Simon is responsible for managing the portfolios of the largest segment of our client base and providing accompanying service. “Clients are not passed off to a service associate or junior broker – they deal with me and my experienced peers directly,” says Simon.
He is one of the three managing directors overseeing The Wise Investor Group. He also sits on the investment decision committee and heads the portfolio management team, instrumental in investment policy, security selection, asset allocation, and client management.
Simon’s personal integrity and intellectual honesty are evident in every action. Clients know that he is ethical and transparent – and that his advice is balanced, candid and well-informed. He is also very accountable. “They know that when I say I’ll follow up on something, whether it’s providing information or service, that it will get done,” says Simon.
“My goal is for my clients is to have the confidence in knowing that their goals and concerns will always be diligently addressed and that we will take every careful measure to help ensure that their wealth will be preserved for their families well beyond their lifetimes,” says Simon. Simon is also the primary public face of our team via our podcasts, TV appearances and articles in the media. He is also the host of The Wise Investor Show.
Simon has more than 25 years of experience in the financial services industry. He has been recognized as one of the top financial professionals in both Virginia and the nation by respected organizations such as Barron’s*, Forbes**and The Financial Times***.
As well-established as he is in his career, Simon still enjoys the intellectual challenge of constantly learning, dealing with ever-changing environments and adapting to new economic backdrops, emerging technologies and changing client preferences and tastes.
Simon transitioned to Raymond James with the team in September 2022. “Raymond James provides us the perfect forum to continue to provide our boutique-style service model, customized investment and planning experience, and a more diverse set of tools in our kit to handle a wide range of clients and needs,” he says.
Prior to joining The Wise Investor Group in 2004, Simon successfully built his own practice with Smith Barney and Ferris, Baker Watts. He is a graduate of Haverford College.
In the community, Simon has been actively involved in youth sports for many years. He served as a volunteer coach of girls’ soccer from 2008 to 2019 and is a former vice president of Vienna Youth Soccer. He currently serves as a board member of Vienna Youth Soccer and will be a founding board member of Fairfax BRAVE Soccer, a club that participates in the Elite Clubs National League.
Simon grew up in Baltimore, Maryland, and today lives in Vienna, Virginia, with his wife, Allison. They have three daughters, Madeleine, Josie and Charlotte. In his free time, Simon enjoys youth sports, bass fishing, international travel, supporting the Baltimore Ravens and collecting fine wine.
Asset allocation does not guarantee a profit nor protect against loss. All investments are subject to risk, including loss.
*Barron’s Top 100 Financial Advisors, 2022. Barron’s is a registered trademark of Dow Jones & Company, L.P. All rights reserved. The rankings are based on data provided by over 1,121 individual advisors and their firms and include qualitative and quantitative criteria. Data points that relate to the quality of practice include professionals with a minimum of seven years of financial services experience, acceptable compliance records (no criminal U4 issues), client retention reports, charitable and philanthropic work, quality of practice, designations held, offering services beyond investments offered including estates and trusts, and more. Financial advisors are quantitatively rated based on varying types of revenues produced and assets under management by the financial professional, with weightings associated for each. Investment performance is not an explicit component because not all advisors have audited results and because performance figures often are influenced more by clients’ risk tolerance than by an advisor’s investment picking abilities. The ranking may not be representative of any one client’s experience, is not an endorsement, and is not indicative of an advisor’s future performance. Neither Raymond James nor any of its financial advisors pay a fee in exchange for this award/rating. Barron’s is not affiliated with Raymond James.
**The Forbes ranking of the Top 250 Wealth Advisors, developed by SHOOK Research, LLC, is based on an algorithm of qualitative criteria, mostly gained through telephone and in-person due diligence interviews, and quantitative data. Those advisors who are considered have a minimum of seven years of experience and the algorithm weights factors like revenue trends, assets under management, compliance records, industry experience and those who encompass best practices in their practices and approach to working with clients. Portfolio performance is not a criterion due to varying client objectives and lack of audited data. Out of approximately 33,567 nominations, 250 advisors received the award. This ranking is not indicative of an advisor’s future performance, is not an endorsement, and may not be representative of individual clients’ experience. Neither Raymond James nor any of its financial advisors or RIA firms pay a fee in exchange for this award/rating. Raymond James is not affiliated with Forbes or SHOOK Research, LLC. Please go to forbes.com/sites/rjshook/2021/08/24/methodology-americas-top-wealth-advisors-2021/ for more information.
*** The Financial Times 400 Top Financial Advisors is an independent listing produced annually by Ignites Research, a division of Money-Media, Inc., on behalf of the Financial Times (April 2020). To qualify for the list, advisors had to have 10 years of experience and at least $300 million in assets under management (AUM) and no more than 60% of the AUM with institutional clients. The Financial Times reaches out to some of the largest brokerages in the U.S. and asks them to provide a list of advisors who meet the minimum criteria outlined above. These advisors are then invited to apply for the ranking. Only advisors who submit an online application can be considered for the ranking. In 2020, roughly 1,040 applications were received and 400 were selected for the final list (38.5%). The 400 qualified advisors were then scored on six attributes: AUM, AUM growth rate, compliance record, years of experience, industry certifications and online accessibility. AUM is the top factor, accounting for roughly 60 to 70% of the applicant’s score. Additionally, to provide a diversity of advisors, the Financial Times placed a cap on the number of advisors from any one state that's roughly correlated to the distribution of millionaires across the U.S. The ranking may not be representative of any one client’s experience, is not an endorsement, and is not indicative of an advisor’s future performance. Neither Raymond James nor any of its financial advisors pay a fee in exchange for this award/rating. The Financial Times, Ignite Research and Money-Media, Inc. are not affiliated with Raymond James.