Jacob Hollifield is a financial advisor at Fifth Third Securities, Inc. based in Raleigh, NC, holding Series 65 and Series 63 licenses with two years of industry experience. Prior to joining Fifth Third Securities in 2023, he held roles at Fifth Third Bank, Best Buy, and Yogurt Mountain. Outside of his advisory work, he engages in freelance photography. Fifth Third Securities, Inc. serves a diverse client base including individuals, high-net-worth clients, and institutions through investment advisory and brokerage services. The firm offers multiple program types via the Passageway platform, utilizing third-party portfolio managers and a range of strategies from mutual funds and ETFs to separately managed accounts and tax-overlay services.

Debra Allen is a financial advisor at First Citizens Investor Services, Inc. in Raleigh, NC, holding a Series 66 designation with 22 years of industry experience. She has worked at First Citizens Investor Services since 2004 and at First-Citizens Bank & Trust Company since 2003. First Citizens Investor Services, Inc. provides advisory and brokerage services to individuals, pension and profit-sharing plans, charitable organizations, and corporate entities. The firm employs a client-focused process using fundamental, quantitative, and technical analysis to manage portfolios across various asset classes.

Kimberly Benfield is a financial advisor at Truist Advisory Services with 25 years of industry experience. She holds Series 63 and Series 66 credentials and has been with Truist since 2017, including roles at Truist Investment Services and Truist Bank. Truist Advisory Services provides investment consulting and advisory services to individuals, businesses, retirement plan sponsors, and charitable organizations. The firm offers asset allocation, fiduciary support, and a manager-selection program, using both discretionary and non-discretionary approaches supported by third-party platforms and AI-enabled research tools.

Gabriel King is a financial advisor with First Citizens Investor Services, Inc. in Raleigh, NC. He holds a Series 66 designation and has three years of industry experience. Prior to joining First Citizens Investor Services, he worked at Coastal Federal Credit Union and CUSO Financial Services, LP, and spent six years at the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee. First Citizens Investor Services, Inc. provides advisory and brokerage services to individuals, pension and profit-sharing plans, charitable organizations, and businesses. The firm employs a client-focused process that incorporates fundamental, quantitative, and technical analysis to allocate assets across equities, fixed income, mutual funds, and ETFs.

Michael Palczuk is a Series 66-licensed financial advisor with Principal Financial Services in Raleigh, NC, having 24 years of industry experience. He has worked at Principal Securities Inc. since 2016 and at Principal Life Insurance Company since 2014. Outside of his advisory role, Palczuk serves on the finance and fundraising committees at St. Catherine of Siena Church and provides firearms training through the MakeReady Firearms Training Academy. Principal Securities offers brokerage and registered investment advisory services to a diverse client base, including individual investors, retirement plans, trusts, and military personnel abroad. The firm provides financial planning, retirement plan consulting, and access to third-party money manager programs under various advisory and promoter arrangements.

Lang Mac Bain is a financial advisor at First Citizens Investor Services, Inc. in Raleigh, NC, holding Series 63 and Series 65 credentials with 10 years of industry experience. He has worked at First Citizens Investor Services since 2016, including roles overlapping with First Citizens Bank during the same period. First Citizens Investor Services serves individuals, pension and profit-sharing plans, charitable organizations, and corporate/business clients with advisory and brokerage services. The firm employs IAR-led financial assessments and a combination of fundamental, quantitative, and technical analysis to manage portfolios across various asset classes.

Charles Brantley is a financial advisor with Bankers Life Advisory Services, Inc. He holds a Series 66 designation and has eight years of industry experience. Prior to joining Bankers Life Advisory Services, he worked at Morgan Stanley for eight years and has held positions at several other firms. Bankers Life Advisory Services, Inc. provides discretionary portfolio management and investment consulting primarily to mass-affluent and high-net-worth individuals. The firm’s investment process focuses on customized asset allocation, tax efficiency, and a combination of fundamental, technical, and cyclical analysis to guide portfolio management.

