Genex Consulting

What Genex Consulting does

Genex Consulting is a fee-based wealth management firm headquartered in Kirkwood, Missouri (St. Louis area), operating as a doing-business-as entity under Summit Financial, LLC, an SEC-registered investment adviser. Founded in 2008 by Brian Redders and Michael Sluhan (both former Lincoln Financial/Sagemark professionals) to deliver independent, holistic wealth advice to a select group of clients, the firm expanded in 2018 when Chad Hemphill's Panoptic Wealth Advocates merged into the practice, consolidating the three principals under one brand. Genex serves high-net-worth individuals, families, and business owners across 17 U.S. states (AL, AZ, CA, FL, IA, IL, KS, MI, MO, NC, NE, NY, OH, OK, SC, TN, TX), with a current team of 11-50 personnel organized into PODs (Principal + Wealth Consultant + Planning Director + Associate) supporting approximately $700 million in assets.

Genex delivers services across seven integrated practice areas — wealth planning, investment planning, retirement planning, estate planning, business succession, risk management, and executive compensation — wrapped around a proprietary 6-step "Clients for Life" process (Consultation, Engagement, Discovery, Visualization, Focus, Action). Its proprietary "Balance Sheet Excellence Model" provides daily-updated net worth statements through third-party client portals (eMoney and Addepar), supplemented by a secure document vault and Monte Carlo–based retirement simulations. Services are personalized around each client's risk tolerance, time horizon, life stage, and multigenerational objectives, with 2-3 annual review meetings per client.

The firm operates on a recurring, fee-based advisory revenue model rather than commission-based product sales, with pricing not publicly disclosed. Its go-to-market is primarily relationship-driven, combining an extensive content library (articles, videos, calculators), client referrals, and a structured consultative sales process that screens for fit prior to engagement. In January 2025, Summit Financial, LLC — in collaboration with Merchant Investment Management — took a strategic equity stake in Genex, integrating the firm into Summit's platform, which approaches $20 billion in assets under advisement across 200+ advisers and 100,000+ clients.

Name

Genex Consulting

Legal name

Summit Financial, LLC

Website

https://genexstl.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2008

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Genex Consulting is a fee-based wealth management firm headquartered in Kirkwood, Missouri, serving high-net-worth individuals, families, and business owners across 17 U.S. states through holistic, multigenerational financial planning delivered under Summit Financial, LLC.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Wealth Management Services

NAICS

Portfolio Management and Investment Advice (523940)

SIC

Investment Advice (6282)

akta.pro primary industry

Advisory Portfolio Management (Non-Discretionary) (FSAAABAD)

akta.pro secondary industry

Business Owner & Executive Financial Planning (FSAEAAAO)

Keywords

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

Headquarters

HQ city

Missouri City

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. Fee-Based Wealth Planning Services: The firm operates on a fee-based approach providing holistic and comprehensive wealth planning services. Revenue is generated through advisory fees rather than commission-based product sales, allowing advisors to focus on client interests without product bias.

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels3 records

Core offering

Genex Consulting delivers holistic, fee-based wealth management and financial planning services to high net worth individuals, families, and business owners. Offerings span investment planning, retirement planning, estate planning, business succession, risk management, and executive compensation, delivered through a proprietary six-step Clients for Life process and a POD-based advisory model supported by Balance Sheet Excellence tracking.

