Chicago Oakbrook Financial Group

What Chicago Oakbrook Financial Group does

Chicago Oakbrook Financial Group is a privately held, fee-only Registered Investment Adviser founded in 1997 and headquartered in Oak Brook, Illinois, with a secondary appointment-only office in Plainfield, Illinois. The firm delivers holistic financial planning, investment advisory, retirement planning, estate planning, insurance planning, and tax planning services to a diversified individual and small-business client base that includes high net worth families, young professionals, pre-retirees and retirees, small business owners, and corporate executives with equity compensation. Operated under a fiduciary standard, the firm does not promote proprietary products and is compensated through recurring advisory fees disclosed via Form ADV and individual client agreements.

The practice is built on a 10-advisor, 7-support-staff team (17 total) led by President David N. Navarro (since 1997) and COO/CCO Frank Kautzky (since 1999), with multiple senior advisors holding designations such as CFP, ChFC, CIMA, CRPS, and AIF. Client engagement is conducted through in-person consultations, annual reviews, and ongoing advisor relationships, with client account access facilitated by the third-party Investor 360° portal powered by Commonwealth Financial Network. Account custody is provided primarily by Raymond James, with National Financial Services (Fidelity) retained for legacy accounts.

The business model is a subscription/recurring fee-based advisory practice with no commission revenue, no proprietary product distribution, and no disclosed funding or external capital. Marketing is content-driven through an FMG Suite-powered website with financial calculators and educational resources, and the firm has received the Five Star Wealth Manager Award for 14 consecutive years (2012-2025). Growth to date has been organic advisor additions supplemented by a single 2014 acquisition of Beacon Financial Planning Services, LLC, which brought paraplanning capacity into the firm.

Name

Chicago Oakbrook Financial Group

Legal name

Chicago Oakbrook Financial Group

Website

https://cofgroup.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1997

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Chicago Oakbrook Financial Group is a fee-only, fiduciary Registered Investment Adviser founded in 1997 in Oak Brook, Illinois, providing holistic financial planning, investment advisory, retirement, estate, insurance, and tax planning to high net worth families, individuals, and small business owners in the Chicago metro area.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Wealth Management

NAICS

Portfolio Management and Investment Advice (523940)

SIC

Investment Advice (6282)

akta.pro primary industry

Fee-Only Advisory (FSAEAAAL)

akta.pro secondary industries

Employer Retirement Plan Advisory (401(k)/Pension) (FSAEABAE), Advisory Portfolio Management (Non-Discretionary) (FSAAABAD)

Keywords

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

Headquarters

HQ city

Oak Brook

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B and B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. Investment Advisory Services: Fee-based investment advisory services as a Registered Investment Adviser. Charges advisory fees for financial planning, portfolio management, and investment advice services. Does not earn commissions on product sales as they do not promote proprietary products.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels2 records

Marketing channels3 records

Core offering

Chicago Oakbrook Financial Group is a fee-only Registered Investment Adviser providing holistic financial planning and investment advisory services to individuals, families, and small businesses. The firm delivers customized wealth management, retirement planning, estate planning, tax planning, and insurance planning through a team of credentialed advisors, without promoting proprietary products or earning commissions.

