MoneyGuide founder Tony Leal departing leadership role at Envestnet

Rose Palazzo, currently the head of MoneyGuide, will assume Leal's duties as group president of Envestnet Financial Planning.

Tony Leal is stepping down from his role as head of wealthtech at Envestnet.

The move comes just seven months after Envestnet created the position for Leal as part of a larger corporate reorganization at the fintech and outsourced investment management provider. As head of wealthtech, Leal, who helped create the financial planning software MoneyGuidePro that Envestnet acquired in 2019 for $500 million, oversaw all of Envestnet’s software products for advisors.

Leal will transition into an advisory role with Envestnet, according to a company spokesperson. Rose Palazzo, currently head of MoneyGuide, will take over Leal’s duties under a new title, group president of Envestnet Financial Planning. Palazzo will report to Tom Sipp, Envestnet’s executive vice president of business lines.

Palazzo was handpicked by Leal as part of a planned succession, the Envestnet spokesperson said. Palazzo spent more than 14 years with Morgan Stanley, most recently as an executive director, before joining Envestnet in 2021, according to her LinkedIn profile.

“Tony has been a pioneer in financial planning, consistently innovating and helping to deepen the connection that advisors have with their clients to reach their goals,” the spokesperson said in an email. “We wish him all the best in this next chapter and are excited to leverage his passion for planning and product development through an advisory role.”

Leal founded PIETech, the company that created MoneyGuide, with Bob Curtis in 1997. With market share of nearly 33%, MoneyGuide is the most popular financial planning software among independent financial advisers, according to the 2022 T3 Inside Information Software Survey. Leal was recognized for his impact on the wealth management industry when he was named one of InvestmentNews’ 2021 Icons and Innovators.

He is the latest in a string of high-profile departures from Envestnet over the past 12 months. Stuart DePina stepped down a company president in June as part of the company reorganization that named Leal as head of wealthtech. DePina was followed out the door by chief product officer Brandon Rembe and chief client success officer Andina Anderson, according to Citywire RIA.

Envestnet is also facing a proxy contest with an activist hedge fund that’s seeking to install new leadership on Envestnet’s board of directors.

[More: Tom Naratil one of four nominees to Envestnet board in escalating proxy contest]