January 2016
Equiteq, a consulting sector M&A specialist, is pleased to announce the sale of CounselWorks LLC to Duff & Phelps Corporation. Equiteq principals acted as exclusive financial advisor to CounselWorks, a leading business strategy and regulatory compliance consulting firm catering to the asset management and financial services industries. The transaction closed on January 13, 2016.
Founded in 2006 by its partners, Rosemary Fanelli and Ron Resnick, CounselWorks provides strategic advisory, regulatory and compliance services to financial institutions. The company’s services include launching new asset management firms and investment funds, developing the infrastructure necessary to attract institutional investors, registering firms with regulators and governing bodies such as the SEC, FINRA and CFTC/NFA, and serving as an external manager of regulatory and compliance programs for its clients. The CounselWorks team will join the Duff & Phelps Financial Regulatory and Compliance Practice adding deep capabilities and an impressive US client base to a practice that was formed in connection with Duff & Phelps’ acquisition of Kinetic Partners in early 2015. Rosemary Fanelli, CEO of CounselWorks, said, “I look forward to combining our two great teams, and advancing our reputations in the alternative asset management world. I am confident that our clients and employees will benefit from this combination of like-minded organizations.” Nicodemo Esposito, Managing Director in Equiteq's New York office, commented, “CounselWorks is a world-class regulatory and compliance practice that has developed differentiated capabilities and a reputation as a trusted advisor to asset managers and financial institutions throughout the US. The combination of Duff & Phelps and CounselWorks will create compelling new business opportunities and provide their clients access to a broader suite of complementary service offerings. We thoroughly enjoyed working with founders Rosemary Fanelli and Ron Resnick and congratulate the entire CounselWorks team on this exciting milestone.” Ms. Fanelli added, “Choosing Equiteq’s team to represent us was easy given their deep knowledge and expertise in the financial consulting space, and their creative and business savvy approach to strategic deal alternatives. Equiteq demonstrated a strong ability to assess issues, explain them and negotiate on our behalf, and we were pleased to have them as part of our team.” To see all of our deals, please click here. ©Equiteq 2016