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/In this episode, I sit down with Ian Wenik, Editor at Citywire RIA and one of the sharpest reporters covering the wealth management industry. Ian shares his journey from sports writing to business journalism, what it’s like to run a newsroom in the RIA space, and his perspective on where wealth management journalism is headed.
We also dive into the rise of private equity in RIAs, M&A trends, how journalists balance source relationships with objectivity, and why discerning financial news readers should always look beyond the headline. If you’ve ever wanted a behind-the-scenes look at how the stories shaping our industry get made, this conversation will give you a fresh perspective.
Here are the notes from my conversation…
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From Sports Writing to Wealth Management Journalism (02:30)
Ian’s path into financial journalism wasn’t straightforward, and that’s part of what makes his perspective so unique. He originally set out to be a sportswriter, spending college and grad school writing for outlets like Newsday and NBC Sports Philadelphia. Growing up, he dreamed of being the NFL or MLB beat writer for Sports Illustrated or ESPN.
But while working on his master’s degree at Columbia, Ian took both a sports reporting class and a business reporting class. The sports class left him feeling disillusioned, while the business class sparked a sense of excitement he hadn’t expected. He realized he got far more joy digging into financial reporting than writing about box scores and player stats.
A near-miss with ESPN sealed the deal. After going through an intense two-day interview process, Ian thought he had landed his dream job—only to get ghosted. Frustrated but clear on his direction, he decided to pivot fully into business journalism, eventually covering distressed debt and bankruptcies before finding his way into wealth management reporting.
That background gives Ian a broader lens on the industry. He didn’t grow up wanting to cover RIAs, but as he puts it, like many who end up in this business, he stumbled into it—and has since carved out a career as one of the most respected voices in financial journalism.
First Impressions of Wealth Management (05:39)
When Ian first landed at Citywire, he admits he didn’t know what an RIA even was. Like many of us who stumbled into this profession, he came in with only a vague idea of wealth management and some preconceived notions shaped by the biggest names on Wall Street.
He recalls watching The Wolf of Wall Street and hearing references to Merrill Lynch. At the time, he thought, “Merrill Lynch is a good company—how bad could this really be?” That trust in brand names quickly faded once he began reporting. Covering the industry up close forced him to see both the strengths and the flaws of big firms. The experience turned him from someone who assumed the best about financial institutions into someone who embraced a healthy skepticism.
As Ian put it, that shift from neutral observer to skeptical journalist was crucial. Good reporting requires questioning what you’re told, looking beneath the surface, and recognizing that even well-respected firms have weaknesses. That mindset, which he’s honed over more than seven years in the industry, has become central to how he and his team cover wealth management today.
Running the Newsroom at Citywire (04:44)
A big part of our conversation was pulling back the curtain on what it’s like to run a newsroom dedicated to the RIA industry. Ian described his job as editor of Citywire RIA as equal parts structure and flexibility. Every day starts and ends with a news call—the morning meeting sets the day’s agenda, while the afternoon call looks ahead to tomorrow. In between, it’s a mix of writing, editing, chasing sources, and staying nimble for unexpected news.
But Ian emphasized that simply reacting to press releases or SEC filings isn’t enough. His goal is for every newsletter to include at least one or two deeply sourced, exclusive stories that set the industry agenda instead of just following it. That requires time, relationships, and a culture that encourages reporters to dig beneath the surface.
He also pointed out that being an editor isn’t just about managing workflow. It’s about cultivating talent. Sometimes that means heavy editing, other times it’s sharing bylines on big scoops, and often it’s leading by example—like the time he co-broke the story with a colleague that Goldman Sachs was selling its personal financial management division. For Ian, the measure of success isn’t just in the stories he writes, but in the team’s ability to consistently deliver the kind of reporting that moves the needle in wealth management.
Balancing Breaking News and Investigative Features (08:09)
There’s constant pressure in journalism to “feed the beast”—to publish new content every day, even if the story isn’t groundbreaking. But Citywire’s reputation is built on exclusives and deep dives, which means Ian has to be deliberate about where he and his team spend their energy.
He used a soccer analogy to describe the challenge. His boss, a die-hard fan, encourages him to play like a “number 10”—the creative midfielder or striker who scores goals. In practice, that means Ian has to chase scoops that no one else has, while still supporting his team and helping them develop their own reporting skills. Sometimes that looks like mentoring and line editing, sometimes it’s co-authoring a big story, and other times it’s stepping back and letting his team take the lead.
