A measure of US registered advisor deals in the third quarter of this year shows a decline, with market volatility encouraging advisors to hit the pause button.

Registered investment advisor M&A is on course to fall in the third quarter of 2026, potentially ending a seven-quarter run of record-setting activity, according to data issued this week from DeVoe & Company.

As of 22 September, 72 RIA transactions had been announced in the quarter, down 19 per cent from 89 in the same period of 2025. David DeVoe, founder and chief executive of the investment bank and consultancy, said. He added that the slowdown over the past two quarters makes it likely that full-year 2026 volume will come in below 2025 figures.

The decline follows a record start to the year. The 93 deals announced in the first quarter matched the all-time quarterly high and were up 24 per cent from 75 a year earlier. Volume then eased to 74 in the second quarter, one more than in the same period of 2025.

DeVoe attributes the slowdown to owners postponing sales amid macroeconomic and geopolitical uncertainty, rather than any shift in the industry's long-term drivers, such as a need for economies of scale to pay for technology, and older advisors’ desire for exit strategies.

A professionally managed sale typically takes about six months, while advisors selling without an investment banker usually take 12 to 18 months. 

"The transactions announced on a given day are the result of a decision to sell, which came six to 18 months ago," DeVoe said. "The volatility and distraction created by tariffs, the war with Iran, gasoline price surges and other economic shocks over the last 18 months caused some advisors to pause before moving forward with a sale."

The VIX measure of US equity market volatility spiked after the tariff announcements of April 2025, reaching levels last seen at the onset of the Covid-19 pandemic. A second wave of uncertainty followed the US-Iran conflict in March this year. 

Other trackers of M&A in the RIA sector have painted a stronger picture of the first half of this year, however. ECHELON Partners counted 120 announced transactions in the second quarter, down from the all-time record of 142 in the first quarter but 17.6 per cent higher than a year earlier.