From rags to riches to awards finalist: Dynasty CEO

investmentnews.com:

Orphaned and homeless in his early teens, Shirl Penney was always fascinated by finance and the wealth management industry. He bought a $13 suit at the Salvation Army, rode a bus to New York and interviewed at Smith Barney, before the acquisition by Morgan Stanley.

That interview eventually led the now CEO and president of New York-based Dynasty Financial Partners to run the ultra-high-net-worth business at Smith Barney and Citigroup for several years until 2008, when he left to put a business plan together for Dynasty.

 “It took 2 years, 7 months and 4 days to go without a paycheck,” Penney admits. “We officially launched Dynasty December 4, 2010.”

Since then, Penney has become a recognized leader in the industry. He uses his “Triangulation of Advice” concept to provide Dynasty’s clients transparency, beneficial alignment, and personalization while separating advice, custody, and investment products in a rigorously client-first approach.

Penney believes Dynasty is known as a very innovative player in the space.

“We’ve been a significant contributor to the growth in the independent space,” Penney says. “I do think it’s the era of independence right now and Dynasty plays a very important role in being liberators and allowing advisors to go independent. Once they’re there, we help them take better care of their clients and build better businesses.”

Last year, Penney said Dynasty had the biggest growth of assets in the history of the firm. He’s now been recognized for his work as an InvestmentNews Awards 2024 Excellence Awardee, with the winners announced on June 20 at 583 Park Avenue, New York City in a glitzy, red carpet ceremony. Click here to register to attend.

Penney credits his success to his Dynasty team and their