Tony Palazzo
Tony is currently President of Berkeley Capital Partners, LLC, a private asset management firm and registered investment advisor (RIA) that he helped build from the ground floor. Tony’s financial acumen and organizational leadership is rooted in the financial services industry. He holds the Chartered Financial Analyst (CFA) credential, which is widely recognized as the “gold standard” in the business, and is one of the highest and most important professional distinctions that one can hold in investment management. By earning his CFA, Tony has demonstrated his unwavering commitment to attaining and maintaining the highest professional standards and placing his clients first. He began his career in investment management at Citigroup Smith Barney in 2006, where he was recruited out of college to join the wealth management team. During this period, he built a book of business entirely through personal marketing efforts and successfully navigated the financial crisis of 2008 by establishing his credibility as a trusted advisor that always placed his clients first.
He also concurrently serves on the Board of the Directors of the Florida Business Development Corporation (FBDC), a private, non-profit Certified Development Corporation (CDC) and SBA 504 lender, which is the second largest CDC of its kind in the nation. FBDC services a $1 billion loan portfolio, lends $160 million a year to small businesses, and generates $8.5 million in annual revenue. Tony, the youngest member of the Board, plays an instrumental role in overseeing management, meeting with regulators and auditors, and guiding decisions impacting lending risk and profitability. He is also an Advisory Board Member of the Georgia Small Business Capital Loan Committee, the Georgia lending arm of the FBDC, which reviews and approves all loans
In 2009, Tony left Citigroup with his partners and joined Wells Fargo Advisors Financial Network. Their goal was to eventually establish their own RIA, therefore, moving to this independent channel would help them set the stage for this pursuit. Tony and his partners grew their book of business primarily through referrals, and eventually took on 3 additional advisors. They built their practice into the 7th largest in the nation out of more than 500 practices in the Wells Fargo Advisors Financial Network. The team took on the name of Berkeley Capital Partners, which would become the name of their RIA when they officially incorporated in 2015.
As President of Berkeley Capital Partners, LLC, Tony manages all aspects of company operations. He also executes all trades for the office, which currently includes 4 partner/owners and 5 independent advisors. The firm’s clients are comprised of high net-worth individuals and business clients. In addition to providing clients with strategies for growing their individual portfolios, Tony also advises business clients on investment selections for their 401(k) and company retirement plans, which account for nearly $25 million in assets under management. The Group continues to grow through word-of-mouth referrals from satisfied clients, without the need for marketing of any kind.
Tony graduated from Furman University with a Bachelor of Arts degree in Business Administration, where he played football and attended on scholarship. He lives in Milton, Georgia with his wife and 3 sons.
