Kingswood Acquisition Corp., the special purpose acquisition company sponsored by the major shareholders in British wealth management firm Kingswood Group and a sister company to Kingswood U.S., said shareholders voted to approve another extension to complete its merger with broker/dealer aggregator Wentworth Management Services, according to a recent SEC filing. The SPAC had a deadline of Feb. 24, 2024, but that has been pushed back to March 15, 2024.
Kingswood launched its SPAC in November 2020, announcing it had successfully raised $115 million in its initial public offering and would use proceeds from the public markets to invest in U.S.-based RIAs and wealth management firms. Larry Roth, former CEO of Cetera Financial Group, was brought in as lead director.
In July 2022, Wentworth, which owns four independent broker/dealers, entered into an agreement to merge with the SPAC, in a deal that would take the firm public. The two will merge under the newly created Binah Capital Group, which will have over 1,900 advisors and $25 billion in assets. Binah will be a publicly traded holding company, and Roth will serve as executive chairman of the firm. Wentworth and its broker/dealer subsidiaries, including PKS Investments, will be the market-facing brands.
Ryan Morfin, who stepped down as CEO of Wentworth a year ago, was recently suspended by the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority for five months and fined $10,000 for engaging in banking activities without registering as an investment banking representative or having the requisite exam. FINRA said he also acted in a principal capacity at his firm without registering as such.
