🎥 Hightower's Larry Restieri - building a $1T RIA and operating at the intersection of private markets and private wealth

Welcome back to the Alt Goes Mainstream podcast.Today’s episode dives deep into the world of wealth management with someone whose career is emblematic of the intersection of private markets and private wealth.We sat down with Larry Restieri, the CEO of Hightower.Larry is the CEO and a member of the Board of Directors at Hightower, a national wealth management firm that empowers financial advisors to deliver sophisticated investment and financial services to clients.Larry joined the firm in June 2025 from Goldman Sachs, where he was a Partner. Larry served as the CEO of Goldman’s AYCO business, which specializes in workplace financial planning and private wealth advisory services.He held a variety of leadership roles at Goldman across its wealth and asset management divisions, including heading up the Alternative Capital Markets business.Larry and I had a fascinating conversation about the continuing convergence of private markets and private wealth from someone who was at the forefront of this industry transformation. We covered:The evolution of private markets within the wealth channel.Lessons learned from Larry’s time building Goldman’s Alternative Capital Markets business and the AYCO business.The path to building Hightower into a $1T RIA.The “Volkswagen model of wealth management.”The build-out of Hightower’s Signature Wealth brand.What does the continued buildout of private equity-backed platforms mean for the evolution of wealth management?What drives financial advisors?The benefits of the independent RIA model.How and why wealth clients should be thinking about private markets.Thanks, Larry, for sharing your wisdom, expertise, and passion at the intersection of private markets and private wealth.Thanks for reading Alt Goes Mainstream! Subscribe for free to receive new posts and support my work - writing and podcasting about the convergence of private markets and private wealth since December 2020.A word from AGM podcast sponsor, Ultimus Fund SolutionsThis episode of Alt Goes Mainstream is brought to you by Ultimus, the full-service fund administrator and transfer agent powering asset managers in private and public markets. As alts go mainstream, you need real expertise to handle complex fund structures, connect with key distribution partners, and handle sophisticated compliance, reporting, and transparency demands.That’s Ultimus: high-tech, high-touch solutions for over 450 clients and 2,500 funds with $775B in assets under administration. Backed by an expert team of over 1,200 employees, they place client service at the core of their business, helping you navigate complexity during your fund structuring or launch and then supporting you through every stage of growth. Whether you’re already in the market or thinking about entering private wealth, you can trust their team’s deep expertise in retail alternatives to help you reach your goals.Learn more: ultimusfundsolutions.com or email info@ultimusfundsolutions.com.We thank Ultimus for their support of alts going mainstream.Show Notes00:30 Meet Larry Restieri01:25 A Message from Ultimus Fund Solutions02:35 Larry’s Career Story08:44 Why Hightower CEO09:28 Next Evolution Wealth10:29 RIA Platform And Tech12:16 Democratizing Alternatives13:28 Selling Illiquidity Correctly15:02 Education Avoids Surprises18:05 Platform Scale And Choice28:58 Signature Wealth Brand29:21 Growth Targets Ahead29:50 Platform Benefits Deal29:58 Acquiring The Bahnsen Group30:58 Inorganic Growth Model31:26 Client Brand Question32:02 Volkswagen Brand Model32:43 Why Brand Matters33:37 Values Across Teams34:01 Building Unified Culture35:04 Advisor Community Summit35:49 Why Keep Independence36:33 Hightower 3.0 Strategy38:09 Advisor Client Connection38:44 Defining Open Architecture40:12 Private Equity Impact42:29 Exit Paths Going Public44:09 M&A Multiples Pressure46:05 Market Cycles and Rates47:48 Private Markets Allocation49:32 Advisor Private Market Fears51:10 GPs Serving RIAs Better52:05 Enterprise GP Partnerships53:06 Non-Obvious Alt Take54:50 Closing ReflectionsJoin over 16,700 Substack subscribers & followers and 44,000 LinkedIn and podcast followers who are thought leaders and executives from top private markets firms and wealth management l