Cyrus Amini is a CFA® charterholder with 11 years of industry experience. He is currently an advisor at Hyphen Wealth Management and has previously worked at Helium Advisors and Charlesworth & Rugg dba Highline Wealth Partners. Outside of his financial advisory role, he is also a practicing lawyer. Hyphen Wealth Management serves individual clients, including high-net-worth households, as well as pension and profit-sharing plans. The firm offers portfolio management, pension consulting, and financial planning, using a combination of fundamental, quantitative, and modern portfolio theory within a long-term trading framework.

James Robbins is a CFP®-certified financial advisor with 35 years of industry experience. He has been with Robbins Financial Advisory Service, Inc. since 1991. Outside of his advisory work, Robbins maintains ownership of a business handling insurance renewals from prior sales, although he is no longer licensed in insurance. Robbins Wealth Management serves individuals, high net worth clients, retirement plan participants, trusts, estates, charitable organizations, and small businesses. The firm employs a strategic asset allocation approach supplemented with tactical investments in equities, fixed income, and options, offering both discretionary and non-discretionary account management along with in-house tax preparation and trust accounting services.

Russell Renfrow is a financial advisor at Curran Financial Partners, LLC with three years of industry experience. He holds the Series 65 and Series 66 credentials. Outside of his advisory role, he manages Fe2O3 Petroleum, LLC, which holds oil and gas mineral, royalty, and working interests. Curran Financial Partners provides financial planning and discretionary portfolio management primarily to individual and high-net-worth clients. The firm uses client-specific investment policies implemented through passive or active management, with an emphasis on technical analysis.

Matthew Davis is a financial advisor with AMB Wealth, LLC, holding Series 63 and Series 65 licenses and having two years of industry experience. His prior roles include positions at PFS Investments Inc., Primerica Financial Services, and Northwestern Mutual. He also engages in sales of non-investment home security and automation products through affiliated companies. AMB Wealth serves individual clients, including high-net-worth individuals, and various institutional investors. The firm offers discretionary portfolio management, financial planning, and access to alternative investments, employing an investment process that integrates fundamental and technical analysis overseen by a Portfolio Management Committee.

David Turner is a CFP® professional with 29 years of experience in the financial services industry. He is currently with Apollon Financial, LLC and has previously worked at LPL Financial, Good Life Advisors, and Waddell & Reed, Inc. Outside of his advisory roles, he is involved in a health and wellness business through Melaleuca, Inc. Apollon Financial, LLC is an SEC-registered advisory firm serving individuals, families, family offices, trusts, estates, businesses, and retirement plans. The firm manages approximately $1.45 billion through a team of 16 advisors, offering financial planning, portfolio management, retirement-plan advisory, and access to private and alternative investments using a combination of centralized model strategies and advisor-led portfolios.

Kaylee Urbanek is a financial advisor at Curran Financial Partners, LLC with two years of industry experience. She holds a Series 65 designation and has previously worked at Annex Wealth Management, Charter Capital Management, and Altar'd State. Curran Financial Partners provides investment management and financial planning services to individuals and high-net-worth clients, offering both passive and active discretionary portfolio management alongside written financial plans and access to accounting services through referrals. The firm also serves as a sub-adviser to an exchange-traded fund and employs investment strategies that include client-specific policies and active technical analysis.

Anthony Seifert is a financial advisor at Alden Investment Group with 10 years of industry experience. He holds the Series 66 designation and has previously worked at Kestra Advisory Services, Bank of America, Merrill Lynch, and other firms. Seifert also operates a personal LLC established for tax purposes. Alden Investment Advisors provides portfolio management and fee-based financial planning to individuals, retirement plans, nonprofits, and institutional clients. The firm emphasizes customized asset allocations combining proprietary strategies and third-party managers and utilizes integrated technology platforms to extend discretionary oversight and support fiduciary services for employer plans.

Frank Passalaqua is a financial advisor at Curran Financial Partners, LLC with 26 years of industry experience. He holds Series 63 and Series 65 licenses and has worked at several firms including Guaranteed Rate, Parker Lending, and Buckman. Outside of advising, he is a silent investor in hospitality businesses. Curran Financial Partners provides investment management and financial planning services to individuals and high-net-worth clients. The firm offers both passive and active discretionary portfolio management and serves as a sub-adviser to an exchange-traded fund that applies specific social and political screens in its portfolio selection.

