Aggregation platforms make it easy for clients to compare advisors. You are now one option among many.

Platforms like Pontera, Orion, and Addepar give clients a single view across all their financial accounts — regardless of which advisor manages them. When clients can see every fee, every return, and every allocation side by side, the comparison shopping begins. The advisor who cannot articulate their specific value beyond 'we manage your portfolio' becomes the one who gets consolidated out.

RIA M&A hit a record 322 deals in 2025, shattering the prior record of 272 in 2024. Private equity drove 88% of acquisitions. Fidelity counted $796 billion in AUM transacted. Acquirers are buying for AUM, not advisory relationships. When a larger firm acquires a smaller one, the first thing they evaluate is which client relationships can be served more efficiently — and which advisors are redundant. The industry is consolidating from the top and the bottom simultaneously.

The clients most likely to consolidate are the ones advisory firms value most: high-net-worth individuals with multiple advisors. When a client working with three advisors realizes they can get a unified view and potentially better pricing by consolidating to one, the advisor without a differentiated offering is the first to go.