What AE Wealth Management does

AE Wealth Management, LLC is an SEC Registered Investment Adviser headquartered in Topeka, Kansas, founded in 2016 by David Callanan and Cody Foster as part of the broader Advisors Excel ecosystem (established 2005). The firm operates as a B2B platform serving independent financial advisors across the United States, offering two affiliation pathways — Investment Adviser Representative (IAR) directly under AEWM, and Third-Party RIA (TPRIA) for advisors who maintain their own corporate RIA — with the explicit goal of providing back-office, compliance, marketing, technology, and investment management infrastructure so advisors can focus on client relationships. Its customer base is described as 500-800+ independent advisors (sources vary), and its end-client segments are primarily retirees and pre-retirees seeking conservative wealth management.

The company's core technology is inStream, a cloud-based financial planning and wealth management platform that unifies four asset categories — market-correlated investments, non-market correlated investments, life insurance, and annuities — into a single workflow. It is complemented by the InvestmentHQ mobile app for client portfolio tracking, the Risk Number Analysis tool for risk tolerance assessment, and bi-weekly Wealth Report market commentary. In November 2025, AEWM launched AE Private Exchange, a private markets platform powered by CAIS that adds alternative investment access (private equity, private credit, hedge funds, real assets), and in June 2026 it introduced a Securities-Based Lending (SBL) solution that allows clients to borrow against investment assets. Custodial integrations with Charles Schwab and Fidelity complete the operational stack.

AEWM's revenue model is built primarily on asset-based fees charged as a percentage of assets under management (billed monthly in arrears on average daily balance), supplemented by wrap fee programs that bundle advisory and transaction fees, and hourly or fixed-fee financial planning and consulting engagements. The published account minimum is $10,000. The firm reports $46.9 billion in AUM as of December 2025, has stated an explicit target of $250 billion in AUM by 2035, and has been recognized as a Top 20 RIA by Financial Advisor Magazine. The platform is privately held with no disclosed external institutional investors and is led by CEO David Callanan, President Shannon Larson (appointed February 2026), and CIO Ben Sullivan.

Name

AE Wealth Management

Legal name

AE Wealth Management, LLC

Website

https://aewealthmanagement.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2016

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

AE Wealth Management is a Topeka, Kansas-based SEC-registered investment adviser that provides investment management, financial planning, compliance, and back-office infrastructure to a network of 500+ independent financial advisors across the United States.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Wealth Management

NAICS

Portfolio Management and Investment Advice (523940), Portfolio Management and Investment Advice (52394)

SIC

Investment Advice (6282)

akta.pro primary industry

Registered Investment Advisor (RIA) Wealth Management (FSAEABAA)

akta.pro secondary industries

Managed Accounts & Model Portfolios (SMA/UMA) (FSAAAAAG), Alternatives & Multi-Asset Digital Wealth Platforms (PE/VC/Real Assets access) (FSAGAEAL)

Keywords

• Wealth management services
• Investment advisory
• Financial planning
• Asset management
• Retirement planning

Headquarters

HQ city

Topeka

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Others

Revenue model

1. Asset Management Fees: Fees charged as a percentage of assets under management (AUM), billed in arrears on a monthly basis, calculated using the average daily balance of the account during the billing period. This creates an incentive to grow client assets.
2. Wrap Fee Program: Asset management services typically provided through a wrap fee program where the fee covers both advisory services and transaction fees imposed by the broker-dealer. Non-wrap fee arrangements are available for sub-advisory relationships where transaction costs are charged separately.
3. Financial Planning and Consulting: Fees for financial planning and consulting services can be structured as hourly or fixed-fee arrangements, payable upon completion and delivery of the financial plan or consultative services.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

AE Wealth Management is an SEC Registered Investment Adviser that delivers investment management, financial planning, and retirement planning services through a national network of independent financial advisors. Its proprietary inStream cloud-based platform integrates market-correlated investments, non-market-correlated investments, life insurance, and annuities into a unified wealth management experience. The firm also provides back-office, compliance, technology, and marketing support to affiliated advisors.

