Bryn Mawr Bank Corp. has entered a purchase agreement with Lau Associates of Wilmington, Del., to acquire the firm founded and headed by Judy Lau for a price to be determined by the firm's performance over the next three and a half years.

  According to Lau's investment banker, The Carson Medlin Company, Lau will receive $3.7 million upon the transaction's closing, with the remaining balance of the price to be paid in annual installments continuing through December 31, 2011. Carson Medlin's lead banker, Dan Bass of its Houston branch, said in a press release that the total purchase price would not exceed $19 million.

  Lau Associates will continue to operate as a wholly owned subsidiary of Bryn Mawr Bank and its staff will remain with the firm.

  Founded in 1985, Lau Associates provides fee-only, multifamily office services to high-net-worth families and individuals, frequently people with substantial inherited wealth. The firm manages about $610 million in assets for 116 clients and has another $190 million in assets under supervision.

  In a prepared statement, investment banker Dan Bass, comments, "For those who are saying pricing multiples are down in the investment advisor space, we disagree. The key to getting the highest price is knowing the buyers in the RIA space. Banks in particular are desperate to find non-margin related revenue sources. The buyer in our last transaction was introduced to the seller by us and had no previous contact with them."