Top financial advisors working with clients approaching retirement in Spartanburg, SC

Jeffery Paddyfote is a financial advisor with Primerica Advisors in Spartanburg, SC, holding Series 63 and Series 65 licenses and 17 years of industry experience. His prior firms include Wells Fargo Clearing, BB&T, and Principal Financial Services. Outside of advisory work, he is sole owner and president of a non-investment related business. Primerica Advisors primarily serves individual investors, including both non-high-net-worth and high-net-worth clients, as well as corporate and charitable clients. The firm offers a wrap-fee asset management program that utilizes model strategies and discretionary management, supported by third-party custodians and overlay managers.

Shelby Smith is a financial advisor at Morgan Stanley with three years of industry experience. Shelby holds Series 63 and Series 66 licenses and has worked at Morgan Stanley and its Private Bank since 2024. Prior roles include positions at ADP and Tindall Corporation. Morgan Stanley Wealth Management provides a range of advisory programs to individuals and institutional clients, focusing on tailored financial planning supported by firm-approved tools and modeling techniques. The firm manages approximately $2.74 trillion in client assets and offers services both directly and through employer-based financial planning agreements.

Joseph Christiano is a financial advisor at Edward Jones with Series 66 registration and one year of industry experience. Prior to joining Edward Jones, he founded Christiano Financial Coaching and spent 15 years at Duke Energy. Edward Jones is a full-service wealth management firm serving individual and institutional clients with a wide range of advisory programs, including discretionary and non-discretionary strategies, separately managed accounts, and affiliated mutual funds. The firm manages approximately $1.01 trillion in assets and operates a large nationwide network of advisors and branch offices.

Marcus Elliott Sr. is a financial advisor at LPL Financial with 19 years of industry experience. He holds a Series 66 designation and has worked with firms including Elliott & Painter, LLP and 1st Global Advisors, Inc. Elliott is also a CPA partner at Elliott & Painter LLP. LPL Financial is a national broker-dealer and SEC-registered investment adviser serving individuals, retirement plan participants, banks, trust companies, and other institutions with a range of advisory and brokerage services.

Michael Anthony is a financial advisor at Raymond James & Associates with 41 years of industry experience. He holds Series 63 and Series 65 licenses and has been with Raymond James & Associates since 2013. The firm is a large, dually registered broker-dealer and SEC-registered investment adviser managing approximately $501 billion in assets. Raymond James & Associates serves a diverse client base including individuals, institutions, and municipal entities, offering financial planning, investment consulting, and institutional fiduciary services.

Willie Myles is a financial advisor with Equitable Advisors in Cary, NC, holding Series 63 and Series 66 licenses and bringing 16 years of industry experience. He has worked at Equitable Advisors since 2016, previously serving at Axa Advisors and MSI Financial Services. Outside of advising, he is a co-chairman of a fundraising campaign for Alpha Light Fund Inc., a nonprofit focused on renovating the House of Alpha. Equitable Advisors serves a range of clients including individuals, pension plans, corporations, and charitable organizations, providing financial planning, retirement consulting, and asset management through a network of representatives and third-party managers. The firm offers various investment vehicles and ERISA fiduciary services, relying on third-party program sponsors and an affiliation with a publicly traded parent company.

Stavroula Koutsfetsoulis is a financial advisor at Ameriprise with 25 years of industry experience. She holds Series 63 and Series 65 licenses and has been with Ameriprise and its affiliated entities since 2011. In addition to her advisory role, she is involved in fiduciary activities as an attorney-in-fact (power of attorney). Ameriprise is a large institutional firm that provides retirement-income planning services primarily to individuals with substantial investable assets. The firm combines research, modeling, and tax-efficiency analysis to deliver written recommendation reports through a centralized consulting team, focusing on tailored retirement income strategies.

Barbara Brewer is a financial advisor at RBC Capital Markets with 20 years of industry experience. She holds a Series 66 designation and has been with RBC Capital Markets Corporation since 2008. RBC Wealth Management, a division of RBC Capital Markets, serves individual investors, institutional clients, pension and profit-sharing plans, corporations, and charitable organizations. The firm offers various advisory programs with discretionary and non-discretionary portfolio management, financial planning, custody, and brokerage services, tailoring strategies to clients’ Advisory Risk Profiles through a mix of in-house and third-party providers.

Richard Martin is a financial advisor at Cetera with 29 years of industry experience. He holds a Series 63 designation and has a background that includes nearly three decades at Avantax Advisory Services and eight years at Avantax Insurance Agency. Outside of his advisory work, he is the owner and sole proprietor of Martin & Pellegrin, CPAs, a tax preparation and accounting firm. Cetera Investment Advisers LLC is an SEC-registered firm that serves a broad client base including individuals, retirement plans, corporate and charitable clients, and institutional accounts. The firm provides a multi-manager platform offering discretionary and non-discretionary portfolio management, financial planning, and access to various program structures and third-party money managers.

Lee Chen is a financial advisor with UBS Financial Services in Pasadena, California, holding Series 63 and Series 65 licenses and bringing 28 years of industry experience. He has been with UBS since 2009. Outside of his advisory role, Chen serves on the board of directors for the San Gabriel Country Club. UBS Financial Services serves individual, corporate, and institutional clients through brokerage and investment advisory offerings, combining proprietary capital market research with a broad range of financial planning and portfolio management solutions.