Sanctuary Wealth has started 2025 by adding Hillguard Wealth Management, a $700 million wealth management firm with a focus on international clients, to its network.
Based in Miami, Hillguard Wealth Management transitions to Sanctuary from Truist Wealth, marking Sanctuary’s first partner firm of the year.
Broadly, Sanctuary Wealth operates a network of more than 120 partner firms across 31 states, overseeing approximately $50 billion in assets.
Hillguard is joining the behemoth RIA platform through Sanctuary Global, which was launched in 2021 to cater specifically to the needs of international practices. Among the early partners at Sanctuary Global was Rodolfo “Rudy” Rake, a Morgan Stanley alumnus who later went on to help launch a Latin American wealth-focused firm within Sanctuary in 2022.
Led by CEO Marcello Zaffaroni and CIO Juan Martin Campuzano, Hillguard serves 20 US and international families, leveraging two custodial relationships with Bank of New York and Goldman Sachs. The firm will operate out of Sanctuary’s Brickell Avenue corporate office.
“Hillguard’s highly specialized and thriving international practice is the perfect fit for Sanctuary,” Vince Fertitta, president of Sanctuary Wealth, said in a statement Wednesday.
“Having led and supervised international advisors for over a decade at Merrill Lynch, I know there is significant demand in the marketplace for an alternative to the way most banks and wirehouses treat that sort of business, which in far too many instances is to tolerate international clients under restrictive conditions rather than seek them out,” Fertitta said.
Zaffaroni brings 25 years of experience to Hillguard, having held senior roles at Truist, HSBC, and Wachovia. He noted Sanctuary’s resources – particularly the custodial relationships with "large, creditable US banks" – as pivotal in the decision to transition.
“We are confident that Sanctuary has the tools and expertise needed for our practice to evolve into more of the family office model that our clients desire, enabling our team to better map our client’s financial journey across continents and generations,” Zaffaroni said.
Campuzano's 17 years of experience includes his most recent stint as vice president, portfolio manager at Truist Wealth.
Hillguard Wealth Management aims to expand its client services, integrating advice on assets held both domestically and globally for ultra-high-net-worth families.
Adam Malamed, CEO of Sanctuary Wealth, underscored the firm’s commitment to international advisors. “We treat international practices like Hillguard with the same level of white-glove service, support and respect as our other elite partner firms,” Malamed said.
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