Christopher Leader is the sole advisor at Leader Investments LLC in Silver Spring, MD. He holds a Series 65 credential and has two years of industry experience. Prior to founding his firm, he worked in various roles at Twilio, SendGrid, and Stack Labs. He currently works as a product manager with Preply outside of his advisory activities. Leader Investments LLC provides personalized financial guidance to individual investors without managing client accounts or custody of assets. The firm focuses on diversification and value-oriented recommendations, primarily utilizing indices and publicly traded vehicles, with advice tailored to client suitability factors.

Mary Thomas Spruill is a financial advisor at Serene Financial Solutions in Gaithersburg, MD, holding the ChFC® designation and Series 65 license with six years of industry experience. Prior to founding Serene Financial Solutions in 2020, she worked at The McKelvey Group and held positions at Frederick National Laboratory for Cancer Research, Navy Marine Corps Relief Society NMCRS Sasebo, and NBHC Sasebo. Serene Financial Solutions advises individuals, families, and small-business owners, providing portfolio management, comprehensive financial planning, consulting, educational seminars, and tax preparation services. The firm combines passive and active management within a Modern Portfolio Theory framework and is notable for its tax preparation practice staffed by enrolled agents and its range of business support services.

Sara Cavendish is a financial advisor at Plein Air Capital Advisers, LLC with 26 years of industry experience. She holds a Series 65 designation and has worked at Windward Asset Management, LLC since 2008. Plein Air Capital Advisers provides discretionary investment management and advisory services to individuals, trusts, corporations, and institutional clients. The firm employs a fundamentally driven, long-term, value-oriented investment approach with concentrated portfolios typically holding 15–20 stocks selected below their view of intrinsic value.

Mark O’Shea is a financial advisor at Red Torch Capital LLC with four years of industry experience. He holds a Series 65 designation and has previously worked at Torch Finance Group, Capstone Partners, and Lionchase North America. He also has a longstanding association with the University of Chicago. Red Torch Capital LLC provides discretionary investment management primarily through separately managed accounts to retail investors, high-net-worth individuals, and other entities. The firm employs a long-term, value-oriented approach that combines fundamental analysis with quantitative methods to identify undervalued equity securities.

Robert Sandler is the principal and sole advisor at Robert A. Sandler, LLC, an independent firm based in Clarksville, MD. He holds a Series 65 designation and has eight years of industry experience, including four years at Element Fleet Management prior to founding his current firm in 2017. Robert A. Sandler, LLC provides personalized financial planning and investment management primarily for individual clients, focusing on diversified, low-cost index mutual funds and ETFs with a buy-and-hold approach. The firm emphasizes customized risk profiles, periodic rebalancing, and operates on a fee-only basis without commission arrangements or custody of client assets.

Liam Daly is the founder of Daly Capital Management and holds a Series 65 credential. He has been associated with Daly Capital Management since 2024. Prior to founding the firm, he worked in various educational roles at Quince Orchard High School, Ridgeview Middle School, and Diamond Elementary School. Daly Capital Management provides fee-based, discretionary portfolio management and investment advice tailored to individuals, charitable organizations, corporations, and other business entities. The firm employs a tactical allocation approach using fundamental, technical, and cyclical analysis across a broad range of securities and offers direct portfolio management with client-imposed investment restrictions.

Alexander Ruda is the sole advisor at Ruda Financial and holds a Series 65 credential. He has eight years of experience with the Internal Revenue Service and two years with Fannie Mae before founding his firm in 2025. Ruda Financial is a fee-only advisory firm that serves individuals, high-net-worth clients, and charitable organizations with investment management and financial planning services. The firm emphasizes individualized investment policies and asset allocation, employing fundamental analysis and Modern Portfolio Theory alongside passive investment strategies.

Stephen Lee is the principal of Lee Financial Group, Inc. in Columbia, MD, and holds the CFP® designation and Series 63 license. He has 45 years of industry experience and has been associated with Raymond James Financial in various capacities since 2004. Outside of financial advising, he is the owner of a law office focusing on wills, trusts, and powers of attorney, and serves on the advisory board for River Hill FBLA, providing student mentoring. Lee Financial Group offers individualized financial planning and wealth management advice to individuals and families, including high-net-worth clients, trusts, and charitable organizations. The firm provides written financial plans through a data-gathering process and offers follow-up consultations, with investment recommendations based on fundamental, technical, and cyclical analysis.

Edmund Wellington is the sole advisor at Wellington Capital Management, Inc., an independent firm based in Chevy Chase, MD. He holds Series 63 and Series 65 designations and has 24 years of industry experience. He has been with Wellington Capital Management since 1996. Wellington Capital Management provides discretionary portfolio management and investment counseling to a select group of private individuals, partnerships, and trusts. The firm employs a conservative, long-term investment approach focused on U.S. large-cap equities and high-quality fixed-income securities, tailoring strategies to clients' objectives and managing accounts on a discretionary basis.

Frank Byskov is a CFP® and CFA® with 11 years of industry experience. He is the sole advisor at Forty4 Financial, an independent firm he joined in 2023, and previously worked with Advisory Services Network and Wells Fargo Advisors. Outside of his advisory work, he is the head coach of Rock Creek Tri Club, a triathlon coaching program, serves on the board of Bethesda Green, contributes to financial literacy education through Mentamorph, and co-founded Advisors for Good, a nonprofit focused on climate action and social justice within the financial advisory community. Forty4 Financial provides investment management, financial planning, and retirement plan advisory services for individuals, high-net-worth clients, trusts, estates, businesses, and retirement plans. The firm uses fundamental analysis to create customized long-term portfolios and offers specialized pension and retirement-plan consulting services uncommon among firms of similar size.

