Weaver, a Top 40 Firm based in Houston, is adding Buchbinder Tunick & Co. LLP, a firm based in New York, effective Jan. 1, 2024, expanding its footprint to the Washington, D.C. area, and New Jersey.
The merger will extend Weaver’s East Coast locations to five offices, including two in New York City, one on Long Island, one in New Jersey and one in the Maryland suburbs of D.C. As part of the deal, 125 audit, tax and advisory professionals, including 16 partners, will join Weaver. The Buchbinder team will remain in their existing offices in New York City; Little Falls, New Jersey; and Bethesda, Maryland.
Financial terms of the deal were not disclosed. Weaver ranked No. 34 on Accounting Today‘s 2023 list of the Top 100 Firms, with $197.6 million in annual revenue, approximately 113 partners and over 860 employees.
Over the past several years, Weaver’s New York team has had great success driving the firm’s growth in several sectors, including alternative investments, real estate, private equity and energy.
Buchbinder dates back to 1945 and provides audit, tax and consulting services to clients in various industries, including manufacturing, distribution, real estate and professional services. The firm’s audit practice specializes in labor unions and employee benefit plans.
“We could not be more pleased with Buchbinder’s experience and cultural fit with Weaver,” said Weaver CEO and managing partner John Mackel in a statement Monday. “The firm has built an excellent reputation in the Northeast and throughout the country with labor unions and employee benefit plans. We look forward to building on Buchbinder’s strong brand equity to drive growth in our combined audit, tax and advisory practices, both in the Northeast and nationally.”
Weaver plans to combine its employee benefit plan practice with Buchbinder’s labor union and benefit plan practice, with the goal of eventually expanding the practice nationally. The combined firm will serve more than 650 labor unions and employee benefit plans with $165 billion in total plan assets.
“The partners at Buchbinder are delighted to have found a firm that genuinely cares about their people, and this is reflected in every aspect of their culture,” said Peter Ricci, management committee member at Buchbinder, in a statement. “We look forward to the opportunities this deal provides for our team members to grow and develop their careers as part of Weaver. We also believe the depth of services Weaver offers, especially from an advisory perspective, will bring added value to our existing clients.”
In June, Weaver made its biggest acquisition to date, merging in HKG LLP, a firm based in Pasadena, California. Last November, Weaver merged in PRM CPAs + Advisors, a firm in Lafayette, Louisiana and Houston, effective Nov. 1, 2022. Last March, Weaver expanded its presence in New York City by adding Levine & Seltzer. In December 2021, Weaver expanded to Los Angeles by adding accounting and advisory firm PJ LLP.
