Cary Carbonaro, who sold her advisory firm to Joe Duran’s United Capital in 2012, has joined Ashton Thomas Private Wealth, a registered investment advisor acquired last year by Arax Investment Partners, a wealth management platform backed by private equity firm RedBird Capital Partners. She’s joining as a managing wealth advisor and Women and Wealth Ambassador for the firm.
She’s joined by Richard Westhelle, who will serve as a senior wealth advisor. The team previously managed about $210 million in assets under management.
Carbonaro most recently served as a senior vice president and director of women and wealth at ACM Wealth. Prior to that, she was a vice president at Goldman Sachs Personal Financial Management, which she joined via Goldman’s 2019 acquisition of United Capital. She left Goldman Sachs in May 2022, and many of her clients followed.
Last September, Carbonaro spoke out about her experiences at Goldman Sachs on an episode of “The Healthy Advisor” podcast.
Carbonaro has been a long-time advocate for women in the financial services industry and financial literacy for women.
“Cary’s career embodies so much of what we value as a firm,” said Aaron Brodt, founder and CEO of Ashton Thomas Private Wealth. “As a tireless, fearless advocate for the financial independence of women, Cary has poured herself into educating and inspiring women to be financially healthy and secure. We are honored that she chose to affiliate with Ashton Thomas for continuing this important work, and we look forward to thoughtfully supporting her efforts in the days ahead.”
Based in Scottsdale, Ariz., Ashton Thomas was founded in 2010 and provides foundations, businesses and wealthy individuals and families with fee-based financial planning, investment portfolio management, retirement plan consulting and financial education. Its combined entities have about $7 billion in assets under management.
Arax has grown rapidly since entering the wealth management space with its multi-boutique platform. It announced its investment in Ashton Thomas last September, and has done a number of acquisitions since then. The firm has about $19.1 billion in total assets under management and advisement across its firms.