fortunate.”
The transaction closed on April 22. Both firms declined to provide the sales price.
EP Wealth CEO Patrick Goshtigian commended Coulston Financial Services for “its dedication to client service” as “values (that) are core to EP Wealth.”
Founded in 2004, EP Wealth’s acquisition of Coulston Financial is its 23rd in the last five years. The $15 billion company has 260 employees in 16 offices, including Los Angeles, Orange County, San Diego, Portland, Phoenix, Denver, Salt Lake City, St. George, Dallas and Chicago.
EP Wealth certified financial planner Stephanie Richman said there’s a growing trend in the industry with longtime financial planners in small firms retiring.
This is all the more reason that, in today’s topsy-turvy economy marked by ongoing issues including a prolonged pandemic, inflation woes decreasing people’s buying power and other stressors, financial advisers answer the variety of concerns the public faces, Richman pointed out.
“As an industry, it’s important we know our (business). Many of our clients have been with us for a long time and are accustomed to weathering the ups and downs of this kind of climate with volatility in the market,” she said.
Susan Wood covers law, cannabis, production, tech, energy, transportation, agriculture as well as banking and finance. For 27 years, Susan has worked for a variety of publications including the North County Times, Tahoe Daily Tribune and Lake Tahoe News. Reach her at 530-545-8662 or susan.wood@busjrnl.com.
