Osaic’s project of unifying eight broker-dealer firms under one brand has been a gargantuan one, but it’s full of little stories that show its value, says Jamie Price, president and CEO of the Scottsdale, Ariz.-based business.

“We had an advisor on one of our broker-dealers who was in the same building as an advisor in one of our other companies, and they’ve been there for over 10 years, and neither knew they were under the Osaic brand,” says Price, whose coast-to-coast business boasts $340 billion of assets under management. “They’re now thinking about co-locating, using their scale to drive cheaper costs, and to partner on businesses.”

Speaking with Barron’s Advisor, Price, who has overseen Osaic’s growth from $158 billion of assets under administration after its 2016 spinoff from AIG to $700 billion today, delves into the reasons for consolidating its broker-dealers over the past couple of years. He explains the company’s big swing in buying $13.5 billion-asset CW Advisors, in a deal announced this week. And he reveals that the firm’s tech strategy is positioned to take advantage of what he predicts will be a surge of AI-driven tools.

Barrons: First, I’d like to ask about the announcement that Osaic will acquire CW Advisors, a $13.5 billion-asset fee-only business. What benefits do you expect to gain from this deal?

Read this interview on Barron's.