PE Firm New Mountain Exits $63B Broker/Dealer Lincoln
Lincoln Investment Capital Holdings, a Fort Washington, Pa.-based independent broker/dealer and registered investment advisor with approximately $63 billion in fee-based and brokerage assets, is returning to family ownership.
New Mountain Capital, a New York-based investment firm, announced Wednesday that it had exited its investment in the broker/dealer to return full ownership to the Forst family and advisor shareholders.
The investor, which had a non-controlling stake, is exiting after the completion of a CEO transition. In June of this year, CEO Ed Forst stepped into an executive chairman role and handed the reins of the top job to Kathy Leckey. Leckey had started as chief of staff to the CEO in 2020 before being promoted to chief operating officer, and then president. The firm had also recently appointed a new chief operating officer, chief information and technology officer, and chief development officer.
New Mountain invested in Lincoln Investment in 2020 and partnered with the Forst family to upgrade the IBD’s operating platform, strengthen leadership, and expand fee-based business, according to the announcement. The firm now has about 400 employees and a network of about 1,000 financial professionals working across retirement savings, including annuities, wealth management, and insurance.
“With New Mountain’s investment, partnership, and strategic guidance, we strengthened our technology, expanded our capabilities, and positioned the business for continued growth,” Leckey said in a statement.
The move back to family ownership is somewhat exceptional in the IBD sector, which has been consolidating in recent years, often after private equity investment or ownership change.
Nick Forst founded Lincoln Investment in 1986, and his son Ed Forst became CEO in 1992. After New Mountain’s 2020 investment, the firm grew its fee-based assets by about 75%, according to the firm.
New Mountain itself has $60 billion in AUM and oversees investments across business services, information and data, healthcare, and software and financial technology.