John Vagianos Jr. is a CFP®-certified financial advisor with 18 years of industry experience, currently with Creative Planning since 2018. Prior to that, he worked at Scottrade for four years. He holds Series 63 and Series 66 licenses and is based in Raleigh, NC. Creative Planning provides comprehensive investment advisory and financial planning services to a diverse client base, including individuals, corporations, foundations, trusts, and retirement plans. The firm emphasizes a financial planning–led investment process that incorporates low-cost indexing, buy-and-hold strategies, and supplemental approaches such as direct indexing and tax-loss harvesting, supported by a broad advisory team and integrated investment infrastructure.

Thomas Gervase is a financial advisor at SPC with 17 years of industry experience. He holds Series 63 and Series 65 licenses and has worked at firms including Parkland Securities, Grove Point Advisors, and Prudential Insurance. In addition to his advisory role, he conducts insurance sales focused on non-variable life, disability, and long-term care products. SPC serves a diverse client base including individuals, charitable organizations, corporations, and employer-sponsored retirement plans. The firm offers portfolio management, financial planning, and ERISA-related retirement services, delivering strategies primarily through discretionary management with options for nondiscretionary and direct-at-fund arrangements.

Zachary Carver is a CFP® professional with four years of experience in financial advisory, currently with Cerity Partners LLC since 2025. His prior roles include five years at Cook Wealth Management Group, LLC, and earlier positions at TRP Sumner PLLC, Petway Mills & Pearson PA, and Bunch & Company, LLP. Cerity Partners serves a wide range of clients including individuals, families, trusts, institutions, and business entities, managing approximately $166.2 billion in assets as of the end of 2025. The firm offers customized wealth management services and combines quantitative analysis, manager selection, and direct security selection within client-specific investment frameworks, while also providing access to alternative and private market solutions for qualified clients.

Walter Jethro is a financial advisor with First Citizens Investor Services, Inc. in Raleigh, NC, holding Series 65 and Series 63 credentials and five years of industry experience. His prior work includes roles at First Citizens Bank and Bb&T. First Citizens Investor Services, Inc. provides advisory and brokerage services to individuals, pension and profit-sharing plans, charitable organizations, and corporate entities. The firm employs a client process focused on financial needs assessment and uses fundamental, quantitative, and technical analysis across various asset classes.

Karen Brock is a Certified Financial Planner® (CFP®) with three years of industry experience. She is currently affiliated with Commonwealth Financial Network in Cary, NC, having previously worked with Pathfinder Wealth Consulting. Brock has been associated with Commonwealth Financial Network in two separate periods totaling 12 years of service. Commonwealth Financial Network is a dual-registered broker/dealer and SEC-registered investment adviser that supports a national network of approximately 2,900 advisors and manages roughly $212.7 billion in client assets. The firm offers a broad range of advisory support services, including managed-account programs, access to third-party managers, retirement and plan consulting, and custody/clearing services.

Matthew Bracciante is a financial advisor with Stratos Wealth Partners, Ltd., holding Series 63 and Series 65 licenses and bringing 28 years of industry experience. His prior experience includes roles at Merrill, LPL Financial, Banc of America Investment Services, and MetLife Investment Fund Services. Outside of advising, he coaches high school lacrosse at Green Level High School. Stratos Wealth Partners, Ltd. is an SEC-registered enterprise firm with roughly 379 advisors and $18.6 billion in assets under management, serving individuals, retirement plans, corporations, nonprofits, and institutional clients. The firm employs an independent advisor model with an open-architecture investment approach that integrates multiple third-party platforms and managers, offering customized portfolio management and specialized planning services.

James Trull is a financial advisor with Commonwealth Financial Network in Cary, NC, holding the CFP® and ChFC® designations and possessing 38 years of industry experience. He previously worked at Keystone Financial Partners for 24 years and Commonwealth Equity Services, Inc. for 27 years. Outside of advisory work, he is the founder and managing member of The Senior Resource Alliance of the Triangle, a professional networking group, and serves as a course instructor at the Osher Lifelong Learning Institute at North Carolina State University. Commonwealth Financial Network serves a national network of approximately 2,950 advisors and their clients, providing a range of advisory programs and back-office support including operations, trading, technology, investment management, and compliance. The firm offers discretionary model portfolios and multiple program structures designed to accommodate diverse investment strategies.