Product overview

Genex Consulting offers a unified wealth management platform providing holistic, fee-based financial planning services through seven core areas: Wealth Planning, Investment Planning, Retirement Planning, Estate Planning, Business Succession, Risk Management, and Executive Compensation. The firm's proprietary 'Genex Way' process includes Balance Sheet Excellence tracking with daily-updated net worth statements and secure document vault access.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Wealth Planning Services Holistic and comprehensive fee-based wealth planning service for individuals, families, and business owners that uses the proprietary Clients for Life six-step process to discover purpose for the client's wealth and deliver a coordinated financial plan across investments, retirement, estate, risk, tax, and executive compensation.
• Investment Planning Personalized investment planning service that designs portfolio strategy around each client's individual risk tolerance, time horizon, goals, and prior investment experience, with allocation and security selection driven by Genex's Investment Committee.
• Retirement Planning Financial independence and retirement readiness planning that uses Monte Carlo simulations to model outcomes and help clients avoid outliving their assets, coordinated with the broader wealth plan.
• Estate Planning Estate management and wealth distribution planning service covering wills, trusts, durable powers of attorney, medical directives, and beneficiary designations, designed to preserve and transfer wealth across generations.
• Business Succession Business transition and exit planning service that helps business owners develop end visions and strategies for transferring their business to family members, key employees, or third parties, including valuation and key employee retention considerations.
• Risk Management Risk identification and insurance portfolio review service covering life, disability, long-term care, critical illness, health, travel protection, identity theft, and asset protection, with insurance products offered through affiliate Summit Risk Management, LLC.
• Executive Compensation Comprehensive review of executive compensation packages, including benefits and cash/non-cash alternatives, designed to maximize the planning benefits of stock options, deferred compensation, and other executive-level benefits.
• Balance Sheet Excellence (proprietary tracking and client portal) Proprietary service that tracks and measures balance sheet performance for clients, delivering daily-updated net worth statements and a secure online vault for document storage through the eMoney and Addepar client portals.

Quantifiable outcome

• Daily balance sheet updates and online vault for client document access
• +2 more outcomes

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature2 records

Partnerships

Two partnerships are on record, tiered core.

• Panoptic Wealth AdvocatescoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPanoptic Wealth Advocates, founded by Chad Hemphill, became part of the Genex family in 2018. This combination brought together the three founders (Brian Redders, Mike Sluhan, and Chad Hemphill) who had worked together at Lincoln Financial. The merger enabled continued successful growth and expansion of both practices.
• Summit Risk ManagementcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerSummit Risk Management, LLC is an affiliate of Summit Financial, LLC. Insurance products may be offered through Summit Risk Management, enabling comprehensive insurance strategies as part of the overall wealth planning services.

Scale indicators4 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Mariner Wealth Advisors: Large, founder-led RIA providing holistic wealth planning, investment management, retirement, estate, tax, and business succession services to HNW individuals and families — directly comparable in service mix, multigenerational positioning, and fee-based advisory model to Genex.
• Moneta Group: Independent RIA serving HNW families and business owners with holistic planning, investment, retirement, and business succession services — closely mirrors Genex's service mix and HNW target.
• Merit Financial Advisors: Mid-market RIA providing comprehensive wealth planning to HNW clients with similar founder-led culture and fee-only structure — directly comparable in size segment and service breadth.
• Carson Wealth: Wealth management firm focused on holistic financial planning and multigenerational advice for HNW families and business owners — closely aligned with Genex's fee-based, comprehensive-planning positioning.
• Creative Planning: Comprehensive fee-only financial planning and wealth management firm serving HNW individuals and business owners across all 50 states — a comparable end-to-end advisor offering including investment, retirement, estate, and business succession planning.

Broad incumbents

• Kestra Financial: Wealth platform supporting independent RIAs with custody, technology, and transition capital — comparable to Summit Financial as a parent-affiliate model for firms like Genex.
• Edelman Financial Engines: Large-scale financial planning and investment management firm serving HNW individuals with a comprehensive-planning model — directly competitive in target segment and delivery model even at much larger scale.
• Lincoln Financial Advisors: Large insurance-and-advisory firm where Genex's three founders were trained — comparable as a legacy incubator of the advisor talent and service model Genex now operates under.
• Cambridge Investment Research: Independent broker-dealer and RIA support platform for mid-sized wealth firms — comparable as an alternative parent platform for an SEC-registered RIA of Genex's size and structure.
• Focus Financial Partners: Leading RIA partnership platform that acquires and supports large and mid-sized wealth management firms like Genex — comparable as a strategic acquirer/parent platform shaping the RIA-of-this-size landscape.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles21 records

Subsidiaries1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds1 record

Investors1 record

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 Genex Consulting