Strongpoint Welcomes BEI, Cetera Debuts AI Suite

BEI Joins Strongpoint

Strongpoint Partners (Strongpoint), a retirement services platform serving small- to mid-sized businesses with integrated retirement third-party administration (TPA), recordkeeping, payroll, and HR solutions, announced that Benefit Equity, Inc. (BEI) will join the firm.

BEI, based in Santa Ana, CA, has served Southern California for more than 30 years and works with small-to mid-sized businesses. They have a team of 14 retirement plan strategists who work with wealth advisors, payroll companies, and tax professionals, and who specialize in retirement plan administration and consulting services.

They are led by Bob Gorelick, founder of BEI, and Michael Gorelick, president of BEI. As part of the partnership, BEI’s entire team will remain in place.

 “When we began thinking about the future of our business, we knew we wanted to find a partner who could help us reach new heights without compromising our commitment to personalized service,” said Bob Gorelick. “After spending time with the Strongpoint Partners team, Michael and I knew this was what we’d been looking for. We’re excited to continue to nurture our client relationships with access to more tools and resources to empower our people and take our business to the next level.”

Cetera Launches AI Growth Suite

Cetera is launching its IntelligenceEngine, a proprietary suite of AI-powered tools and services built to help financial professionals accelerate growth.

“With IntelligenceEngine, we’re enabling advisors to scale meaningful conversations and drive measurable outcomes from their existing client base,” said Christian Mitchell, chief solutions officer at Cetera. “This solution was designed to strategically connect the dots between data, planning, and action. Each element powers the next, creating a multiplier effect on efficiency and growth.” 

Key capabilities of IntelligenceEngine at launch include:

• GrowthLine™ Commercial Activation Engine: Cetera’s proprietary go-to-market system, GrowthLine converts insight into revenue by identifying whitespace opportunities, prioritizing client segments, and triggering intelligent outreach across communication channels.

• Jump AI Software: Uses natural language processing to mine advisor-client meetings for insights.

• AdviceWorks Account Aggregation: Offers visibility into held-away assets by enabling clients to link external accounts.

• MoneyGuide and eMoney Financial Planning Software: Helps advisors visualize full client net worth, surfaces overlooked assets, and informs advice across the total household assets.

• Financial Plan Design Group: Cetera’s in-house team builds financial plans to uncover new asset opportunities and free up advisor capacity, feeding planning-based triggers into GrowthLine for follow-up.

• Advanced Time Segmentation^®: A differentiated retirement income strategy that structures portfolios into segments aligned with income goals, driving higher personalization in pursuit of better outcomes.

Cetera-affiliated professionals attending Connect2Peers 2025 in Orlando can experience live IntelligenceEngine demos at Cetera’s conference exhibit, hosted by Ladan Massir, head of Advisor and Institution Marketing, and members of the Cetera Growth team.

Hightower Brings in Chief Advisor Officer

Hightower Advisors, a national wealth management firm, announced today the appointment of Scott Hadley in the newly created role of chief advisory officer. Hadley will be responsible for how Hightower engages and supports its advisor community.

Prior to joining Hightower, Hadley was the SVP of RIA Solutions at Osaic, Inc., and was responsible for leading the RIA efforts within the broker dealer. Prior to Osaic, he spent more than 17 years at Goldman Sachs, including working alongside newly appointed Hightower CEO Larry Restieri. At Hightower, Hadley will lead advisor engagement, strategic growth initiatives, and practice management support.

“Scott Hadley brings a fresh, advisor-first perspective to our field engagement model, and underscores our continued commitment to supporting outsized growth for our advisors,” said Larry Restieri, CEO of Hightower Advisors. “Scott’s addition reflects the momentum we are seeing across our community and the future vision of Hightower.”

Hightower also announced two additional leadership updates. Scott Holsopple has been named chief strategy officer, where he will oversee enterprise strategy, internal and external mergers and acquisitions, as well as Hightower’s value proposition for end clients and advisors. Jenn Anderson was also promoted to chief marketing officer and will oversee the firm’s enterprise marketing, communications, and brand efforts.

Advisor CRM Announces Alliance with SmartData

Advisor CRM this week announced its partnership with SmartData, a data aggregation and prospect engagement platform.

“This partnership brings us closer to a fully automated operational core—one where advisors spend less time chasing paperwork and more time building relationships.”

Leibel Sternbach, Advisor CRM

“Advisors are tired of duct-taping point solutions together,” said Leibel Sternbach, partner and CTO of Advisor CRM. “This partnership brings us closer to a fully automated operational core—one where advisors spend less time chasing paperwork and more time building relationships.”

The launch comes off the heels of an AI meeting assistant announced by Advisor CRM last month. The AI technology offer direct access to advisors’ CRM data from within ChatGPT and Claude via Model Context Protocol (MCP).

Advisor CRM’s integration with SmartData allows advisors to eliminate manual entry, accelerate the onboarding process, and automatically access key client data, including portfolios, life and annuity policies, and external financial accounts. Clients and prospects alike can also use SmartData Connect to share their financial data with advisors. All Advisor CRM users now also have access to an exclusive SmartData discount. Those interested in using the SmartData integration can activate it within Advisor CRM’s platform at www.advisorcrm.com. The discount code can be found under their profile or on the integrations page.

