For several years, RIA consolidation was fueled by cheap debt, compelling acquisition multiples, and AUM growth underpinned by rising markets. Today, debt isn’t free, acquisition multiples have been bid up, and public markets have become dependent on a very narrow list of equities for growth. Despite headwinds, the P.E. thesis of investing in the RIA space: sticky revenue, low capital intensity, and dependable margins, has survived the pandemic and rough market years like 2022. The missing element was and is the inaccessibility of public market equity to cash out the P.E. investment thesis and to provide replenishment capital to do new deals.