Thomas Burchhardt is a financial advisor with Equity Services, Inc., holding a Series 66 designation and three years of industry experience. His prior work history includes roles at National Life Group, Mass Mutual Investors Services, MassMutual Life Insurance Co, Equitable Advisors, Joe Van Gogh, and Starrlight Meadery. Outside of his advisory role, he is involved in business operations as the owner of TLB Strategies LLC, which focuses on assessing business strategic direction and growth of intangible capital. Equity Services, Inc., operating as ESI Financial Advisors, provides financial planning, consulting, and asset management services to individuals, corporations, trusts, estates, charitable organizations, and employer retirement plans. The firm offers multiple advisory platforms, combining long-term strategies with options for shorter-term trading, and utilizes both discretionary and non-discretionary management across a broad client base.

Christian Dilorenzo is a financial professional at First Citizens Investor Services, Inc. in Raleigh, NC, holding a Series 66 designation with one year of industry experience. His prior work includes roles at Cetera Investment Advisor and Cetera Wealth Services, LLC. First Citizens Investor Services, Inc. provides advisory and brokerage services to individuals, pension plans, charitable organizations, and businesses, utilizing portfolio management, wrap programs, model portfolios, and automated platforms. The firm emphasizes client assessments led by investment adviser representatives to determine financial needs and risk tolerance, employing a range of analytical methods to guide allocations across various asset classes.

Thomas Beck is a financial advisor with Janney Montgomery Scott in Raleigh, NC, holding a Series 66 designation and 18 years of industry experience. Prior to his current role, he worked at Janney Montgomery Scott, LLC for 10 years and has also been involved with the Department of Natural and Cultural Resources and Raleigh Parks & Recreation/Raleigh Aquatics. Outside of finance, he operates a freelance photography business and serves as a board member for the Raleigh Area Masters swim team, in addition to contributing as a photographer and blogger for a local live music website. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC is a large, dually registered broker-dealer and SEC-registered investment adviser managing approximately $110 billion in client assets. The firm serves a diverse clientele including individuals, families, trusts, estates, corporate and retirement plan sponsors, and municipal clients, offering a range of brokerage, financial planning, and advisory services with a combination of in-house and third-party portfolio management.

Julie Carroll is a financial advisor at Janney Montgomery Scott with 23 years of industry experience. She holds the Series 63 and Series 66 designations. In addition to her advisory role, she serves as a co-trustee of a family trust in Warsaw, North Carolina. Janney Montgomery Scott is a large, dually registered broker-dealer and SEC-registered investment adviser managing approximately $110 billion in client assets. The firm serves individuals, families, trusts, corporate and retirement plan sponsors, and other entities, offering brokerage services, financial planning, and multiple advisory programs.

Nicholas Creekmore is a financial advisor at Janney Montgomery Scott with two years of industry experience. He holds the Series 66 designation and has worked at Janney since 2020. Prior to this, he was employed at MORSCO and East Carolina University. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC is a large, dually registered broker-dealer and investment adviser managing approximately $110 billion in client assets. The firm serves individuals, families, trusts, corporate and retirement plan sponsors, charitable organizations, and municipal clients, offering a range of brokerage, financial planning, and advisory services.

Noah Gear is a CFP® professional with five years of industry experience, currently serving as an advisor at Kestra Advisory. His prior roles include positions at Bank of America and Merrill. Kestra Advisory Services provides investment advisory and retirement-plan consulting to institutional and individual clients, offering fiduciary consulting, plan design, compliance testing, and advisor-managed accounts. The firm serves large institutional investors, including sovereign wealth funds, and utilizes multiple management platforms and third-party solutions within its supervisory framework.