DS&F Financial Services LLC, an affiliate of Darnall, Sikes, Gardes and Frederick, a CPA firm with headquarters in Lafayette, Louisiana, will merge with Wealth Care Group Asset Management LLC, the Daily Advertiser reports. The new company will be called DSF Wealth Management LLC.

Larry Sikes, president and managing director of Darnall, Sikes, Gardes & Frederick, will be CEO of the merged financial services company. Sikes, a certified public accountant, certified valuation analyst and certified financial planner, has been managing director of DSF Financial Services since its inception in 2000. David Strother, president of Wealth Care Group Asset Management, will serve as chief information officer, the advocate.com says.

Citing rapid expansion in the economy of southern Louisiana as a factor in his firm’s decision to expand its financial services offerings, Sikes said, according to the Advertiser, “We see the financial services part of the practice has an opportunity for substantial growth in the coming years.”

Darnall, Sikes Gardes and Frederick, established in 1950, will move from its current Lafayette location to a new office tower in River Ranch next year where it will occupy 15,000 square feet. The firm currently has 16 partners and employs 82 people in offices in Lafayette, Eunice, Abbeville and Morgan City, Louisiana.

Sikes emphasized that the commitment of his firm to its longtime clients, who include many businesses in the Acadiana area, will be as strong as ever, theadvertiser.com says. He says that hard work is the basis for success in the accounting field. “I think you’ve got to be focused, you have to put in the hours, and you’ve always got to keep your clients in the forefront,” Sikes said.