A customer-first approach to wealth management will ensure clients thrive in the merger of Nicola Wealth and Stallion Financial.

The acquisition and preservation of wealth is a personal undertaking. During quiet moments in the car or sipping coffee on a Sunday morning, financial security seems to raise its tentacles, looking for assurance, clarity, comfort and the confidence that you are doing the right thing for you and your family. The acquisition, preservation and growth of wealth can be a lifelong quest for the right partner.

Two top financial advisory firms, Nicola Wealth and Stallion Financial, recently joined forces to become an even stronger partner in achieving their clients’ financial goals and to secure that most important asset — financial peace of mind.

“Many would describe wealth as a dollar figure, but that is just the table stakes,” says Rob Valenzano, who founded Stallion Financial and is a key architect of the merger with Nicola Wealth going forward. “I would describe wealth as the ability to choose how you spend your time and money. It is freedom and the ability to live a life based upon what is meaningful to you. Our mission goes beyond just wealth and is more than just money. We make sure our clients’ money has purpose and is in sync with what happiness means to them.”

In its history of serving the Vaughan, Ont., community, business owners and families across the Greater Toronto Area (GTA), Stallion Financial has earned a reputation for the highest standards of personalized service, unparalleled
business acumen and best-in-class advice. In joining Nicola Wealth, Stallion knew it was joining a company that shared its values and whose passion for client service in delivering a planning-first approach matched its own.

“Both Stallion and Nicola Wealth are very entrepreneurial, and our talks started in May 2019,” says Valenzano. “They are headquartered in Vancouver and enjoying great growth and were looking for a strategic partner in the GTA with exceptionally strong roots. We both offer a great client experience because we’re both client-centric. We’re now fortunate enough to merge with Nicola Wealth, which is at the pinnacle of that client experience, and this will elevate the experience.”

“We are delighted to welcome Stallion Financial to the Nicola Wealth family and have a second office in the Greater Toronto Area. Rob and the Stallion team have a remarkable reputation with their clients who, we feel, will be pleased with our financial planning and diversified investment platform,” explains David Sung, president of Nicola Wealth. “Together, we can offer high-net-worth families and business owners the comprehensive plans they need to navigate their complex needs.”

For clients of Stallion, the merger with Nicola Wealth means they are now part of one of Canada’s premier independent wealth management companies recognized for its remarkable consistency and stability regarding portfolio performance. They have earned the Gold Standing as one of Deloitte’s Best Managed Companies in Canada. With this comes an impressive suite of services and depth of expertise that opens additional tools and opportunities in supporting Stallion’s long-term goal of building and preserving family wealth.

“There are a number of unique benefits this partnership brings to Stallion’s clients,” says Valenzano. “One of them is Nicola Wealth’s hard-asset real estate portfolio, led by in-house experts who seek out cash-flowing investments across North America. As a Nicola Wealth client, you get the benefit of owning real estate, in a diversified portfolio, which is expensive and difficult to do as an individual investor. Another key benefit is that Nicola Wealth has developed a team of talented asset managers who focus exclusively on acquiring private assets. By sourcing institutional-grade investments that are not correlated to the stock markets, Nicola is able to mitigate volatility while giving our clients access to often inaccessible opportunities.”

“Success Is Having A Comfortable, Confident Relationship With The Client To Give Them Peace Of Mind And Know We Have Mitigated The Risk, So Their Families Are Looked After”

Before the merger, Stallion Financial had a bench strength of 10 team members, but now it has more than 250 advisors and support staff to better serve its clients. “We both take a comprehensive and integrated approach to planning with investment choices beyond just stocks and bonds,” says Valenzano. “We have a minimum of two advisors and one associate on every client file, and, by doing this, no planning opportunity or idea gets past us. It’s the collaboration of all of the advisors from coast to coast which is the magical ingredient, allowing a pure sharing of knowledge or ideas relating to products or strategies in the industry.”

In its customer-first approach, Stallion has had a special knack for extracting both the hard and soft data from their clients, which it will bring to Nicola Wealth. The hard data is all the information about businesses and probing to ensure its accurate, while the soft data is the understanding of the intricacies of the business and personal lives, hopes and dreams. This is the way Stallion has always measured success.

“Success is having a comfortable, confident relationship with the client to give them peace of mind and know we have mitigated the risk, so their families are looked after,” says Valenzano. “In creating a plan, it’s important to help them think bigger and dream bigger, and we embrace that challenge, so they know we are the real deal and have their backs in every aspect of their business and personal life.”

The community-focused approach of Stallion will continue in Vaughan, as it has been an active fundraiser for more than 10 years. This year, Nicola Wealth has stepped up to sponsor a cycling team with Stallion in the seventh annual Ride for Mackenzie Health on Sunday, June 6th.

Nicola Wealth, now enhanced by the additional expertise of Stallion Financial, provides the clarity, insight, guidance and advice necessary to be partners in their clients’ performance in achieving financial goals, while providing the wise disciplines required to supply clients with the assurance and confidence in the management of their wealth for today and tomorrow.

STALLION FINANCIAL INC.
240 Chrislea Rd., Suite 125, Woodbridge, Ont.
416-823-9223
stallionfinancial.ca

NICOLA WEALTH
Suite 1610 North Tower, 175 Bloor St. E., Toronto, Ont.
416-519-7222
nicolawealth.com