John Vansant is a financial advisor at Fidelis Wealth Advisors with 22 years of industry experience. He holds Series 63 and Series 65 licenses and has previously worked at Cascade Financial Management, Apollon Wealth Management, and LPL Financial, among others. Fidelis Wealth Advisors serves individual and high-net-worth clients, as well as pension plans, trusts, charitable organizations, and corporations, offering investment management, financial planning, retirement-plan consulting, and estate-planning facilitation. The firm’s investment approach emphasizes tailored asset allocation using modern portfolio theory and a variety of analytical tools, implementing strategies across multiple account types and utilizing third-party platforms and sub-advisors.

Claudia Bellars is a CFP® with 34 years of experience in the financial services industry. She is currently with Bellars Harris Wealth Management, a team-based firm where she has worked since 2026. Her prior experience includes roles at Consolidated Planning Corporation, Raymond James Financial Services, Bank of America, and Merrill Lynch. Bellars Harris Wealth Management provides personalized financial planning and investment management services to individuals, trusts, estates, and qualified retirement plans. The firm employs a fundamentally driven, long-term investment approach tailored to each client’s objectives and offers a range of services including retirement plan advisory and family-office style coordination.

John Dugan is a financial advisor at Ellsworth Advisors, LLC in Charleston, SC, holding Series 63 and Series 66 licenses with 11 years of industry experience. He has been with Ellsworth Advisors since 2019 and previously worked at Samco Capital Markets, Inc. from 2014 to 2019. Ellsworth Advisors provides investment advisory and financial planning services to individual clients, corporations, trusts, and retirement plans. The firm employs a variety of analytic approaches and offers customized portfolio management, pension consulting, and family office support, combining private fund and alternative investment access with traditional advisory services.

Brandon Vincent is a financial advisor at Apollon Financial, LLC with six years of industry experience. He holds Series 63 and Series 65 credentials and has worked at firms including LPL Financial, Good Life Advisors, and Oakwood Capital. Vincent is also the owner of Vincent Enterprises LLC, a non-investment-related business. Apollon Financial, LLC serves individuals, high-net-worth clients, families, family offices, trusts, estates, businesses, and retirement plans, managing approximately $1.45 billion. The firm combines centrally managed model strategies with advisor-led portfolios, offers ESG risk-based models, tax-aware techniques, and access to private and alternative investments through a multi-office, affiliated advisor platform.

Susan Dixson is a CFP® with 31 years of industry experience, currently serving at Headland Capital. Her prior roles include positions at LPL Financial, Maryland Financial Group dba Coastal Wealth Management, Bank of America, and Merrill. Outside of her advisory work, she volunteers with Hospice Interim Healthcare and serves as executrix for a family estate. Headland Capital is a registered investment adviser with a team of ten advisors serving individuals, high-net-worth clients, family offices, trusts, estates, and corporate entities. The firm offers personalized financial planning, portfolio management, and retirement plan advisory services, managing approximately $559 million across about 637 clients.

Alexander Day is a financial advisor at Headland Capital with Series 65 and Series 63 licenses and one year of industry experience. Before joining Headland Capital, he held positions at LPL Financial LLC and Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Company. Outside of his advisory role, he has maintained employment with Uber Eats since 2022. Headland Capital is a registered investment adviser with a team of ten advisors serving individuals—including high-net-worth clients—as well as family offices, trusts, estates, private foundations, corporate entities, donor-advised funds, and qualified retirement plans. The firm offers personalized financial planning and portfolio management, employing a client-driven, fundamentally based investment approach focused on long-term strategies supplemented by shorter-term trades when appropriate.