“At SmartData, we firmly believe that enhancing operational efficiency enables advisors to build better relationships with their clients,” said Ryan Morrison, CEO of SmartData. “Our strategic partnership with Advisor CRM allows us to extend our vision of effortless onboarding to more RIAs. Together, we’re empowering firms to work smarter, faster, and with greater confidence.”

Creative Planning Buys Mosaic

Creative Planning is acquiring Mosaic Pacific, a financial advisory practice serving clients throughout Hawaii. The transaction closed on June 30, 2025, bringing approximately $430 million in assets under management (AUM) to Creative Planning.

“This acquisition allows us to maintain our client-focused approach while bringing our clients additional resources and services.”

Cory Nakamura, Mosaic Pacific

Founded in 2014, Mosaic Pacific was built on the philosophy of integrating unbiased investment management with comprehensive financial planning services.

“What impressed us most about Mosaic Pacific is their dedication to understanding each client’s complete financial landscape,” said Peter Mallouk, president and CEO of Creative Planning. “Their approach to wealth management mirrors our own commitment to comprehensive service. We’re thrilled to welcome their talented team to Creative Planning.”

The integration of Mosaic’s team will build upon Creative Planning’s presence in the Pacific region while providing clients with access to Creative Planning’s services.

“This acquisition allows us to maintain our client-focused approach while bringing our clients additional resources and services,” shared Cory Nakamura, chief investment strategist at Mosaic Pacific.

The acquisition of Mosaic Pacific marks Creative Planning’s thirteenth acquisition in two years as the firm continues its strategic growth by expanding its geographical footprint and wealth management capabilities. 

NFP Acquires Levine Group

NFP, a benefits consultant, wealth manager and retirement plan advisor, announced its acquisition of Levine Group, LLC. a financial services firm based in Brentwood, Tennessee, that’s been serving Nashville and the surrounding area for over 60 years. 

Michael Levine, who leads Levine Group, will join NFP, working closely with Mike Schneider, president of NFP’s central and west regions. Trevor Coe and Zach Levine will also join NFP, staying actively involved in serving clients and growing the business alongside Michael Levine.

“I’m thrilled Mike, Trevor, Zach and the entire Levine Group team are joining NFP,” said Schneider. “They’ve built a strong reputation for helping people and businesses make smart financial decisions, and we’re excited to combine forces. Their experience and relationships in the Nashville and surrounding market will help us better serve clients and grow our wealth and retirement business in the region.”

Since 1963, Levine Group offers investment management, retirement plan consulting, employee benefits and insurance services.      

“We’re proud of what we’ve built over the past six decades,” said Mike Levine. “Our clients have trusted us to guide them through life’s most important financial decisions, and that trust means everything. Being part of NFP lets us continue doing what we love, while giving us more tools and support to help even more people.”

“We’ve always focused on delivering real value with a personal touch,” said Coe. “NFP gives us the chance to stay true to the mission of serving our clients but also grow in new and exciting ways.”

“This is a great move for our team and our clients,” said Zach Levine. “We’re gaining access to amazing resources and expertise, while still keeping the relationships and service that have made us who we are.”

Stonepeak Invests $1.3B in PDG

Princeton Digital Group (PDG), a data center operator in the Asia Pacific region, has signed a definitive agreement with Stonepeak, an alternative investment firm specializing in infrastructure and real assets. The firm will make a preferred equity investment of USD $1.3 billion in PDG to support its continued expansion across Asia Pacific.

Stonepeak’s long-term capital will support the company’s next phase of growth, including both greenfield development and M&A, across established and emerging Asia Pacific markets. Warburg Pincus will continue to be PDG’s largest shareholder.

“This milestone investment from Stonepeak is a strong endorsement of PDG’s strategy, execution, and sustained value creation,” said Rangu Salgame, chairman, CEO, and co-founder of PDG. “Stonepeak shares our deep conviction in the unprecedented growth of AI and cloud across Asia Pacific. With this partnership, PDG is uniquely positioned to scale with speed, continue being the trusted provider to the world’s most demanding hyperscalers, and further consolidate its position as a market leader in the region.”

“PDG has established itself as one of the clear leaders among digital infrastructure platforms in the Asia Pacific region. The company’s track record of execution, top-tier management team, and significant power bank in critical hub markets in APAC positions it well to serve the continued demand from hyperscalers and AI-driven platforms in the region,” said Andrew Thomas, senior managing director at Stonepeak. “This investment in a quality fit for our Asia infrastructure strategy, and we look forward to partnering with PDG’s management team, Warburg Pincus and existing shareholders to propel the company’s next phase of growth.”

PDG is being advised by Goldman Sachs, J.P. Morgan, and Latham & Watkins as legal counsel. Barclays is serving as financial advisor and Sidley Austin LLP is serving as legal counsel to Stonepeak.

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