Brown Smith Wallace is set to join forces with Armanino in order for both firms to broaden their Midwest reach, effective on 1 August. As part of the expansion, Brown Smith Wallace will rebrand as Armanino but maintain its current St. Louis operations. Clients of Brown Smith Wallace will have access to Armanino’s technology consulting solutions for finance functions including enterprise resource planning, customer relationship management, budget and forecasting, business intelligence, data and analytics, and equity management. Armanino will leverage Brown Smith Wallace’s expertise in the private equity, financial services, insurance and manufacturing industries, while also promoting the St. Louis firm’s specialty services, which include construction audit, property tax compliance and consulting and cost segregation. The move will see Tony Caleca, managing partner of Brown Smith Wallace, assume the role of Midwest market leader and continue to lead its St. Louis offices, which will also serve as the Midwest market hub for Armanino. He will also be a member of the Armanino operating committee, the firm’s primary leadership group. In addition, Bryan Graiff, partner in charge of transaction advisory and litigation support and private equity industry group leader, will take on the role of transaction advisory and private equity industry leader for the combined firm. Alan Fine, tax partner and insurance industry group leader, and Todd Goldenhersh, an audit partner, will join the leadership of the combined firm’s insurance industry team. Steve Schueppert, partner in charge of audit and manufacturing and distribution industry group leader, and Kevin Boeving, a tax partner, will join the leadership of the combined firm’s manufacturing and distribution industry team. Meanwhile, Lincoln Gray, an audit partner and financial services industry group leader, and Amy Ribick, an advisory partner, will join the leadership of the combined firm’s financial services team. Finally, Karen Stern, partner in charge of the entrepreneurial services group, and Caleca are joining the board of directors of the Armanino Foundation. Commenting on the transaction, Matt Armanino, CEO of Armanino, says: “We’ve admired the Brown Smith Wallace team, their vision and their execution for years, and believe this combination will provide a springboard for us in the Midwest.” “In addition to their core accounting work, they have boldly expanded their advisory services offerings to include business performance consulting and construction audit, which are transformative solutions clients need to accelerate growth. We look forward to extending the reach of these and other competencies,” he adds.
