Wellington-Altus announces successful close of strategic minority investment from Kelso & Company

Surpasses 1,000 employees and $45 billion in assets under administration

WINNIPEG, MB, Jan. 12, 2026 /CNW/ - Wellington-Altus Financial Inc. ("Wellington-Altus"), parent company of Canada's top-rated* investment dealer, is pleased to announce the successful closing of its previously announced nearly $400 million CAD secondary minority common equity investment from Kelso & Company ("Kelso"), a leading U.S. private equity firm renowned for its commitment to employee ownership.

With this transaction, Kelso has acquired a 25% minority stake in Wellington-Altus, confirming an enterprise value of over $1.5 billion CAD. This milestone coincides with two other significant milestones - Wellington-Altus has now surpassed 1,000 employees across Canada – in every province, and has now also reached over $45 billion in assets under administration--further validating the company's growth strategy and market leadership.

The secondary share sale was supported by well over 99% of Wellington-Altus shareholders.

"We are thrilled to officially welcome Kelso as our new strategic equity partner," said Shaun Hauser, Founder & CEO of Wellington-Altus. "The overwhelming support for the transaction shown by our shareholders is a tremendous validation of everything Wellington-Altus has built to date. And the best is still to come for our rocketship. We are not stopping here. We have grown to over 1,000 employees and our firm now has over $45 billion in assets under administration. Wellington-Altus is a driving force in Canada's wealth advisory industry, and we look forward to new growth milestones in the future."

Advisors and employees remain the largest shareholder group and continue as substantive investors in the future of the company, ensuring Wellington-Altus remains majority owned by Canadians.

Ardea Partners LP served as exclusive financial advisor to Wellington-Altus. Goldman Sachs & Co. LLC served as financial advisor to Kelso. INFOR Financial Group provided a fairness opinion to the Board of Directors of Wellington-Altus.

About Wellington-Altus Financial Inc.
Founded in 2017, Wellington-Altus Financial Inc. is the parent company to Wellington-Altus Private Counsel Inc., Wellington-Altus USA Inc., Wellington-Altus Insurance Inc., Wellington-Altus Group Solutions Inc., Independent Advisor Solutions Inc., and Wellington-Altus Private Wealth Inc.--the top-rated* investment dealer in Canada and one of Canada's Best Managed Companies. With more than $45 billion in assets under administration, over 1,000 employees, and offices across the country, Wellington-Altus identifies with successful, entrepreneurial advisors and portfolio managers and their high-net-worth clients.

About Kelso
Kelso is a North American-focused middle-market private equity firm founded on the principles of partnership and alignment of interest championed by Louis Kelso, the inventor of the Employee Stock Ownership Plan (ESOP). Since 1980, Kelso has raised more than $17 billion in capital commitments across 11 funds and has completed more than 140 investments. For more information, please visit www.kelso.com.

*Investment Executive 2025 Brokerage Report Card.

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SOURCE Wellington-Altus Financial Inc.

Media inquiries: Greg Burch, Media Relations, 204.250.9244, [email protected]