Romano Wealth Management

Romano Wealth Management

Romano Wealth Management opened in 1962 under founder Richard C. Romano, a chemical-engineering Ph.D. who migrated into securities and later served on the FINRA Board of Governors and the NASDAQ Stock Market board. The firm operates from a single office in Evanston, Illinois, and describes itself as purposefully boutique. No outside wealth origin is disclosed; the practice was built organically as a broker-dealer and registered investment advisor serving individuals, high-net-worth families, and institutional entities such as non-profits and corporations. Investment management and general brokerage sit side by side. Chairman Richard Romano and his son, President Joseph R.V. Romano, together manage nearly $500 million in client assets directly, with the senior Romano overseeing the full investment-management and brokerage business. The firm fields dedicated portfolio managers — among them Douglas Geisser, who runs more than $250 million in equity and fixed-income portfolios and advises bank trust departments, and Peter Hemwall, who manages over $100 million. The team constructs custom equity and fixed-income portfolios; the firm explicitly states it does not pool assets or run model-driven programs. Client portfolios are built individually around risk tolerance, income requirements, and capital-appreciation goals. The firm lists 14 professionals on its website, including seven portfolio managers, a fixed-income specialist, and operations and compliance staff. COO Eric Bederman, who joined in 2016, carries Series 4, 7, 24, 27, 53, 63, and 65 licenses. The Romano family remains at the center: Richard Romano acts as Chairman, Joseph Romano runs day-to-day operations and chairs the Investment Committee, and Valerie Romano serves as Operations Manager. No adjacent private vehicles, philanthropic foundations, or club memberships appear in public disclosures. Recent years have seen incremental team additions — associate portfolio manager Kyle Munson joined in 2023 after four years in financial-consultant roles (per the firm). Romano Wealth Management's architecture is a direct-access model: clients speak to the portfolio manager handling their account rather than to an intermediary . That structure is increasingly rare among SEC-registered advisers of comparable size, and it underpins the firm's insistence on bespoke management. Succession appears settled, with a second-generation Romano leading the Investment Committee, though no further generational plan has been detailed publicly.