Product overview

AE Wealth Management is a Registered Investment Adviser offering a comprehensive wealth management platform. The core offering includes inStream, a cloud-based financial planning and wealth management platform that integrates market-correlated investments, non-market correlated investments, life insurance, and annuities. The platform is complemented by AE Private Exchange (powered by CAIS) for private markets access, a securities-based lending solution, the InvestmentHQ mobile app, risk assessment tools, and regular market reporting through the Wealth Report. Services are delivered through a network of independent financial advisors with access to custodial partnerships with Charles Schwab and Fidelity.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• inStream Financial Planning Platform Cloud-based financial planning and wealth management platform that unifies market-correlated investments, non-market-correlated investments, life insurance, and annuities into a single financial strategy. Used by independent financial advisors serving their retail clients.
• AE Private Exchange Private markets platform powered by CAIS that provides advisors with access to alternative investment strategies including private equity, private credit, hedge funds, and real assets for client portfolio diversification.
• Securities-Based Lending (SBL) Solution Securities-based lending solution enabling clients to access liquidity by borrowing against their investment assets, with no fees or prepayment penalties, usable for business investments, real estate, and education funding.
• InvestmentHQ Mobile App Mobile application allowing clients to track portfolio performance, review communications, receive notifications during volatile market times, and access account balances and key market updates.
• Investment Management Services Ongoing investment management services delivered to retail clients through affiliated independent advisors. Fees are charged as a percentage of assets under management, billed monthly in arrears based on the average daily balance of the account.
• Financial Planning and Consulting Services Financial planning and consulting services available on an hourly or fixed-fee basis, payable upon completion and delivery of the financial plan or consultative services.

Named customers1 record

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration3 records

Feature2 records

Partnerships

One partnership is on record.

• CAIScoreTechnology or Integration · 5 November 2025AE Wealth Management launched AE Private Exchange, a private markets platform powered by CAIS, providing advisors with access to alternative investment strategies including private equity, private credit, real assets, and hedge funds. The platform enhances technology integration and streamlines investment workflows for advisors seeking to diversify client portfolios with non-traditional assets.

Scale indicators5 records

Recent moves8 records

Expansion highlights3 records

Direct peers

• Sanctuary Wealth: Sanctuary is an independent wealth platform recruiting high-producing advisors to its RIA platform — comparable to AEWM in the IAR pathway and a competitor for advisor recruiting dollars.
• Mariner Wealth Advisors: Mariner is a large national RIA serving retail and institutional clients; as a top-tier RIA by AUM with rapid organic and inorganic growth, it is a strong size-and-strategy comparable to AEWM's $250B AUM growth target.
• Cetera Financial Group: Cetera is a leading independent advisor wealth platform serving thousands of independent financial advisors through multiple affiliation models — directly comparable to AEWM's IAR/TPRIA dual-pathway approach and similar B-to-B distribution strategy.
• Osaic: Osaic (formerly Advisor Group) is one of the largest independent wealth platforms recruiting advisors through multiple channel brands — directly comparable to AEWM and notably the former employer of AEWM's new President Shannon Larson.
• Cambridge Investment Research: Cambridge is a privately held independent broker-dealer and RIA platform recruiting financial advisors across the U.S. — directly comparable to AEWM's advisor affiliation model and scale.
• Kestra Financial: Kestra Financial is a PE-backed independent advisor platform offering advisor affiliation, technology, and back-office services — directly comparable to AEWM, and notable as a larger private-capital-backed consolidator competing for the same advisor pool.
• Commonwealth Financial Network: Commonwealth is a privately held independent broker-dealer/RIA platform serving independent advisors nationwide — directly comparable to AEWM in business model, advisor focus, and mid-market tier.

Broad incumbents

• LPL Financial: LPL is the largest U.S. independent broker-dealer and RIA custodian serving independent advisors; it competes directly for the same advisor recruiting pipeline while offering a broader product shelf, technology stack, and public-company scale.
• Focus Financial Partners: Focus is the largest aggregator of independent RIAs in the U.S., providing capital, succession, and operational support to affiliated RIAs — a broad incumbent and the dominant PE-backed RIA roll-up acquirer competing for advisors in the same channel.

Others

• Orion Advisor Solutions: Orion provides wealthtech, portfolio management, and advisor technology to RIAs — comparable to AEWM's inStream platform as a technology enablement layer for the independent advisor channel, though not a direct affiliation competitor.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

Compliance2 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles9 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about AE Wealth Management