The balance, as Ian sees it, is more art than science. Break too much news without substance, and you lose credibility. Focus only on long-term features, and you risk falling behind on the daily narrative. The real skill lies in weaving the two together—delivering timely headlines while also building the kinds of stories that advisors and industry insiders will remember weeks or months later.
Where the Stories Come From (09:47)
Every journalist has to answer the question: where do the stories come from? For Ian, the answer is a mix of data and relationships. He breaks it down into what he and his team call “smart beta” versus “alpha.”
The “smart beta” stories come from systems and data feeds. Citywire tracks regulatory filings and uses software that alerts the newsroom whenever RIAs update key documents, change pricing structures, or adjust their ownership. They also subscribe to court docket services that flag lawsuits involving advisory firms. These tools provide a steady flow of leads and ensure that no important development slips through the cracks.
But the real prize—the “alpha”—comes from relationships. These are the sources who pick up the phone and share information that isn’t in a press release or a filing. Sometimes it’s a well-placed executive offering background context; other times it’s someone quietly tipping them off to a deal, a controversy, or a change before it becomes public. These stories, the ones with “sources familiar with the matter,” are the ones Ian treasures most because they shape the conversation rather than simply report on it.
He also highlighted the importance of trust in those relationships. A good source knows they can rely on him to honor confidentiality and present their side of the story, even when the coverage isn’t flattering. That trust, built over years, is what allows Ian and his team to break stories that competitors miss.
How the RIA Industry Has Evolved Since 2018 (12:10)
Ian joined Citywire in 2018, and in that relatively short span, he’s witnessed the RIA industry transform at a remarkable pace. Back then, private equity’s involvement in wealth management was just beginning to accelerate, with the landmark Hellman & Friedman acquisition of Edelman Financial Engines at a $3 billion valuation serving as an early signal of where things were headed.
Fast forward to today, and valuations have gone vertical. Creative Planning, for example, has reportedly fetched a valuation north of $16 billion. That dramatic rise reflects how institutional investors now view RIAs as an attractive, durable business model—one with sticky client assets and recurring revenue streams that stand out against the backdrop of an asset management industry struggling with outflows and margin pressure.
Ian also recalled how certain events—like the pandemic and the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP)—shaped reporting and accelerated change. His team dove deep into PPP loan data, uncovering stories that revealed how advisory firms were navigating crisis and securing relief. Those moments highlighted the intersection of financial policy, firm strategy, and client impact, and showed how fast the industry was professionalizing.
The throughline, as Ian put it, is that journalism in the wealth management space grew in lockstep with the industry itself. As RIAs attracted more capital and consolidated more aggressively, the stories became bigger, the stakes higher, and the appetite for news greater. For reporters like Ian, that meant being in the right place at the right time, covering an industry in the midst of a historic evolution.
The Future of M&A and RIA Valuations (11:51)
No discussion of the RIA industry would be complete without tackling mergers and acquisitions. Ian has covered countless deals, and in his view, the central question now is: what’s the endgame?
Over the past decade, valuations for RIAs have soared, often buoyed by private equity firms willing to pay high multiples for quality firms. Ian compared it to sports franchises—prices keep climbing as long as someone else is willing to pay more. But at some point, paper valuations need to be monetized, either through a strategic acquisition or an IPO. And that’s where things get complicated.
Public markets tend to value advisory firms more like traditional asset managers, which trade at lower multiples. That’s a problem for RIAs that have been acquired at 16x–18x earnings, because a public market willing to pay only 13x–14x would instantly compress valuations. It’s why the industry has been waiting to see whether a large firm—like Creative Planning—can pull off an IPO that commands a premium multiple, closer to the 20x+ earnings that firms like LPL enjoy. If that happens, others will follow. If not, the growth-by-consolidation model could hit a wall.
Ian also cautioned that too much consolidation risks changing the very DNA of the industry. RIAs were founded on independence and entrepreneurship. As firms get bigger and start to look more like wirehouses—just with a different fee model—advisors with entrepreneurial streaks may peel off and launch their own firms. That natural tension between scale and independence may act as a ceiling on how large these mega-RIAs can really get.
For clients, that means two things: first, understanding the “why” behind any acquisition your advisory firm undertakes, and second, keeping an eye on whether consolidation is adding value or just financial engineering. For the industry, it means that the next few years will be pivotal in determining whether today’s valuations are sustainable—or just the peak of a cycle.
