Bonadio Group makes first acquisition outside New York state

The Bonadio Group, which has used acquisitions to grow to become upstate New York’s largest independent accounting firm, is acquiring a Vermont firm for its first deal outside New York.

Rochester–based Bonadio Group, which has Central New York offices in Syracuse, Geneva, and Utica, announced it will acquire Rutland, Vt.–based Independent Audit Associates (IAA) in a deal scheduled to close Wednesday. Financial terms were not disclosed.

“As our client base continues to expand beyond the borders of New York State, we were actively pursuing opportunities that would allow us to physically meet our clients’ demands, and have done so with our first office location in New England,” Thomas Bonadio, CEO and managing partner of Bonadio Group, said in a news release.

IAA, founded in 1992, is an internal auditing firm for banks that employs six people. The firm has worked with banks and bank-holding companies with total assets between $150 million and $1 billion.

The Bonadio Group will keep IAA’s Rutland office. As a result of the acquisition, Bonadio expects its internal audit team, which is based in Syracuse, will generate annual billings of more than $1.2 million.

“The addition of IAA’s experienced bank internal auditors to our Internal Audit Team is an exciting development for Bonadio Group as it allows us to formalize and grow our team,” Thomas Giglio, principal and head of Bonadio’s internal audit team, said in the release. “We are better equipped now to serve our existing clients in the financial institutions industry, and have the opportunity to expand our reach to new markets throughout the Northeast.” Bonadio Group will gain 14 new banking clients with the deal.

The Vermont acquisition is the second for Bonadio Group in six months. The firm acquired Richard Zweifel’s CPA team last fall, opening its first office in Utica.

The Bonadio Group says it currently has more than 380 employees statewide and annual revenue exceeding $55 million. The 35-year-old firm also has offices in Albany, Buffalo, Perry, and New York City.

Bonadio offers accounting, business advisory, payroll, and personal financial services, and was ranked number 54 in the Accounting Today 2013 list of the top 100 CPA firms.

Contact Rombel at arombel@cnybj.com