The organization has made its mark with the acquisition of a mass of RIAs in the US in the past few years – one of the most vigorous examples of such M&A in North American wealth management.

Toronto-listed CI Financial, which has bought a mass of US wealth management houses in recent years, said today that Darie Urbanky, president, chief operating officer and head of CI Global Asset Management, has decided to retire at the end of 2024.

From January 1, 2024, Marc-André Lewis, chief investment officer of CI GAM, will assume the role of co-head of CI GAM. Lewis will retain his current responsibilities as CIO, the firm said in a statement today.

Urbanky joined CI in 1996 in its information technology department, where he spent 20 years in progressively more senior roles before being named chief technology officer in 2016. He was promoted to COO in 2018 and named president in 2019.

“Darie helped shape CI into what it is today,” Kurt MacAlpine, CI chief executive officer, said. “Over his 27-year career at the firm, he was instrumental in helping to grow the business into a globally recognized financial services leader, having held influential roles across the organization. On behalf of everyone at CI, I thank Darie for his leadership and commitment throughout his tenure at the firm.”

As a busy acquirer of US wealth managers such as RIAs in recent years, CI Financial's activity created waves. See here for an analysis by US correspondent Charles Paikert.