Product overview

Chicago Oakbrook Financial Group offers a comprehensive financial advisory practice organized around core planning disciplines: financial planning, investment advice, retirement planning, estate planning, insurance planning, and tax planning. The firm serves both individual clients (including high net worth families and corporate executives with equity compensation) and business clients (including small and midsize business owners). For individual clients, key offerings include retirement planning, investment management, estate strategies, and specialized guidance for ISOs and RSUs. For business clients, the firm provides business financial planning, succession planning, and retirement plan setup and fiduciary services. Client access is facilitated through an Investor 360° online portal. The firm also provides educational resources including a suite of financial calculators covering retirement, investment, tax, insurance, estate, and lifestyle planning topics. The overall offering is a unified advisory practice rather than a modular software platform.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Financial Planning Holistic financial planning services that consider all aspects of a client's life situation, needs, and dreams. Includes financial goal setting, ongoing advisory support, and personalized guidance through life's transitions for individuals and families.
• Investment Advice Investment management and advisory services providing customized portfolio management, asset allocation strategies, and investment selection aligned with client goals and risk tolerance. Includes ongoing portfolio oversight by credentialed advisors.
• Retirement Planning Comprehensive retirement planning including retirement income strategy, required minimum distribution (RMD) planning, Social Security optimization, and 401(k) strategies for individuals and businesses.
• Estate Planning Estate strategy development including will preparation guidance, trust planning, legacy planning, charitable giving strategies, and business succession planning.
• Insurance Planning Insurance needs assessment and planning including life insurance, long-term care insurance, disability insurance, and umbrella liability coverage recommendations.
• Tax Planning Tax-efficient investment strategies and tax planning services including capital gains management, tax-deferred vs. taxable account optimization, and IRA contribution strategies.
• High Net Worth Planning Specialized financial planning for high net worth families including legacy planning, sophisticated investment strategies, and comprehensive wealth management.
• ISO and RSU Guidance Guidance for corporate executives on Incentive Stock Options (ISOs) and Restricted Stock Units (RSUs), including tax implications, exercise strategies, and diversification planning.
• Business Financial Planning Financial planning services for business owners including business succession planning, retirement program setup, and fiduciary guidance for business retirement plans.
• Succession Planning Business succession planning services helping owners prepare for ownership transitions through buy/sell agreements, trust structures, and exit strategies.
• Retirement Plans for Businesses Setup and management of employer-sponsored retirement plans including 401(k)s, with fiduciary guidance for plan sponsors. Targeted at small and midsize companies.
• 529 College Savings Plans Education savings vehicle guidance allowing tax-advantaged savings for qualified education expenses at colleges, universities, and eligible institutions.
• Investor 360° Client Portal Online portal for clients to access account information, view portfolio assets, manage passwords, and review consolidated monthly statements. Powered by Commonwealth Financial Network.
• Financial Calculators Suite of online calculators including retirement savings, RMD estimation, Roth vs. Traditional 401(k) comparison, annuity comparison, tax calculators, college savings, mortgage comparison, and insurance needs assessment.

Segments5 records

Ideal customer profiles5 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration6 records

Partnerships

Three partnerships are on record, tiered core.

• Raymond JamescoreTechnology or IntegrationCustodian for client investment accounts. Provides account administration, reporting, and tax document generation services. Used for processing 1099-R, 1099-Q, and other tax-related forms for client accounts.
• NFS (Northern Trust Securities / Fidelity)coreTechnology or IntegrationFormer custodian (previously used through Commonwealth Financial Network) for legacy client accounts. Provides account administration and tax document processing services for accounts migrated from previous custodian.
• Commonwealth Financial NetworkcoreTechnology or IntegrationPlatform provider for the Investor 360° client portal used by clients to access account information, manage documents, and view consolidated statements.

Scale indicators1 record

Recent moves5 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Broad incumbents

• Focus Financial Partners: Partnership platform for independent RIAs and wealth management firms — comparable because many of its partner firms offer the same fee-based financial planning and 401(k) services, and it represents a potential acquirer or affiliation path for boutique RIAs like Chicago Oakbrook.
• Cetera Financial Group: Independent broker-dealer and RIA platform supporting financial advisors with wealth management, retirement plan, and practice management services — overlaps with Chicago Oakbrook's holistic planning and 401(k) services through a hybrid independent-channel model.
• Edelman Financial Engines: Large independent RIA combining financial planning, investment management, and workplace retirement plan services — competes for the same HNW and small-business retirement plan clients but at substantially greater scale and with proprietary technology.
• Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management: Large insurance-and-investment incumbent providing holistic financial planning, retirement, and estate services — competes for the same HNW families and pre-retiree clients in the Chicago Midwest market with a broader product shelf.
• Fisher Investments: Large independent investment management firm serving HNW individuals and institutions — comparable in fee-based discretionary portfolio management but operates at far greater scale and with a more concentrated investment-only proposition.

Direct peers

• Sanctuary Wealth: Partner-owned RIA platform supporting independent advisors offering wealth management, retirement planning, and family office services — comparable in scale, fee-based model, and emphasis on HNW and business owner clients.
• Creative Planning: Fee-only RIA providing holistic wealth management, tax planning, estate planning, and 401(k) services to individuals and businesses — closely aligned to Chicago Oakbrook's fee-only fiduciary model and SMB retirement plan focus.
• Carson Group: RIA platform serving independent financial advisors and their HNW clients with holistic planning, retirement plan, and tax services — directly comparable service mix and SMB retirement plan focus, with a partnership model that could absorb firms of similar size.
• Hightower Advisors: Independent RIA partnership serving HNW families, business owners, and retirement plan sponsors — overlapping client segments and service offerings (financial planning, 401(k), estate planning), with a Midwest presence that includes Chicago-area firms.
• Mariner Wealth Advisors: Independent, fee-based RIA offering comprehensive financial planning, tax, estate, and retirement plan services to high net worth families and business owners — directly comparable in service model and client segmentation to Chicago Oakbrook Financial Group, though operating at significantly greater scale.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks7 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

Compliance2 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles13 records

Subsidiaries1 record

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 Chicago Oakbrook Financial Group