TPG Capital, the San Francisco-based private equity firm, is making a “substantial” minority investment in Creative Planning, the Peter Mallouk-led $375 billion firm.
The two parties announced the deal Monday, and the terms were not disclosed. According to the deal, TPG will join existing investor General Atlantic (which will keep its minority stake) to “provide additional resources and expertise to help Creative Planning to continue to enhance its service offerings and growth trajectory.”
Mallouk will remain onboard as president and CEO, keeping his majority stake in the company. In a statement about the deal, Mallouk said TPG Capital’s investment was indicative of Creative Planning’s “growth and expansion opportunities.”
“We are excited to partner with a trusted investor like TPG, with a well-known global reputation, who shares our vision of leveraging our planning-led approach and people-first culture to better serve clients through every phase of their financial lives,” Mallouk said.
Goldman Sachs acted as Creative Planning’s financial advisor for the deal, while J.P. Morgan Securities and RBC did the same for TPG Capital. Paul Weiss and Davis Polk offered legal counsel for Creative Planning and TPG, respectively.
The New York-based General Atlantic took its minority stake in the company in February 2020, though Mallouk said at the time that his majority ownership wouldn’t change (according to SEC records, Mallouk owned at least 75% of the firm at the time). In 2021, Mallouk opened equity to Creative Planning employees, with 10% of the workforce at the time becoming partial owners.
At the time, Mallouk differentiated the deal, noting that while most RIA firms were “owned by buyout equity,” he still owned Creative Planning. According to Mallouk, General Atlantic was set to keep its minority, noncontrolling investment for a long period of time.
The Creative Planning/TPG deal comes only a few days after TPG announced it would buy a minority stake in Homrich Berg, an Atlanta-based RIA integrator with about $18 billion in assets.
The firm sold to TPG Growth, TPG’s middle market and growth equity platform. Homrich Berg was previously backed by a minority investment from New Mountain Strategic Equity, an affiliate of PE firm New Mountain Capital (the firm maintained its investment with the TPG deal).
According to firm CEO Thomas Carroll, the TPG partnership enabled Homrich Berg to “continue to deliver outstanding service and advice” via its fee-only model.
"It also allows HB to remain the largest shareholder group, with our management team retaining operational control, ensuring that our mission of being a trusted financial guide for our clients remains intact," he said.
Creative Planning made its first acquisition of the year in April when it bought ML&R Wealth Management, an 18-person Texas-based RIA with nearly $1.8 billion in AUM, including 676 households and 15 institutions as clients. This followed several blockbuster deals near the end of 2023, including buying Mesirow’s retirement services business and Goldman Sachs Personal Financial Management, which was previously United Capital.
