Office address: 1400 Urban Center Drive, Suite 475, Vestavia Hills, AL 35242
Website: rfgadvisory.com
Year established: 2003
Company type: financial services
Employees: 200+
Expertise: independent RIA platform services, investment management, portfolio management, financial planning, wealth management technology, compliance support, advisor transition services, back-office operations, marketing and growth solutions, behavioral finance coaching
Parent company: RFG Holdings, LLC
Key people: Shannon Spotswood (CEO), Rick Wedell (chief investment officer), Ed Swenson (president), Doug Nelson (CFO), Bobby White (executive chair), Rick Ohlrich (CCO), Brendan Frazier (chief behavioral officer)
Financing status: private equity-backed
RFG Advisory is a Vestavia Hills-based hybrid RIA platform that supports independent financial advisors across the US. The firm manages $7.5 billion in AUM as of December 31, 2025, through a network of more than 100 affiliated advisors. It provides advisors with compliance, technology, investment management, and growth coaching.
RFG’s story starts in 2003, when financial advisor Bobby White launched Reliance Financial Group. White, a practicing advisor himself, built the firm within the Securities America network, an independent broker-dealer.
The company targeted the mass affluent market, clients with investable assets between $100,000 and $3 million. That focus gave Reliance Financial a solid footing, but it was heading in a new direction.
In 2011, the firm joined LPL Financial and became an Office of Supervisory Jurisdiction (OSJ). That status gave Reliance Financial the ability to supervise other advisors under LPL’s umbrella.
By 2014, AUM had grown to more than $1 billion through organic growth and succession acquisitions. That milestone drew Shannon Spotswood, an institutional investing veteran, who joined as president in 2015 and co-launched RFG Advisory.
CIO Rick Wedell’s arrival in 2016 led to the launch of Bluemonte, RFG’s institutional-grade investment solution for the advisor network. With Bluemonte in place, the firm launched RFG 2.0 in 2018 and fully committed to a client-first, technology-driven model.
That model was quickly tested: COVID-19 hit in 2020, but RFG’s advisors were remote and operational within 24 hours.
In 2023, Long Ridge Equity Partners acquired a majority stake in the firm. The deal was RFG’s first outside investment since 2003, and it created the Growth Alignment Program for advisors.
By late 2025, RFG had added Cambium Wealth Partners, an Arizona-based RIA with $340 million in client assets, to its platform. That same year, RFG Advisory earned multiple recognitions from InvestmentNews across its 2025 awards programs:
For a closer look at these and other wealth management rankings and awards, InvestmentNews’ Best in Wealth page covers the full Special Reports.
RFG covers operations, technology, investment management, and growth for independent financial advisors:
RFG also runs monthly study groups, an annual conference, and weekly office hours. Insurance products are available through RFG Solutions LLC, an affiliated entity.
RFG Advisory describes its workplace as one built on open feedback and team-first practices. The firm operates by five official values:
The company focuses on a structured communication schedule, with monthly town halls, roundtable calls, regular huddles, and quarterly performance reviews. RFG Advisory’s employee benefits also include:
RFG Advisory also seeks to help its community through Crush It for Charity, an annual firm-wide fundraiser. It raises money for the Boys & Girls Club, St. Jude’s, and the Alzheimer’s Association, while staff also receive eight paid charitable hours per year.
Shannon Spotswood is the CEO of RFG Advisory, with over 25 years in the industry. Before RFG, she spent two decades in San Francisco at Symphony Asset Management, EGM Capital, and Volpe, Brown Whelan & Co. Spotswood holds a BA in economics and political science from the University of Arizona.
Spotswood leads RFG Advisory along with a team of executives:
White, Spotswood, and Wedell are also minority owners through RFG Holdings. The leadership team runs the platform’s operations and guides RFG’s growth across its advisor network.
RFG Advisory capped 2025 by upgrading its platform with tools like Wealth.com, Measured, 401Go, and Zocks and launching StrongHer Money and Bluemonte ETFs. AUM grew to more than $7 billion by the end of that year, with 17 new advisors on board. Its platform focus gives the company more tools to attract advisors and grow its asset base going into 2026.
That push continued into early 2026 as RFG Advisory added Black Oak Asset Management, a Georgia-based firm. It gained a seven-person team that serves clients across the Southeast. The addition shows RFG’s broader goal of partnering with independent firms that want scale without giving up ownership.
March Madness brings tax season to the forefront for firms like WFA and Scout, which help college athletes manage their finances in the NIL era.
A new study shows increasing use of AI in the financial advisory industry.
Wealth managers offer their investment outlooks on newly resurgent European stocks.
Washington and Wall Street are demanding employees work in the office five days a week. Here's what RIAs are saying.
Founder launches new firm 10 years into wealth industry career.
The RIA platform has welcomed two new advisor firm additions, including a Northeast US expansion with two upstate New York offices.
Trump administration tariffs on Mexico and Canada shocked the market, but advisors remain nonplussed for now.
Younger generations are increasingly hiring advisors based on digital marketing rather than referrals, a recent study found.
America added more jobs than expected in December. Likewise, RIA firms plan to step up hiring in the coming months.
Advisors want to eat better and exercise more, but they also want to improve their practices.
Celebrating the top financial professionals in the US who have helped shape and innovate the industry over the past 12 months
Wealth managers weigh the pros and cons of the NYSE's recent decision to extend trading hours.
Recognizing the top financial advisors and wealth management professionals under 40 standing out due to their achievements, goals, and industry contributions
Up from the ashes of the great financial crisis, securitized bonds are being added to more client portfolios.
