Citywire RIA reported on October 27, 2026 that First Manhattan has hired Allie Silverman, a dealmaker who was previously vice president of corporate development and strategy at RIA financier Focus Financial Partners. The summary of that report does not give her start date, her title at First Manhattan or the terms of the move, and Financial ADVSR has not seen a statement from either firm.
Citywire's headline describes First Manhattan as a $38bn firm. A Form ADV-based profile on FinTRX lists $38.1 billion in total assets under management but gives no filing date. First Manhattan's website states that it runs more than $36 billion on behalf of clients and separately holds its own capital; and an advisor database cites an SEC filing dated April 29, 2025, showing $34.4 billion. These figures appear to reflect different dates and measures, so they should not be compared directly.
First Manhattan was founded in 1964 by a group of individuals led by David Gottesman, according to CB Insights. The firm lists its headquarters at 399 Park Avenue in New York and also has a Greenwich, Connecticut office. It describes itself as independently owned and operated by its partners. Its website cites more than 145 employees, including more than 35 investment professionals. A 2025 Citywire interview identified Zac Wydra as chief executive and Robert Gottesman as executive chairman. The firm's website says Pershing LLC, a BNY Mellon subsidiary, provides clearing and custody.
First Manhattan has added several RIAs in recent years. Wikipedia's entry on the firm lists Beddow Capital Management, with more than $300 million in AUM, as joining in March 2026. A PrivSource deal record cites Roanoke Asset Management, a New Jersey RIA with about $350 million in AUM, joining in August 2025, and MRJ Capital, a $168 million RIA, joining in 2022. Grand-Jean Capital Management, a San Francisco RIA with more than $500 million in AUM, joined in April 2025, according to Wikipedia and the 2025 Citywire interview. In that interview, Wydra said First Manhattan is not open to selling to outside investors and that the firm had moved slowly on deals.
Focus Financial Partners is Nasdaq-listed under the ticker FOCS and headquartered in New York City. According to Wikipedia, it takes majority stakes in independent RIAs, which keep their operating autonomy. Clayton, Dubilier & Rice completed its acquisition of Focus on August 31, 2023, in a deal valued at more than $7 billion, and Stone Point Capital remains a minority shareholder. Focus said as of January 1, 2026 that it had more than $500 billion in advised assets, according to its LinkedIn page. Michael Nathanson is its chief executive.
Focus alumni have moved to other firms before. Citywire reported in 2025 that Emigrant Partners had hired a former Focus dealmaker, Kyle Gentile, as director of research and consulting.
Third-party databases list this executive under other first names and titles, including Allison Silverman as a mergers and acquisitions vice president and Alexandra Silverman as vice president of strategy and operations. Those listings are unverified, so this article uses the name and title given in Citywire's report until the firms confirm them.