- Ian Hawk has joined Western Alliance Bank as the New York market manager for the Note Finance Group. Hawk will provide Western Alliance Bank’s differentiated leverage solutions to its New York-based private credit platforms. Prior to joining Western Alliance Bank, Hawk served as a senior director for capital markets at Lument. He has previously held roles at Fitch Ratings, Dwight Securities Management, and Walker & Dunlop.
- Connor Teskey has been named CEO of Brookfield Asset Management. Brookfield’s former CEO Bruce Flatt will continue as chair of Brookfield Asset Management’s board, while also remaining as CEO of Brookfield Corporation.
- Warren Seubel has joined Opto Investments, a private markets investment platform, as VP of sales and revenue. Seubel will lead the firm’s commercialization efforts across RIAs, family offices, and institutional investors. Seubel will also be responsible for overseeing the rollout and adoption of Opto’s alternative investment platform, including Opto’s Diligence AI. Seubel, who has over two decades of industry experience, joined Opto Investments from CAIS, where he previously served as a managing director.
- John Gonnella has been tapped as senior managing director and head of U.S. asset management at Starwood Capital Group, a private investment firm. Gonnella will be responsible foroverseeing the asset management strategy across Starwood Capital’s real estate assets. Gonnella will be assuming his position on April 20. Prior to joining Starwood Capital, Gonnella served as a senior managing director and head of real estate asset management for Centerbridge Partners.
- Chris Polechronis has been promoted to head of financial institutions in the U.S. for Berkshire Hathaway Specialty Insurance. Polechronis, who is based in New York, will be responsible for the firm’s financial institutions business nationwide. He joined BHSI in 2014 and most recently served as the co-head of financial institutions at the firm.
- Ron Allen has been tapped as CEO of OnCorps AI, a fund operations platform. OnCorps AI’s founder Bob Suh will serve as chairman and remain involved in the firm. Prior to joining OnCorps AI, Allen served as global head of transformation for Aladdin at BlackRock.
- Jonathan Linstra has been named chief growth officer at RIA Envestnet. In this newly created role, Linstra will be leading multiple growth initiatives across sales execution, revenue generation, and advisor engagement across Envestnet’s enterprise, Tamarac, and MoneyGuide platforms. Linstra will be reporting to Envestnet’s CEO Chris Todd. Prior to joining Envestnet, Linstra served as managing director of the Americas for Morningstar Wealth.
- Arjun Jain and Mason Murray have been appointed as partner and principal, respectively, at New Enterprise Associates, a venture capital firm. Jain joined NEA in 2021 as an investor on the technology team, where he focuses on consumer and enterprise investments as well as portfolio management. Murray joined NEA in 2022 as an investor on the technology team, where he focuses on early-stage investments in enterprise and consumer companies. In addition, NEA has also appointed Ashley Jepson to senior analyst on the technology team.
- Financial advisor Neil Henning has joined Cetera Financial Group after more than 23 years with Commonwealth Financial Network, where he oversaw about $75M in assets under administration. Henning has joined Cetera’s Summit Financial Networks and is based in New Jersey and North Carolina. Henning joined Cetera because of its “size, scale, technology, product access, and growth resources.” He also joined the firm mainly due to LPL’s acquisition of Commonwealth.
- Will Strong and Kyle Schmidt have been named co-chairs for the national industrial advisory group at Cushman & Wakefield, a commercial real estate services firm. Strong and Schmidt will be responsible for growing the institutional industrial capital markets platform, shaping innovation, and client engagement. Jim Carpenter, Cushman & Wakefield’s vice chair within the firm’s institutional industrial investment sales practice, will continue his role and will boost the firm’s industrial capital markets practice, grow market share, and expand client relationships.
- Jamie Lisac has been named senior managing director and group head at Tiger Capital Group, a financial services firm. Prior to joining Tiger, Lisac served as a managing director at Capstone Partners, where he led the special situations investment banking group. Lisac has also held roles at Huron Consulting Group, FTI Consulting, Alix Partners, General Motors, New Century Financial, and LyondellBasell.
- Financial advisor Roger Augustyn has joined Carson Group and will be based out of the firm’s Omaha, Nebraska, location. Augustyn was previously affiliated with Osaic Wealth, where he managed about $103M in assets under management. Augustyn will work closely with Carson’s managing director Jon Springer.
- RBC Wealth Management has added Alpharetta, GA-based The Wilson Wealth Management to its latest roster of teams that have shifted from UBS Wealth Management. The firm managed $430M in total client assets across Georgia. The Wilson Wealth Management team is led by advisor James “Jimmy” Wilson and includes support staff Ryan Kopec, Kristin Wint, and Megan Harris. The firm is part of RBC’s South Atlantic Complex.
