Cornerstone Financial Group

What Cornerstone Financial Group does

Cornerstone Financial Group is an independent financial advisory firm headquartered in Gainesville, Florida, founded in 1999. The firm serves individual investors, families, and business owners through a comprehensive suite of personal financial planning services including investment planning, retirement planning, education planning, tax planning, cash flow planning, business planning, insurance planning, and estate planning. It also offers standalone hourly financial planning at $100–$350 per hour (with a two-hour minimum and negotiable flat fees) for clients who need a plan but not ongoing asset management.

The firm's core technology stack consists of third-party client portals — eMoney, Wealthscape, and Black Diamond — for account access and reporting, with no proprietary platform. Website content, marketing resources, and educational tools (glossary, tax resources, calculators) are delivered via FMG Suite infrastructure. Securities are offered through a partnership with J.W. Cole Financial, Inc. (FINRA/SIPC member), and advisory services through J.W. Cole Advisors, Inc., allowing the firm to extend across multiple states without owning a broker-dealer or RIA shell.

Revenue is generated through a mix of hourly financial planning fees, recurring advisory fees on managed assets, and commissions/fees on securities transactions routed through the J.W. Cole entities. The firm also operates an affiliated CPA practice, Cornerstone Tax Group, which provides coordinated tax preparation, QuickBooks, and payroll services, creating a differentiated integrated financial-and-tax advisory offering for clients in the Southeast United States. The firm is privately held with no disclosed institutional ownership and a team of approximately 9 professionals.

Name

Cornerstone Financial Group

Legal name

Cornerstone Financial Group

Website

https://cornerstone-fg.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1999

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Cornerstone Financial Group is an independent, Gainesville-based financial advisory firm serving individual investors, families, and business owners in the Southeast US with retirement, investment, tax, estate, and insurance planning, plus an affiliated CPA tax practice.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Financial Advisory Services

NAICS

Portfolio Management and Investment Advice (523940)

SIC

Investment Advice (6282)

akta.pro primary industry

Comprehensive Financial Planning (FSAEAAAA)

Keywords

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

Headquarters

HQ city

Gainesville

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. Financial Planning Fees: The firm charges hourly fees for financial planning services, with rates ranging from $100 to $350 per hour depending on plan complexity, with a two-hour minimum billing increment. Flat fees may be negotiated based on the nature and scope of the plan.
2. Securities and Advisory Services: Securities are offered through J.W. Cole Financial, Inc. (JWC) and advisory services through J.W. Cole Advisors, Inc. (JWCA). The firm likely earns commissions and/or fees on securities transactions and advisory services, though specific fee structures are not publicly disclosed.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels2 records

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

Cornerstone Financial Group is an independent financial advisory firm that provides personalized financial planning services covering investment, retirement, education, tax, cash flow, business, insurance, and estate planning. The firm charges hourly fees ($100–$350/hour) for financial planning and offers securities and advisory services through affiliated broker-dealer and RIA partners (J.W. Cole Financial, Inc. and J.W. Cole Advisors, Inc.). An affiliated CPA sub-brand, Cornerstone Tax Group, delivers coordinated tax preparation and planning services.

Product overview

Cornerstone Financial Group is a financial advisory firm offering a comprehensive suite of planning services organized around core financial planning products: Investment Planning, Retirement Planning, Education Planning, Tax Planning, Cash Flow Planning, Business Planning, Insurance Planning, and Estate Planning. The firm also offers hourly Financial Planning for clients needing plan development without asset management. An affiliated sub-brand, Cornerstone Tax Group, provides tax preparation services and complementary financial and risk management services, creating an integrated financial and tax advisory offering. The company supplements its services with educational tools including a financial glossary, tax resources, and financial calculators. The firm operates primarily through client-facing wealth management portals (eMoney, Wealthscape, Black Diamond) and is affiliated with J.W. Cole Financial and J.W. Cole Advisors for securities and advisory services.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Cornerstone Tax Group: An affiliated CPA firm providing tax preparation and planning services, working together with the financial advisors at Cornerstone Financial Group to offer holistic financial and tax planning.