Lee Miller is a CFP® and Series 65 credentialed financial advisor with 23 years of industry experience. He is the principal of Miller Capital Management, Inc. and also operates Lee J. Miller, CPA, P.C., a public accounting practice. Miller serves on the board of directors of a charitable foundation as its vice president and treasurer and acts as trustee for several trusts. Miller Capital Management provides personalized investment supervisory services and financial planning to individuals, high-net-worth clients, and trusts. The firm focuses on capital preservation through fundamental security analysis and a long-term buy-and-hold strategy, making tailored recommendations and requiring client approval before transactions.

Kenneth Diehl is a CFP® professional with over 25 years at Cornerstone Financial Planning, Inc. in Gaithersburg, MD. He has four years of industry experience. Cornerstone Financial Planning, Inc. offers personalized, fee-only financial planning and advisory services to individuals, trusts, estates, and small businesses. The firm follows Modern Portfolio Theory and efficient-market principles, focusing on diversified, low-cost index funds and ETFs, and operates on a fixed-fee basis without accepting commissions or referral fees.

David Merkel is a CFA charterholder and principal of Aleph Investments, LLC, an independent advisory firm he founded in 2010. He has 15 years of industry experience. Outside of his advisory work, he maintains AlephBlog.com, a website providing educational content for investors since 2007. Aleph Investments manages discretionary portfolios primarily for individual investors, as well as charitable organizations and small pension clients. The firm employs fundamental equity analysis and a risk-conscious fixed income approach, offering strategies including a yield-oriented balanced portfolio and customizable accounts, with features such as hedged equity options and client-imposed ethical restrictions.

Scott Vicary is a CFA charterholder and founder of Rookwood Wealth Management in Silver Spring, MD, with five years of industry experience. Prior to establishing his independent advisory firm in 2025, he worked at Sulzberger Capital Advisors, Inc. and held roles at affiliated Rookwood investment entities. Outside of his advisory work, he serves as managing director of a real estate apartment rental business. Rookwood Wealth Management is a fee-only registered investment adviser that provides discretionary investment management and comprehensive financial planning to individual and high-net-worth clients. The firm employs an investment approach based on modern portfolio theory and fundamental analysis, combining passive and active vehicles to align portfolios with client risk tolerance and tax considerations.

Chung Hei Sing is the sole advisor at Applied Derivative Research (ADR) with four years of industry experience. He holds the Series 65 designation and previously worked at Arquitos Capital Management for one year. He serves as a board member of the Maryland Technology Development Corporation, focusing on economic development through early-stage investments. Applied Derivative Research provides discretionary and non-discretionary portfolio management and advisory services to high-net-worth individuals, institutional investors, and pooled investment vehicles. The firm employs a combined bottom-up and thematic top-down investment approach with sustainable and impact-oriented opportunities, offering both strategic asset allocation advice and active portfolio implementation.

Edward Lazerow is the sole advisor at EJL Asset Management, LLC, an independent registered investment adviser based in Bethesda, MD. He holds the Series 66 designation and has 25 years of industry experience. Lazerow has managed EJL Asset Management since its founding in 2011. EJL Asset Management provides discretionary investment supervisory services primarily to individuals and high-net-worth clients. The firm uses fundamental analysis to construct portfolios across a broad range of instruments, employs both long- and short-term trading strategies, and operates with discretionary authority guided by individualized Investment Policy Statements.

Michael Worch is the principal advisor at Worch Financial Group, LLC, an independent firm based in Rockville, MD. He holds Series 63 and Series 65 licenses and has nine years of industry experience. His prior work includes roles at The Financial Xchange and 1939 Capital, LLC. Worch is also a licensed insurance agent and dedicates a significant portion of his practice to insurance sales. Worch Financial Group serves individual and high-net-worth clients, providing financial planning, portfolio management through third-party money managers, and access to pooled investments. The firm emphasizes fundamental analysis and uses both long- and short-term trading strategies, often implementing investment solutions via referrals rather than direct discretion over client accounts.

Steve Jefferys is a CFA® charterholder with 16 years of industry experience. He has been managing Jefferys Capital Management since 2009. Jefferys is the sole advisor at Arch Financial Advisors LLC, an independent firm based in Bethesda, MD. Arch Financial Advisors provides comprehensive financial planning and investment advisory services primarily to middle- and upper-middle-income individuals and families. The firm offers fee-only, non-discretionary advice using tax-aware, client-specific asset allocation and emphasizes a planning-focused relationship model with flat retainers and project fees.

Kendell Phillip is a financial advisor at Lockstep Financial LLC with five years of industry experience. He holds a Series 65 designation and previously worked at Maverick Trading and Northrop Grumman. Lockstep Financial LLC is an independent advisory firm serving individual and high-net-worth clients with financial planning and discretionary portfolio management. The firm employs a primarily passive investment approach using index funds and ETFs, supplemented by fundamental and technical analysis, and manages held-away assets through third-party platforms.

Aaron Benway is a CFP® and holds a Series 65 license with 10 years of industry experience. He founded and leads AB Financial Planning and Investments, LLC and previously worked at New Direction Trust Company for six years. He also managed HSA Coach, LLC from 2014 to 2020. AB Financial Planning and Investments provides fee-based investment advisory and financial planning services to a small client roster, focusing on discretionary portfolio management and custom financial planning. The firm employs a tactical allocation strategy using primarily Vanguard ETFs and mutual funds, with portfolios managed under discretionary authority within client guidelines.