After graduating from the University of Dayton, Michael was like many other millennials (easy targets!); unsure of his career path and a lack of confidence in managing his own finances. Early in his career while working for one of the largest investment management firms in the country he attended the National Personal Financial Planner(NAPFA) conference. After hearing a few of the speakers(s/o Michael Kitces!), and meeting some of the attendees he knew financial planning was the field he wanted to pursue. He always had a passion for educating himself and others, and helping people along their financial journey quickly became his goal. Michael earned the CFP® (Certified Financial Planner™) designation in 2018 to learn fundamentals of comprehensive financial planning. The education covers Investments, Estate Planning, Insurance, Education Planning, Retirement Planning, and Cash Flow Management. In early 2020, Michael created Black Dog Financial Planning to help professionals and families in their 30s and 40s with their finances. After working at a few firms, he realized the majority of investment advisors primarily focus on pre-retirees and retirees. Meanwhile his peer group was significantly under-served. He launched the firm to make high quality financial advice more affordable and accessible for his peer group, and to help individuals and families live great lives by making smarter financial decisions. When Michael isn’t helping his clients, he’s spending time with his own family. He and his wife, Katie, were married in May of 2018 after relocating to Charleston from Chicago, IL. They welcomed their first child, daughter Annie Rose, on February 6, 2020. Annie joins big “fur-brother”, Barkley, to which the firm, Black Dog Financial Planning, gets its name. Barkley is a rescue from PAWS Chicago, a no kill animal shelter. Barkley was 3 months old and 25 pounds when Mike and Katie adopted him. He’s now 3 years old and 80 pounds and his favorite pastime is watching squirrels from the window and chasing them out of the backyard. Mike and Katie enjoy low-country living, especially golf, the beach, and oyster roasts, but also love to travel. They got engaged in Paris in 2017 and have traveled around Europe and Asia together. Next up, they hope to visit South America, Australia and Africa. They look forward to raising their family in the low-country and traveling together whenever they can. Read Michael's blog here: https://blackdogfp.com/blog

Matthew Ritt is a CFP® and holds a Series 66 license, with 14 years of industry experience. He has worked at Ironview Capital Management, LLC since 2026 and previously spent nine years at Kinwell LLC and three years at Questis Advisor Partners, LLC. Ironview Capital Management, LLC serves individuals, pension and profit-sharing plans, trusts, estates, and business entities by providing discretionary portfolio management, pension consulting, and financial planning. The firm uses a mix of fundamental, technical, and quantitative analysis to tailor asset allocations, employing various strategies including options and alternative investments.

Robert Gorman is a CFP® and ChFC® affiliated with Apollon Financial, LLC in Mount Pleasant, SC, with 21 years of industry experience. He has worked at Apollon Financial since 2022 and previously spent over a decade with Northwestern Mutual in various roles. Outside of his advisory work, Gorman maintains membership in the Screen Actors Guild. Apollon Financial is an SEC-registered firm serving individuals, high-net-worth clients, families, family offices, trusts, estates, businesses, and retirement plans. The firm manages approximately $1.45 billion and combines centrally managed models with advisor-led portfolios, offering a range of investment strategies including ESG models, Direct Indexing, and tax-aware techniques.

Christian Salomone is Chief Investment Officer at Ballast Rock Private Wealth with 24 years of industry experience. His prior roles include 17 years at Goldman Sachs and positions at Merrill and Bank of America. He is president of the Yale Club of Charleston, a local alumni organization. Ballast Rock Private Wealth offers portfolio management, financial planning, and pension consulting to individuals, high-net-worth clients, and retirement plans. The firm employs a long-term, quantitatively informed investment approach tailored to client goals and risk tolerances.

Navarone Simpson is a financial advisor with Armstrong Dixon in Mount Pleasant, SC, holding CFP® and Series 66 designations and having 11 years of industry experience. His prior experience includes roles at Lincoln Financial Advisors and LPL Financial. Outside of his advisory work, Simpson has engaged in non-investment activities such as driving for Lyft. Armstrong Dixon provides discretionary investment management and financial planning services to individuals, high-net-worth families, charitable organizations, small business owners, and retirement plan sponsors. The firm employs a strategic, global asset allocation approach that integrates active and passive strategies, third-party research, and risk-management metrics, managing approximately $447.5 million in assets for around 290 clients.

Christopher Mcquade is a financial advisor with Curran Financial Partners, LLC, holding Series 65 and Series 63 licenses and 14 years of industry experience. His prior positions include roles at Pruco Securities, LLC, Allstate, and Healthmarkets. He is also licensed to sell life and health insurance. Curran Financial Partners provides financial planning and discretionary portfolio management primarily to individual and high-net-worth clients, using both passive and active investment approaches. The firm also serves as a sub-adviser to an exchange-traded fund and offers insurance products through licensed advisor representatives.