Ascend Expands Western Footprint with Addition of MHP in Wyoming

FEBRUARY 5, 2025 (Arlington, VA) – Ascend, a strategic partner for regional accounting and advisory firms backed by private equity firm Alpine Investors, today announced its entry into Wyoming with the addition of Cheyenne-based McGee, Hearne & Paiz (MHP) as its newest platform firm. MHP joined Ascend on February 1, 2025.

MHP is the latest regional leader shedding the traditional CPA partnership structure to adopt Ascend’s modern growth platform and innovative, people-first approach to the profoundly changing accounting industry of the future.

“The world of public accounting is experiencing rapid change, and we identified a need to more proactively navigate challenges like attracting and retaining top talent, addressing the disruptive technology changes within our industry, and scaling our back-office to support growth,” said Brandy M. Marrou, now CEO of MHP Advisory Services.

“From our very first conversation with the partners at MHP, I was very impressed with the way they strived to see around corners. Here is a firm with young partners, a caring and growth-minded culture, and a longstanding reputation in their market where leadership looks out into the future of the industry and sees that their full potential can be amplified and realized only if they surround themselves with the right support model. This is a great firm, so they deservedly had many suitors. But Ascend has a differentiated model and a lot of progress to point to that it is working,”  said David Wurtzbacher, Ascend’s Founder & CEO.

The Ascend platform enables regional accounting firms with between $15 and $50 million of revenue, committed leadership, great cultures, and a big vision for the future to remain independent while accessing the sophisticated resources of a national firm to reach their full potential.

“The resources that we now have access to through Ascend will allow MHP to meet these challenges head on, but what initially drew us to Ascend was their people-first focus. Through this partnership, we will provide our people with broader access to professional development opportunities, cutting-edge technologies, and national resources, all of which will enhance our client service capabilities. We are extremely proud of our Firm’s legacy, community stewardship, and client service focus, all of which remain unwavering commitments of our firm’s leadership. Our partnership with Ascend will allow us to stay true to our Wyoming roots and maintain our independence and strong community presence while providing us the infrastructure, resources, and technology to take our client service to the next level and meet the growing demand for services,” Marrou added.

As is common in private equity deals with CPA firms, MHP has adopted an alternative practice structure separating non-attest and attest services. Tax and business advisory services will be provided by MHP Advisory Services, LLC, a new entity affiliated with Ascend.  Attest services will be provided by McGee, Hearne & Paiz, LLP, an independently owned and licensed CPA firm.

The firm adds 80 professionals, including 11 partners, to Ascend’s team. Terms of the deal were not disclosed.

Founded in the 1930s, MHP is the largest regional accounting firm in Wyoming. The firm specializes in Trust Planning & Management, Government, Construction & Real Estate, Healthcare, and Not-for-profits, providing a full range of audit, accounting, tax, advisory, and consulting services to individuals, trusts, and closely held businesses. In addition to Cheyenne, MHP also has an office in Fort Collins, Colorado.

About Ascend

Backed by private equity from people-focused Alpine Investors, Ascend is building a dynamic platform for regional accounting firms that enables them to stay independent while accessing the resources of a national firm to help them grow. Ascend provides access to growth capital, robust talent acquisition and training, leading quality management resources, best-of-breed technology, AI tools, an offshore captive, shared back-office services, a catalytic leadership system, and modernized equity incentives so that firms can surmount today’s industry challenges to reach their full potential. Founded in January 2023, Ascend has executed over 20 transactions in public accounting and is projected to be a top 30 firm by revenue for 2024. Founder & CEO David Wurtzbacher was named by Accounting Today as one of the Top 100 Most Influential People in Accounting. For more information, visit www.ascendtogether.com.

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Contact:
Julie Gross Gelfand
juliegrossgelfand@gmail.com
(516) 729-8067