Edge Strategy Group Launches as Growth Engine for RIAs and Independents

NEW YORK, NY / PRNewswire —  Jonathan Manela, a veteran of the wealth management industry, announced the creation of a new firm, Edge Strategy Group (EDGE), an outsourced financial services company that develops and executes inorganic growth strategies for the wealth management industry.

According to Manela, “today’s wealth management industry is characterized by an increased appetite for advisors to grow in ways other than through organic client acquisition, a strong desire for entrepreneurial advisors to break away from the full-service model to have more control of their business and an aging population of financial advisors with limited succession and business monetization plans.”

He goes on to note that “Advisors also face difficulty in scaling assets through means other than organic growth. They lack the time (and sometimes expertise) to think through and execute M&A strategies, geographic expansion plans, channel strategies, and well-vetted succession plans. Smaller advisors who are interested in joining a more entrepreneurial environment struggle to find a larger firm with the proper geographical, product, client, and cultural fit.”

A Comprehensive Suite of Inorganic Growth Strategies and Proprietary Services To Deliver Tangible, Long-Term Financial Value To the Wealth Management Industry

In order to solve these industry problems, EDGE has developed a suite of inorganic growth services for wealth management firms. EDGE helps Advisors:

• Source, analyze, and complete M&A transactions
• Source individuals and teams that bring complementary product and service value propositions to the firms’ existing client base
• Create long term business continuity and succession plans
• Attract high caliber talent to ensure continued business growth and long term continuity
• Develop and execute new channel strategies
• Expand into new markets

One of Edge’s most powerful tools is its well-developed due diligence process:

“We’ve developed a proprietary due diligence and valuation methodology for delivering an objective business analysis and valuation”. It’s the output of this process that serves as the foundation for the growth plan, according to Manela. “The focus is on creating long-term operating leverage for wealth management businesses”.

EDGE’s most valuable commodity is experience. “I’ve been in this business for over 20 years,” Manela, a former million dollar producer says, “and I’ve assembled a team of experts including my COO Matt Marcus who has deep knowledge of the financial industry as well as strategic planning. After 10 years of recruiting, I know Advisors and what they need. EDGE was created after asking Advisors all over the country what they needed. EDGE is built on Advisor input”

About Edge and Edge Leadership

Led by CEO Jonathan Manela, Edge Strategy Group is headquartered at 350 7^th Avenue in New York City, where Manela previously co-founded one of the nation’s most successful financial advisor recruitment firms. Earlier in his career, Manela was a high-level producer, raising nearly $400 million in assets from high net worth clients as Director of Investments at Wachovia Securities, and as a Financial Advisor at Oppenheimer & Co.

Matt Marcus is Edge’s Chief Operating Officer, joining Edge from TZ Consulting, which Marcus founded and serves as CEO, providing financial, operational, and strategic consulting services to corporate and private equity clients. Marcus also served as interim COO and CFO of multiple businesses in the financial services, technology, and CPG sectors. His career began at JP Morgan’s Investment Management Division.