- Richmond, VA-based Wealth Innovations has joined LPL Financial’s broker-dealer and registered investment advisor platform. The firm was previously affiliated with Osaic Wealth, where they managed $200M in advisory, brokerage, and retirement plan assets. The firm is led by Jim LaNeave, Marian Crawford, and Samuel LaNeave. The team also includes Ashley LaNeave, Jeffery Brallier, Diane Norris, and Janyce LaNeave. Wealth Innovations provides “comprehensive” financial planning, risk management, retirement planning, income preservation, risk mitigation, and legacy planning. The team joined LPL for its “robust” technology and integrated platform.
- Willow Wealth, a private markets investment platform, has joined Crestone Air Partners as an investor in Blue Crest Aviation Partners. Blue Crest Aviation Partners is a joint venture between Crestone Air Partners and Blue Owl Capital. Through the transaction, Willow Wealth will expand into the commercial aviation asset class. Additionally, Willow Wealth will be able to provide investors with exposure to commercial aviation investment opportunities. Last year, Willow Wealth underwent a rebranding and was formerly known as Yieldstreet.
- Waverly Advisors has acquired Lake Oswego, OR-based Pure Portfolios. The acquisition launches Waverly Advisors’ presence in Oregon and expands the firm’s entry into the greater Pacific Northwest. As part of the acquisition, Pure Portfolios’ president and CIO Nik Schuurmans and CFO Toby Weber will join Waverly as partners and wealth advisors. Following the transaction, Waverly’s assets under management boosted to $437M as of December 31, marking Waverly’s 30th acquisition.
- Rithm Capital, an alternative asset manager, has partnered with Valon Technologies, a technology platform. Valon has also created ValonOS, which is an AI-powered operating system for mortgage servicing. Through the partnership, ValonOS will be made available to over 4M of Rithm Capital’s Newrez Homeowners. Newrez will begin to transition to ValonOS in 2027.
- Merit Financial Advisors has acquired Southgate, MI-based TL Financial Group, marking Merit’s first office in Michigan. TL Financial Group manages about $217M in total client assets and was previously affiliated with Commonwealth Financial Services. The firm, which is led by founder and president Tony LaJeunesse, provides wealth management services, financial planning, and estate and tax planning for high-net-worth clients, including pre-retirees and retirees. As part of the acquisition, which closed on January 23, LaJeunesse has joined Merit as wealth manager, area director, and partner.
- Jump, an AI-powered wealth tech platform, has partnered with TaxStatus, a data solution provider. Through the partnership, Jump users will be able to access IRS-verified financials in their advisor platform. TaxStatus’s platform monitors clients’ IRS accounts for three years, provides alerts to advisors on tax liabilities, refunds, audits, or filing discrepancies.
- Simplicity Group Holdings, a financial products distribution firm, has acquired Indianapolis-based Source Brokerage, a disability income specialist. As part of the acquisition, Simplicity added Source Brokerage’s founder and principal Steve Crowe as its newest partner, further boosting the firm’s national disability insurance platform. In October, Simplicity Group acquired Montgomery, PA-based Insurance Planning Advisors.
- Capstone Strategic, an advisory firm, has rolled out its rebrand refresh to mark 30 years of leadership. The firm’s rebrand comes as the firm was seeking an “evolution” that aligns with the firm’s need for new content series and deeper partner engagements. As part of the rebrand, the firm will also introduce new tools and collaborative engagements with a focus on assisting mid-sized companies and credit unions. The refreshed brand will roll out across Capstone’s digital presence, content platforms, and client materials in the coming months.
- Beacon Pointe Advisors has made three RIA acquisitions, boosting its AUM to about $62B. Newton, MA-based Financial Planning Solutions, oversees about $350M in total client assets. The six-member team provides retirement planning, education tools, and pension services. Lake Geneva, WI-based Voyager Wealth Management manages roughly $229M in total client assets. The four-person advisory firm offers financial planning, retirement planning, investment management, and wealth management services. Fort Worth, TX-based InvestmentHunter Wealth Services was founded in 2008 and manages $153M in total client assets. The husband-and-wife advisory firm offers portfolio management, retirement planning, tax and estate planning, and insurance services.
- Varo Bank, a digital banking platform, has raised $123.9M for its Series G funding round. The round was led by existing investor Warburg Pincus and new investor Coliseum Capital Management. Existing investor Northview also participated in the round. The platform also announced that Alice Milligan, former chief marketing officer at Morgan Stanley, and Kevin Watters, former division chief executive officer at JP Morgan, have joined Varo Bank’s board of directors.
- Invesco Real Estate, a real estate investment management firm, has $3B in loans worldwide in the second half of 2025. In 2025, Invesco Real Estate’s loan commitments totaled $4.5B, representing a 63% year-over-year increase in investment activity. Since the inception of its global credit business in 2011, Invesco Real Estate has generated more than $26.9B across 361 transactions in North America and Europe.
The post People & Company News, Week of February 6, 2026 appeared first on Connect Money.
