Explosive growth doesn’t happen by accident. It’s fueled by intentional partnerships, strategic resources, and cultural alignment.
In this episode of the RIA Edge Podcast, host David Armstrong sits down with Stan Gregor, CEO of Summit Financial, who shares how his firm has grown from $3 billion to nearly $25 billion in assets since 2020.
He reveals the minority investment model that prioritizes partnership over control, the resources Summit provides to help advisors grow organically and through acquisitions, and the importance of cultural fit. Stan also offers his perspective on private equity’s role in the industry and emerging service trends for RIAs.
Key points:
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Summit Financial’s minority investment partnership model and how it differs from roll-up and aggregator structures
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The selective approach to onboarding partners, focusing on cultural fit, aspiration, and willingness to leverage resources
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In-house resources, from legal and estate planning to marketing via Chapman Communications, that drive above-market organic growth
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Industry shifts toward private equity, private credit and alternative investments, and how Summit vets boutique opportunities
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Views on competition, partnership pitfalls and future monetization strategies while maintaining focus on growth and enterprise value
Resources:
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About Our Guest:
Stan Gregor is the CEO of Summit Financial LLC. As a senior executive with over 30 years of experience, Stan has operated in banking, private wealth management, investment management, fiduciary trust services, fixed income trading, investment banking, retirement services, insurance, financial planning, and public finance. He has also been involved in acquiring and integrating some of the largest and most complicated banking, wealth management, insurance, and capital markets businesses and cultures with a demonstrated track record of increasing productivity, profitability, and shareholder value.
Most recently, Stan was the founder and co-CEO of Cantor Fitzgerald Wealth Partners (CFWP). Under his leadership, CFWP grew to over $5 billion in assets in less than two years through several strategic acquisitions of RIAs, independent advisors, and wirehouse teams.
Prior to joining Cantor Fitzgerald, Stan was the Head of Wells Fargo Wealth Management -Eastern US Markets and President of Wachovia Wealth Markets. He provided executive leadership to the Eastern U.S. Markets and headed up the Wealth Insurance Division, overseeing the private bank, wealth brokerage, investment management, fiduciary trust services, financial planning, and insurance. Stan was responsible for leading nearly 5,000 team members, generating revenues of $2.5 billion with $69 billion of investment fee-based AUM, $19 billion of deposit balances, and $16 billion of loans.
Prior to Wachovia, Stan was CEO of Commerce Capital Markets, where he directed private wealth management, brokerage, asset management, fixed income trading, derivatives, investment banking, retirement services, insurance, and public finance.
Subsequently, Stan was CEO of Quick and Reilly (Q&R) as one of the visionaries who transformed Q&R from a transactional discount broker to a full-service advisory company. When Q&R was acquired by Bank of America, Stan stayed on as co-CEO of Bank of America Investment Services until 2005.
Over nearly a decade at Citigroup, Stan had several senior executive-level roles leading different divisions, including consumer banking, private wealth management, and Citigroup as Northeast Group Executive Vice President.
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