Merger Creates One of the Largest CPA Firm Associations

The Global Alliance and Moore Stephens North America, Inc. announced today that they will merge to create one of the largest CPA firm associations, based on revenues, in the United States.

The new association resulting from the merger will be known as Moore Stephens North America (MSNA) and is represented by 35 firms with gross revenues of over $600 million. The association's operations will be relocated from Bethesda, MD to New York City, NY.

Though the Global Alliance consists of larger firms, Moore Stephens is a more established name in the accounting industry and the new organization will still be part of Moore Stephens International Limited. This worldwide network consists of over 330 leading independent accounting and consulting firms with more than 500 offices, in over 90 countries with total worldwide revenues of almost $1.25 billion. MSNA has a large firm group comprising 17 firms each with gross fees in excess of $15 million. They include Armanino McKenna LLP (San Francisco Bay Area); Bonadio & Co. (Rochester and Buffalo); Brown Smith Wallace (St. Louis) Carr, Riggs & Ingram (Alabama, Mississippi, Florida); Decosimo & Company (Tennessee, Georgia, Ohio); Doeren Mayhew (Michigan); Moore Stephens Frost (Arkansas); Goodman & Company (Virginia and surrounding areas); Holthouse Carlin & Van Trigt (Greater Los Angeles area); Mahoney Cohen & Company (New York, Florida); Mohler, Nixon & Williams (San Jose area); Rea & Associates (Ohio); Moore Stephens Tiller (Atlanta); Travis Wolff & Co. (Texas); Watkins, Meegan & Drury (Maryland, Virginia); Wipfli (Wisconsin, Minnesota); and Moore Stephens Wurth Frazer and Torbet (Orange County).

In addition, the new organization has a mid-size firm group consisting of 18 local and regional firms each with revenues below $15 million. They include Moore Stephens Apple, Inc. (Ohio), Asher & Company, Ltd. (Philadelphia); Atkinson & Co., Ltd. (Albuquerque); Bansley and Kiener, LLP (Chicago); Beene Garter, LLP (Grand Rapids); Benson & McLaughlin, P.S. (Seattle); Burnside Rishebarger, PLLC (San Antonio); Moore Stephens Cooper Molyneux, LLP (Toronto); Dudley, Hopton-Jones, Sims & Freeman, PLLP (Alabama); Eadie and Payne, LLP (Redlands, Ontario); Grassi & Company (Lake Success, NY); Moore Stephens Hays & Company, LLP (New York); Moore Stephens Lovelace, P.A. (Florida); Moore Stephens Mexico (Mexico); Moore Stephens Potter, LLP (Lexington, Louisville); G.T. Reilly & Company, P.C. (Massachusetts); Rhea & Ivy, P.L.C. (Memphis); and Moore Stephens, P.C. (New Jersey, New York).

The diversity of large and mid-size firms under one umbrella adds a unique ingredient to the combination. While the new association has a revenue base that places it within the top 10 of all CPA firms, the breadth of knowledge contained within the network enables it to serve small clients as well as publicly traded companies.

Mark Garten, managing partner of New York-based Mahoney Cohen & Company and chair of the Global Alliance, along with Thomas Rosenbach, managing partner of Beene Garter in Grand Rapids and chair of Moore Stephens North America, Inc., envisioned the mutual benefits of bringing both groups together. Says Garten, "We see this combination with Moore Stephens as a way not only to broaden our members' geographical service reach in North America, but also to serve the diverse needs of international clients who are a growing part of our service portfolios." Garten will become the chair of the merged association.

"Joining forces with the Global Alliance firms makes a lot of sense for our group because of the services clients are now requesting," says Rosenbach. "Add to this the reputation of the Global Alliance firms, and it was evident that joining with them was the right move from a long-term perspective."

The combined group will pursue a number of objectives that will enable them to serve their clients more effectively and manage their firms more profitably. The new organization will facilitate the sharing of best practices and expertise among member firms, not only at the managing partner level, but also at the practice level for various industry and functional areas; a critical consideration in a rapidly changing profession.

Allan Koltin, CPA, President and CEO of PDI Global, Inc. in Chicago, who advised on the formation of the Global Alliance and assisted in the negotiations with Moore Stephens, sees the combination as the right strategy at the right time. "The marshalling of Top 100 and regional firm resources will enable members to leverage their intellectual capital across the country and will position them perfectly for service opportunities in the post-SOX environment," says Koltin.

Steven Sacks, CPA, executive director of the merged association adds, "The Big 4 firms are shedding work they cannot do for their attest clients to regional and mid-size firms. This will present the new group with a great opportunity to deliver a broader array of value-added services, while establishing brand equity in the marketplace." Client dynamics, technology needs and the challenges of administering a firm have transformed the profession over the past ten years. Firms realize they can no longer operate in isolation if they desire to develop a service or industry niche and have access to resources to provide the required services.

"The new association has firms that vary in size and depth and breadth of expertise, as well as expanded geographical coverage. I see the large and mid-size firms exchanging client opportunities — a dynamic that makes this group different," says Mark Crawford, managing partner of Detroit-based Doeren Mayhew and a member of the Moore Stephens Executive Committee who was also a key player in bringing both organizations together. "Combining the intellectual capital of both associations will substantially increase our ability to enhance our talent pool while being more aggressive in pursuing new services and industries," Crawford notes.

Global Alliance vice chair, Bill Young, managing partner of industry practices at the Wisconsin firm Wipfli, notes "When clients need assistance, it is our responsibility to find ways to help them. The diversity of the member firms and the worldwide nature of the organization provide us with enormous tools to solve business issues, especially on the international level."

MSNA will also foster collaboration on client engagements both domestically and internationally, provide business referrals, and operate special interest groups for the generation of ideas and information exchange. Other member benefits will include continuing education, conferences, workshops, alliances with strategic partners and a website for conducting research and sharing information.