Baker Tilly Acquires California Accounting Firm Squar Milner

Leading accounting and advisory firm Baker Tilly US, LLP (Baker Tilly) and Squar Milner, LLP, one of the largest California-based independent accounting firms, announce the combination of their firms effective November 1, 2020. The name of the combined firm will be Baker Tilly US.

“We are creating a new organization with substantial scale – a true combination of two leading advisory CPA firms that are forward-thinking and future-leaning,” Baker Tilly CEO Alan Whitman said. “Together we are driving progress for a new world, combining our knowledge and expertise to guide our clients through anything.”

California’s vast and diverse economy is the fifth largest in the world. Squar Milner’s explosive growth and strong position in the Golden State is driven by their expanding client relationships and their professionals’ on-the-ground local presence and knowledge of the state’s unique markets. Squar Milner has eight California locations – San Diego, three offices in the Silicon Valley and the Bay area, three offices surrounding Los Angeles and their headquarters in Orange County.

In the past 24 months, Baker Tilly expanded into Texas and bolstered its capabilities with several strategic acquisitions in data analytics, municipal advisory, global forensic accounting, valuation and litigation services, and outsourced accounting.

The new Baker Tilly will have top-notch talent and critical mass in many of the world’s leading financial centers – New York, London, San Francisco, Los Angeles and Chicago. Additionally, Baker Tilly US is the largest member of the Baker Tilly network, the world’s 10th largest global network of independent accounting and business services firms. Combined, Baker Tilly will have 4,300 professionals.

“We are still very much dedicated to serving our California communities, and we are delighted to have the coast-to-coast and global advantage,” Squar Milner Managing Partner Stephen Milner said. “Our firms are likeminded in our commitment to our clients, support for our profession and putting people at the center of it all.”

Allan Koltin, CEO of the Koltin Consulting Group, is well-known and respected in the accounting industry and a go-to advisor for the Top 500 CPA firms. “This combination can be a game-changer for our profession as Baker Tilly approaches that significant revenue threshold of $1 billion. They have scale to innovate and stay ahead of the curve while keeping their entrepreneurial and agile edge. Alan Whitman and Steve Milner make a great team.”

At a June 2020 meeting of major accounting firms, AICPA CEO Barry Melancon, CPA, CGMA, commented on the strength of the profession and benefit to clients when larger diversified firms differentiate their expertise and embrace technology. “The accounting profession continues to be an example of resiliency, even in our current economic environment, maintaining a strong commitment to clients, employees, students and the public interest.”