FormulaFolios to maintain Grand Rapids HQ after deal with PE-backed Brookstone Capital Management

FormulaFolios to maintain Grand Rapids HQ after deal with PE-backed Brookstone Capital Management
Jason Wenk, co-founder and executive director of FormulaFolios

GRAND RAPIDS — FormulaFolios Investments LLC plans to merge with Brookstone Capital Management in Chicago in a deal that will create an investment adviser firm with more than $6.5 billion in assets.

The merged firm will keep the Brookstone name and retain the Grand Rapids-based FormulaFolios brand for continued oversight of its asset management division.

“This is a unique opportunity for both firms and our affiliated advisers,” Jason Wenk, co-founder and executive director of FormulaFolios, said in a statement. “Both companies have spent significant resources in building out the platform and programs they consider to be their competitive advantages. Now, we can leverage each other’s strengths to deliver a more robust experience to our advisor clients.”

Key executives from both firms will remain. Wenk becomes executive director of the merged firm and FormulaFolios’s Joel VanWoerkom will serve as vice president of operations, and Jason Crump as vice president of relationship management.

Formed in 2011, FormulaFolios serves hundreds of financial advisers and thousands of clients nationwide. At the end of 2019, the firm managed $3.64 billion in assets. FormulaFolios also maintains an office in Costa Mesa, Calif.

Brookstone Capital Management, founded in 2006, is fee-based asset management firm with a niche network of more than 400 financial advisers and firms. As of Dec. 31, 2019, Brookstone managed more than $2.95 billion in assets.

Brookstone intends to maintain both headquarters in Chicago and Grand Rapids.

“Brookstone and FormulaFolios have consistently been the top two considerations for retirement advisers seeking an RIA partner supportive of their planning philosophies,” stated Dean Zayed, founder and CEO of Brookstone who will be the chief executive of the merged firm. “It was a natural fit for us to come together as one. Now, advisers can gain access to all of the leading programs and resources each of our companies have to offer.”

A year ago, Clearwater, Fla.-based AmeriLife Group acquired a majority stake in Brookstone. AmeriLife is backed by Boston, Mass.-based private equity firm Thomas H. Lee Partners L.P.