What Content Resonates with Advisors (22:27)
As editor of Citywire RIA, Ian has a front-row seat to the types of stories that grab advisors’ attention—and it isn’t always what you’d expect. He explained that because Citywire is a trade publication, most of their readership is industry insiders. That means their reporting doesn’t often reach end clients directly, but it does shape how advisors view their firms, their peers, and the competitive landscape.
What gets the most traction? Stories that hit close to home. When Citywire covered the controversy around Orion’s return-to-office policy, advisor readership spiked. The same happened with coverage of Goldman Sachs’ exit from personal financial management, or when they broke developments at large broker-dealers like LPL and Commonwealth. Advisors want to know how decisions at the top are going to affect their daily work, their clients, and their careers.
Beyond internal controversies, Ian pointed out that deal coverage is always popular. Advisors want to understand who’s buying whom, how valuations are trending, and what it means for the future of their firm. And like any audience, they can’t resist the occasional scandal—stories involving fraud, lawsuits, or “crazy crimes,” as Ian called them, inevitably draw eyeballs.
The common denominator is impact. Advisors gravitate toward stories that directly affect their professional lives or shed light on the bigger forces reshaping the industry. For Ian, that reinforces why Citywire invests in deeply sourced reporting: because advisors don’t just want headlines, they want context that helps them make sense of the changes happening around them.
The Future of Wealth Management Journalism (26:40)
When Ian looks ahead, he sees a paradox in wealth management journalism. On one hand, the RIA industry is bigger, more dynamic, and more attractive to investors than ever before. On the other hand, coverage of the industry has actually shrunk, with many legacy publications cutting back resources or shifting their focus elsewhere.
That gap has created both a challenge and an opportunity. For Ian and his colleagues at Citywire, it’s meant stepping into a role that sometimes feels like being a “paper of record” for the advisory industry—chronicling the deals, leadership changes, and policy shifts that advisors rely on to understand their world. He takes that responsibility seriously, knowing that if trade publications don’t cover the space in depth, many of these stories simply won’t get told.
At the same time, he’s realistic about how people consume news. Just as advisors are adapting to new technologies, journalists are embracing multimedia. Citywire has expanded into podcasts and video, building out a studio and bringing a team to industry conferences to capture stories in new formats. Advisors may not always have the time—or patience—to read long articles, but they will listen to a podcast during a commute or watch a video recap on social media.
Ian’s takeaway: wealth management journalism has to evolve alongside the industry it covers. That means doubling down on investigative reporting and exclusive scoops while also meeting readers, listeners, and viewers wherever they are. The medium may change, but the mission—delivering credible, timely, and trustworthy coverage—remains the same.
How to Read Financial News Critically (30:04)
Toward the end of our conversation, I asked Ian what readers should keep in mind when they consume financial news. His answer was clear: approach every story with a discerning eye.
The first red flag, he said, is sponsored content. Too often, sponsored pieces look like objective reporting, but they’re really marketing in disguise. Readers should always check whether an article is labeled as sponsored—or ask themselves whether the piece is subtly steering them toward a product or firm.
Another issue is the rise of AI-assisted or auto-generated content. Ian joked about “AI slop,” the filler articles that get churned out quickly but lack nuance or original sourcing. Those stories might be fine for surface-level updates, but they rarely provide the depth needed to understand what’s really happening.
His advice: don’t rely on just one outlet. If you’re interested in a specific issue or company, read coverage from multiple publications and triangulate for yourself. Even in finance, where the numbers are usually straightforward, perspectives can differ depending on who’s writing and what their sources are saying.
And perhaps most importantly—always ask: why is this story being written, and what might the author’s motive be? As Ian reminded me, no one shares information purely out of goodwill. Whether it’s a company trying to get ahead of bad news or a source leaking details for strategic reasons, there’s usually an angle behind the scenes. Recognizing that reality doesn’t mean dismissing the reporting, but it does mean treating news with the healthy skepticism it deserves.
For investors and advisors alike, that discipline can be the difference between chasing a headline and making a well-informed decision.
Resources:
- Follow Ian’s reporting at Citywire RIA
- Follow Ian on X/Twitter
- Follow Ian on LinkedIn
The Long Term Investor audio is edited by the team at The Podcast Consultant
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