MERGERS & ACQUISITIONS

Deals 2024: Over 100 CPA Firm Mergers and Acquisitions

By

Howard

Buckle up for 2025.

By CPA Trendlines Research

Curious about the deals that went down in 2024 and how they might inform your next move? Marc Howard is, too. So, he compiled a comprehensive list.

Howard is a serial entrepreneur in the accounting space, Host of the Pitch Your Firm podcast, founder of Firmlever, founder of Taxplow, co-founder of BizPayO, and creator of Tax Advisor GPT.

Howard found upwards of 115 deals in 2024, ranging from the first deal of the year, ATA CPAs’ takeover of  Whitehorn Tankersley & Davis on Jan. 3, to the last, Platform Accounting Group’s roll-ups of Midwest Advisors and Crossroads Advisors on Dec. 23.

Some of the most active buyers on his list include CBiz, which counted Marcum among its three deals; Citrin Cooperman, with eight deals; CLA, Crowe, and Doeren, each with three; and Eisner, with four deals.

He predicts an even busier 2025 for the profession.

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Want to Merge? Here Are 23 Things to Request

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This is your starting point.

By Ed Mendlowitz
202 Questions and Answers: Managing an Accounting Practice

QUESTION: What do you ask for when considering a merger?

MORE: I’m Just Starting Out; Why Join an Association? | Don’t Blame the Client for Your Location | Who to Hire When It’s Time to Grow | The Top Tip for Reviewing Tax Returns | You Can’t Win with Lowballing | Yes, You Have to Share Work Papers | Should You Merge? Here’s How to Chart Your Path | Hold Staff Accountable If You Want Them to Listen to You | Higher Fees to Start: Ten Ways to Make Your Tax Season Better
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RESPONSE: This is a “you show me yours and I’ll show you mine.” You should have this information fairly well organized.

Also, look at it critically and try to imagine what a prospective partner would say, and how you would react if this were someone else’s information that were being presented to you.
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Richard Kopelman: Inside Aprio’s Bold Makeover | Accounting Influencers | Part 1 of 2

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Lessons from dozens of strategic mergers & acquisitions.

Subscribe to CPA Trendlines podcasts anywhere: Apple, Google/Youtube, Spotify, iHeart, Deezer, Amazon Music, Audible, Player FM, Audacy, RSS.


Accounting Influencers
with Rob Brown

Richard Kopelman, CEO and managing partner of PE-owned Aprio, reveals the firm’s dramatic transformation and rebranding into a global business advisory and accounting firm.

See Part 2: Richard Kopelman: Aprio’s Plans for Global Conquest  | More Accounting Influencers with Rob Brown here | Aprio Sells Majority Stake to Charlesbank Capital Partners here | Cited: Mindset: The New Psychology of Success

In this first part of a two-part Accounting Influencers with Rob Brown, Kopelman analyzes the high demand for accounting services due to changes in business, regulatory requirements, and technology. According to Kopelman, a key challenge for accounting firms often lies in mindset, requiring a shift from a risk-averse outlook to a more “positive,” entrepreneurial one.

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Rosenbloom: Don’t Merge for the Money

By

Merge to make a better business.

This is a preview. The complete 1-hour video episode, with commentary and transcript, is first available exclusively to PRO Members. 

The Disruptors
With Liz Farr

Ira Rosenbloom has worked in M&A with accounting firms for years, but things are changing today. The community of buyers is shrinking, so firms are being more selective about with whom they partner. Rosenbloom is also seeing more creativity in transactions, and acquiring firms are looking closer at the clients they may be adding.

MORE PODCASTS and VIDEOS: Adam Lean: Get Out of the Accountant’s Trap | Geraldine Carter: Charging More is Better for Your Clients | Vimal Bava: When Working Smarter, Not Harder, Is the Only Option | Dawn Brolin Says Grow Your Firm by Shrinking It | Jason Blumer & Julie Shipp: Move Leaders Out of Client Service | James Graham: Drop the Billable Hour and You’ll Bill More | Karen Reyburn: Fix Your Marketing and Fix Your Business | Giles Pearson: Fix the Staffing Crisis by Swapping Experience for Education | Jina Etienne: Practice Fearless Inclusion | Bill Penczak: Stop Forcing Smart People to Do Stupid Work | Sandra Wiley: Staffing Problem? Check Your Culture | Scott Scarano: First, Grow People. Then Firm Growth Can Follow |

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“We’re bringing in more clients. Are they the right clients?” he asks. “And if we bring in clients from this other firm, and we do some cutting, how do we let that other firm earn some money back?”

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