It’s been five years since private equity funds first made inroads into public accounting. In that time, the profession has been reshaped. Since 2021, when EisnerAmper first made a deal with TowerBrook Capital, PE funds have taken ownership of around 24 of the top 100 CPA firms in the US, including at least 10 of the top 30. Many of those PE-backed accounting firms have subsequently gone on acquisition sprees: The International Federation of Accountants estimates that consolidation in the accounting field has increased fourfold since 2021. And PE has since turned its attention from the largest firms to what broker Allan Koltin, CEO at Koltin Consulting Group, calls the “middleweights”: firms with revenues between $75 and $400 million. Since PE firms typically hold investments for only three to five years (maybe seven at the outside), the early investors in PE firms are now looking to exit—at a profit, of course. In January 2025, Citrin Cooperman executed the first “flip” from one PE owner to another, changing hands from New Mountain Capital to Blackstone. This year, Schellman “flipped” from Lightyear Capital, which bought into it in 2021, to Goldman Sachs Alternatives. More “flips” are on the horizon. “As we look to the future, there’s going to be more in 2027 than 2026, and there’s going to be a lot more in 2028,” Koltin told CFO Brew. Keep reading.—CV | 
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