Cerity Partners Welcomes AJ Wealth

Cerity Partners announced today it is merging with New York City-based AJ Wealth, a registered investment advisor specializing in providing family office services to ultra-high-net-worth families.

NEW YORK, July 5, 2023 —

Cerity Partners, a leading independent wealth management firm in the U.S., announced today it is merging with New York City-based AJ Wealth, a registered investment advisor specializing in providing family office services to ultra-high-net-worth families. AJ Wealth was advised by Park Sutton Advisors, A Waller Helms Company, whose team was led by Steve Levitt, Founder and Managing Director, and Dan Erichson, Managing Director. The combined firm will operate under the Cerity Partners name.

For Cerity Partners, the combination expands the firm’s capability in serving ultra-high-net-worth clients with complex wealth management needs. AJ Wealth has significant expertise working with partners and founders of hedge funds, private equity and venture capital firms, business owners, and C-suite executives. Founded in 2012 by Andrew Cooper and Justyn Volesko, who formerly worked in Goldman Sachs’ Family Office unit, AJ Wealth developed a comprehensive family office service that focuses on handling all aspects of a family’s financial situation. One of AJ Wealth’s unique areas of expertise is the complex estate and tax planning issues for clients with carried interests in their firm’s investment funds.

Founded in 2009, Cerity Partners is a growing leader in providing wealth and investment management services to individuals, families, businesses, and nonprofit organizations. As a Barron’s-ranked Top 100 RIA Firm, Cerity Partners is also among the nation’s fastest-growing wealth management firms. Cerity Partners President and CEO Kurt Miscinski sees the combination with AJ Wealth as an accelerant to the firm’s growth in working with exceptionally wealthy individuals and families. “We are excited to welcome our colleagues from AJ Wealth. Their highly customized family office service is unique in our industry. Our merger allows us to broaden the depth of our service offering and will accelerate our firm’s growth in an important and expanding client segment. Furthermore, our new colleagues’ experience working with partners and founders of hedge fund, private equity, and venture capital firms will deepen our expertise and leadership in serving these clients,” Miscinski says.

Andrew Cooper, co-founder of AJ Wealth, and his colleagues are excited to advance the Cerity Partners Family Office efforts. “Partnering with Cerity Partners is a natural evolution of our firm. From our time working with Goldman Sachs partners within the Goldman Sachs Family Office to the founding of AJ Wealth, we constantly strive to exceed client expectations and provide the highest level of service in the industry as well as the most creative and sophisticated planning. Our clients work with us because we are a true ‘financial planning first’ firm providing a suite of family office services that allow us to handle all aspects of their financial lives. Our clients have complex financial situations and are looking for someone to oversee their entire financial picture. Our experience matched with Cerity Partners’ wide range of services and investment capabilities will help make this partnership very successful for our clients and firm.  We look forward to leveraging our expertise to create a best-in-class family office service for Cerity Partners.”

The combination of Cerity Partners and AJ Wealth will include the creation of two new leadership positions within the organization to further develop the firm’s family office service offering.  In this role, Cooper and Volesko will use their expertise and experience to expand Cerity Partners’ offerings to clients seeking a family office solution. “Merging with Cerity Partners will enable us to better serve our existing clients and further enhance a leading family office solution for new clients.  We are also excited to leverage our expertise in complex planning for partners of hedge fund, private equity, and venture capital firms,” says co-founder Justyn Volesko.

About Cerity Partners

Founded in 2009, Cerity Partners is a nationally recognized financial and wealth advisory firm serving high-net-worth individuals and their families and nonprofit organizations and foundations throughout the U.S. As a fiduciary, the firm’s in-house experts are passionate about and committed to providing objective financial advice and oversight. Cerity Partners manages assets totaling $65 billion.