Products and services

• Investment Planning Planning service that helps clients develop an investment strategy coordinated with their overall financial plan, for individual investors and families.
• Retirement Planning Retirement plan development and ongoing monitoring service helping individual clients determine if they are saving enough for retirement and choose appropriate vehicles such as 401(k), traditional IRA, or Roth IRA.
• Education Planning Planning service to help parents and grandparents fund a child's or loved one's education through various available options.
• Tax Planning Tax planning strategies coordinated with the affiliated Cornerstone Tax Group to help clients position themselves for tax efficiency.
• Cash Flow Planning Cash flow and debt management service that helps clients save for tomorrow and prioritize goals and expenses.
• Business Planning Business continuity planning for scenarios such as illness or inability to work, targeted at business owners.
• Insurance Planning Insurance needs assessment and product selection service helping clients determine appropriate coverage to protect their family.
• Estate Planning Wealth distribution and asset management planning service that enables clients to manage the distribution of their wealth after death.
• Hourly Financial Planning Standalone hourly-based financial planning service for clients who need a financial plan but not necessarily asset management, billed at $100–$350 per hour with a two-hour minimum.
• Cornerstone Tax Group Services Affiliated CPA firm offering tax preparation services including business entity selection, individual/corporate/partnership/trust income tax preparation, tax accounting, QuickBooks, and payroll services, plus complementary retirement and risk management services.
• Securities and Advisory Services Securities offered through J.W. Cole Financial, Inc. (JWC, Member FINRA/SIPC) and advisory services through J.W. Cole Advisors, Inc. (JWCA) on a fully disclosed basis.

Segments2 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration5 records

Partnerships

Three partnerships are on record, tiered core.

• J.W. Cole Financial, Inc. (JWC)coreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorSecurities are offered through J.W. Cole Financial, Inc. (JWC), a member of FINRA and SIPC. Registered Representatives of JWC whose identities and associations with Cornerstone Financial Group are disclosed on the site may conduct business with residents of states where they are properly registered.
• J.W. Cole Advisors, Inc. (JWCA)coreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorAdvisory services are offered through J.W. Cole Advisors, Inc. (JWCA). Cornerstone Financial Group and JWC/JWCA are unaffiliated entities. JWC's Form CRS and JWCA's Form CRS are available for client review.
• Cornerstone Tax GroupcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerAffiliated CPA firm providing tax preparation services including business entity selection, income tax preparation (individual, corporate, partnership, trust), tax accounting, QuickBooks, and payroll services. Jeff Lamb serves as managing member of tax solutions with 8 years IRS experience and 20 years in tax and financial planning.

Scale indicators2 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Direct peers

• Carson Wealth: Independent RIA offering comprehensive financial planning, investment management, and tax planning to individuals and families. Comparable to Cornerstone in its independent positioning and holistic service model, though significantly larger in scale.

Emerging players

• Personal Capital: Hybrid digital wealth management platform combining online tools with human advisor access for comprehensive financial planning. Competes with Cornerstone for mass-affluent and pre-retiree clients but via a technology-led, lower-fee delivery model.

Broad incumbents

• Fisher Investments: Large independent investment management firm offering personalized portfolio management for high-net-worth and individual investors. Comparable to Cornerstone in serving individual investors with personalized investment strategies, but operates globally with vastly greater scale.
• Edelman Financial Engines: Large independent financial planning and wealth management firm serving individuals with comprehensive planning services. Comparable in scope (investment, retirement, tax, estate planning) but operates at national scale with significantly more assets under management.
• Creative Planning: Independent, fee-only wealth management firm offering comprehensive financial planning, tax, and estate services. Comparable to Cornerstone in independence and holistic planning orientation, but with national reach and substantially larger AUM.
• Wealth Enhancement Group: Independent wealth management firm offering comprehensive financial planning, investment management, and tax services through a national network of advisors. Comparable to Cornerstone in independence and holistic planning but much larger and multi-regional.
• LPL Financial: Largest independent broker-dealer in the U.S., supporting thousands of independent financial advisors with custody, technology, and compliance infrastructure. Comparable to Cornerstone's broker-dealer partnership model, though at vastly greater scale.
• Mariner Wealth Advisors: Independent wealth advisory firm providing comprehensive financial planning, investment management, tax, and estate services. Similar independent fiduciary model and full-service planning orientation, though operating nationally with much greater scale.

Others

• Commonwealth Financial Network: Independent broker-dealer and RIA support platform that provides compliance, technology, and operations infrastructure to independent financial advisors — analogous to Cornerstone's reliance on J.W. Cole, and a likely aggregator of similar small practices.
• Cetera Advisor Networks: Independent broker-dealer supporting independent financial advisors with custody, compliance, and technology infrastructure. Comparable to Cornerstone's J.W. Cole relationship model and a potential roll-up acquirer of similar small advisory firms.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat3 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/cornerstone-fianancial-group

Compliance2 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles9 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 Cornerstone Financial Group