Fiduciary Network, the holding company created by Mark Hurley and financed by New York investor Howard Milstein, has purchased a minority interest in Soltis Investment Advisors, a St. George, Utah-based RIA providing both wealth management and 401(k) services.

This is the tenth investment for Dallas-based Fiduciary Network, which typically buys a 20% to 30% position in advisory firms and provides financing for second-generation partners to increase their stakes, as well as succession planning for the founders.

Hal Anderson, Soltis' executive vice president and chief financial officer, says Fiduciary Network's stake in his firm is less than 15%.

"Hurley felt we're much stronger in the 401(k) business than any of his other acquisitions," Anderson says. "We're kind of the dominant player in the Utah Intermountain Region, which doesn't have a lot of financial advisors."

Soltis hopes to leverage Fiduciary Network's resources to expand its business. "He's [Hurley] an accelerator to growth, and we're hoping to utilize the resources of the acquisition to have an even larger footprint in our Intermountain area," Anderson says. That area also includes portions of Arizona, Colorado, Nevada, Wyoming, and Idaho.

Located in Utah's southwest corner, Soltis has about 800 clients and $800 million in assets under management. Most of its clients are in northern Utah, but Anderson says the firm has clients around the country.

Hurley says he plans to make four or five additional investments by year-end.