CBIZ Sold for $5 Billion: Grant Thornton mega deal creates fifth-largest US accounting services firm

Grant Thornton Advisors is making a major push up the ranks of the U.S. accounting industry with a $5 billion deal to acquire CBIZ, a transaction that would create the country’s fifth-largest provider of professional, tax and advisory services.

The companies announced the all-cash agreement Wednesday, marking another significant consolidation in an industry where mid-sized accounting firms are rapidly expanding to compete more effectively with Deloitte, EY, KPMG and PwC.

Under the agreement, CBIZ shareholders will receive $55 for each share they own. The offer represents a 17.8% premium to CBIZ’s previous closing price and triggered an immediate response on Wall Street, with the company’s shares climbing about 17%.


If completed as planned, the combination would give Grant Thornton a substantially larger operation spanning more than 20 countries and territories and generating over $7.5 billion in revenue.

What the Grant Thornton-CBIZ deal means

Grant Thornton is already a major name in accounting and advisory services, but acquiring CBIZ would significantly expand its scale and position in the U.S. market.

The combined business is expected to rank fifth among U.S. providers of professional, tax and advisory services, leaving only the traditional Big Four — Deloitte, EY, KPMG and PwC — ahead of it.

Grant Thornton Advisors CEO Jim Peko said bringing together the two businesses would allow the firm to serve companies across a much wider range of sizes and stages of development.

“By combining our multinational platform with CBIZ’s strong market presence, we’re broadening our ability to support businesses through every stage of growth — from early development to global scale,” Peko said.

CBIZ has built a particularly strong presence among middle-market companies, making the acquisition complementary to Grant Thornton’s broader domestic and international platform.

CBIZ shareholders offered $55 per share

The $55-per-share cash offer gives CBIZ investors a substantial premium over where the stock traded before the transaction was announced.

Shares surged roughly 17% following news of the agreement, bringing the stock closer to the takeover price.

The deal is not necessarily guaranteed to proceed in its current form, however. CBIZ has been granted a “go-shop” period through August 27, during which it can actively seek competing acquisition proposals.

Such provisions give a target company an opportunity to determine whether another buyer is prepared to offer shareholders a better deal before the agreed transaction advances toward completion.

Grant Thornton and CBIZ expect their deal to close during the fourth quarter of 2026, subject to the necessary conditions and approvals.

New Mountain Capital backs Grant Thornton expansion

Private equity firm New Mountain Capital will play an important role in financing the transaction.

Grant Thornton has pursued an aggressive expansion strategy since receiving an investment in 2024 from a consortium led by New Mountain.

The private equity firm is providing additional equity to support the CBIZ acquisition. The companies described the transaction as the largest deal of its kind in more than 25 years.

The acquisition represents another major step in Grant Thornton’s effort to increase its scale at a time when the accounting and professional services industry is undergoing significant structural change.

What happens to CBIZ insurance and benefits business?

Not all of CBIZ will ultimately remain inside the enlarged Grant Thornton operation.

Following the expected completion of the acquisition, CBIZ’s benefits and insurance services segment is set to be separated from the accounting and advisory business.

That division will become an independent company backed by New Mountain Capital.

The structure allows Grant Thornton to concentrate on the professional, tax and advisory operations that most closely align with its existing business while CBIZ’s insurance and benefits activities continue separately.

Accounting firms are racing to gain scale

The Grant Thornton-CBIZ transaction comes amid a wave of dealmaking among accounting firms seeking greater scale in a market long dominated by four global giants.

Deloitte, EY, KPMG and PwC remain far larger than their mid-tier competitors, but recent combinations have created increasingly substantial challengers below the Big Four.

Baker Tilly and Moss Adams combined in a transaction valued at $7 billion last year.

CBIZ itself has been an active consolidator. In 2024, the company agreed to acquire accounting firm Marcum in a $2.3 billion transaction, substantially increasing its presence in the middle market.

Grant Thornton’s latest move continues that trend, bringing another large independent accounting operation under a significantly expanded platform.

Could regulators challenge the $5 billion acquisition?

Despite the size of the transaction, analysts do not currently expect competition regulators to represent a major obstacle.

William Blair analyst Andrew Nicholas pointed to the fragmented nature of the accounting industry and the relatively modest market share the combined company would hold after the transaction.

“Given the fragmented nature of the industry and relative small postmerger market share for the combined organization, we would not expect regulatory approval to be an issue,” Nicholas said.

The presence of the considerably larger Big Four firms could also factor into the competitive picture surrounding the transaction.

Grant Thornton targets bigger role below Big Four

The proposed acquisition gives Grant Thornton an opportunity to emerge as a much larger competitor immediately below the dominant global accounting networks.

With operations across more than 20 countries and territories and combined revenue exceeding $7.5 billion, the enlarged platform would have considerably greater resources to serve companies ranging from developing businesses to multinational groups.

Deutsche Bank is acting as lead financial adviser to Grant Thornton on the transaction, while Goldman Sachs advised CBIZ.

For now, attention will turn to CBIZ’s go-shop period and whether another bidder emerges before the August 27 deadline. If no superior proposal materialises and the deal clears its remaining hurdles, Grant Thornton expects to complete one of the accounting industry’s biggest combinations in decades before the end of 2026.

(With Reuters inputs)