Meridian Capital

What Meridian Capital does

Meridian Capital is a Seattle-headquartered middle-market investment bank founded in 1995, providing merger and acquisition advisory, capital raising, buy-side advisory, and strategic advisory services to privately and closely held businesses, including family, founder, and entrepreneur-owned companies. Following its April 2026 acquisition by CliftonLarsonAllen LLP, the firm operates as CLA Meridian Capital, the investment banking division of CliftonLarsonAllen Wealth Advisors, LLC — an SEC-registered investment advisor and broker-dealer (FINRA/SIPC member). The firm is organized around three industry verticals — Consumer, Industrials, and Technology & Services — with dedicated sector bankers and a cross-border capability branded "REACH" delivered through the Global M&A Partners network.

The firm's service portfolio covers the full transaction lifecycle: sell-side and buy-side M&A advisory, debt and equity capital raising, and ongoing strategic advisory. Underlying the offering is no proprietary technology platform; the business is a traditional professional services franchise built on senior banker relationships, industry specialization, and a transaction-execution playbook. Distribution is consultative field sales — senior bankers originate and run engagements end-to-end. Deal teams are augmented by proprietary M&A market research published across sub-sectors (HR Tech, HealthTech, Mechanical Services, MRO/Aftermarket, AdTech, Baked Goods & Confectionery, etc.), which functions as a top-of-funnel content marketing channel.

Revenue is generated primarily through transaction-based fees — success fees tied to M&A closings, placement fees on capital raises — supplemented by strategic advisory retainers. Pricing is engagement-by-engagement and not publicly disclosed; multi-year contracts are common on the advisory side. The firm employs 11–50 staff across Seattle and Portland (the latter added via the 2022 acquisition of Orca Capital), and is now embedded within CLA's broader accounting, wealth advisory, and consulting platform, giving it cross-sell access to CLA's middle-market client base.

Name

Meridian Capital

Legal name

CliftonLarsonAllen Wealth Advisors, LLC

Website

https://meridianllc.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1995

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Meridian Capital (now CLA Meridian Capital) is a Seattle-based middle-market investment bank providing M&A advisory, capital raising, and strategic advisory to privately held, family-owned, and founder-led businesses across consumer, industrials, and technology verticals.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Middle-Market Investment Banking

NAICS

Investment Banking and Securities Intermediation (52315), Investment Banking and Securities Intermediation (523150), Securities and Commodity Contracts Intermediation and Brokerage (5231)

SIC

Investment Advice (6282), Security Brokers, Dealers & Flotation Companies (6211)

akta.pro primary industry

M&A Advisory (Buy-side/Sell-side) (BPAHADAC)

akta.pro secondary industries

Corporate Finance & Capital Advisory (BPAHADAB), Equity Capital Advisory (Private Equity Placements, Growth Capital) (BPAHAOAE), Capital Raising Advisory (Debt/Equity/Private Capital) (BPAHADAG), Industry-Specialist / Sector-Focused M&A Advisory (FSAEAGAJ)

Keywords

• Middle market investment banking
• Mergers and acquisitions advisory
• Capital raising services
• Buy side advisory
• Strategic financial advisory

Headquarters

HQ city

Seattle

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. M&A Advisory Fees: Transaction-based fees for merger and acquisition advisory services, typically including success fees tied to transaction completion.
2. Capital Raising Services: Fees for capital raising and financing advisory, including placement fees for equity or debt capital raises.
3. Strategic Advisory Retainers: Strategic advisory engagements, potentially including retainer-based ongoing advisory relationships.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

Meridian Capital, operating as CLA Meridian Capital since April 2026, is a middle-market investment bank that advises business owners on mergers and acquisitions, capital raising, buy-side transactions, and strategic corporate finance challenges. The firm delivers these services through industry-specialized banker teams across Consumer, Industrials, and Technology & Services verticals, supplemented by cross-border M&A capability through the Global M&A Partners network and proprietary sector research.

Product overview

CLA Meridian Capital operates as a middle-market investment banking division offering a unified suite of advisory services organized around three core verticals: Consumer, Industrials, and Technology & Services. The firm's core service offerings include M&A Advisory, Capital Raising, Buy Side Advisory, and Strategic Advisory, all delivered through industry-specialized bankers. The company differentiates through its REACH cross-border M&A capability powered by the Global M&A Partners network, and supplements its advisory work with proprietary M&A market research reports covering multiple industry sectors.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• M&A Advisory Merger and acquisition advisory services including deal structuring, valuation, negotiation support, and transaction execution for middle-market business owners. Delivered by industry-specialized bankers across Consumer, Industrials, and Technology & Services verticals.
• Capital Raising
• Buy Side Advisory
• Strategic Advisory
• REACH: Cross-border M&A

Named customers5 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

One partnership is on record.

• CliftonLarsonAllen (CLA)flagshipStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 April 2026Meridian Capital's team joined CliftonLarsonAllen LLP in April 2026, forming CLA Meridian Capital. This strategic integration enables CLA to provide a broader range of services including mergers and acquisitions, capital raising, and strategic advisory, with a focus on middle-market companies. The integration aims to better support private business owners through financial transactions and ownership transitions.

Scale indicators2 records

Recent moves1 record

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Cascadia Capital: Seattle-based middle-market M&A advisory firm with similar sector focus and comparable team size. Direct competitor for the same family/founder-owned business owner mandates in the Pacific Northwest.
• Lincoln International: Global middle-market M&A advisor with comparable transaction size range and sector-specialist model. Directly competes for mid-market sell-side and buy-side advisory mandates.
• Stout Capital: Middle-market M&A advisory firm with similar transaction size profile. Directly competes for sell-side mandates from founder/family-owned businesses.
• BGL Corporate Advisors: Middle-market investment bank focused on M&A advisory for private and family-owned businesses. Comparable target customer base and engagement style.
• Livingstone Partners: Global middle-market M&A advisory firm with similar sector-specialist structure and transaction size range. Directly competes for sell-side and buy-side mandates.

Broad incumbents

• D.A. Davidson: Large regional broker-dealer with a significant middle-market M&A and capital markets practice. Competes for similar sell-side mandates and offers broader services including research, fixed income, and wealth management.
• Houlihan Lokey: Global investment bank with a deep middle-market M&A franchise. Frequently competes for the same middle-market sell-side and capital raising mandates and offers broader sector coverage.
• Piper Sandler: Diversified middle-market investment bank with strong sector-specialist coverage. Competes for capital raising and M&A mandates from similar middle-market clients.
• Raymond James: Diversified financial services firm with a substantial middle-market M&A and capital markets practice. Offers comparable advisory services plus research, sales, and trading infrastructure.

Regional players

• MarshBerry: Investment banking and consulting firm focused on financial services and insurance distribution. Adjacent in mission and size but serves different end-markets.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/meridianseattle

Compliance2 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles21 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A2 records

Investments8 records

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Meridian Capital