Like so many trades and business lines through history before it, the registered investment adviser (RIA) space is going through industry consolidation and frequent roll-ups. Some reasons for industry consolidations are idiosyncratic from one segment of the economy to the next, but inevitably economies of scale and competitiveness are the driving forces.

In free markets, from farming to manufacturing to services, industries dispassionately, and almost mechanistically, consolidate to whatever scale delivers the best value to customers. In automobile production, until recently, the economies of scale meant a relatively few U.S. manufacturers could survive, as huge production lines and output lowered unit costs. Without the volume, competing on price, quality and marketing was impossible. Much of manufacturing went the same way, at least for consumer products produced in the millions of units.

Services are a different venue, and often human relations and geographic proxim