About

Arax brings together a network of trusted advisors to create a dynamic wealth platform, allowing our partners and affiliates to be entrepreneurial and focus on delivering their clients industry-leading financial services.

Our partners benefit from a seasoned management team with a successful past of scaling wealth platforms, M&A experience, capital sourcing capabilities and company-building expertise backed by a proven investor with an extensive network, RedBird Capital Partners.

Our experienced leaders, multi-platform structure and growth equity partnership create a unique advantage for our partners.

Meet Our Team

Our team has decades of expertise in the wealth management space and has a track-record of successful M&A and growth in the past.

Haig Ariyan

Chief Executive Officer

Diego Galan

Chief Financial Officer

Amy Rizzo

Managing Director

Zbynek Kozelsky

Head of Compliance and Supervision

Christiana Didizian

Associate

David Vertsberger

Controller

Emma Verhaegen

Executive Assistant

Haig Ariyan

Chief Executive Officer

Haig Ariyan is the Chief Executive Officer of Arax Investment Partners.

At Arax, Haig oversees all operations, strategic direction, and leadership of the firm. Prior to joining Arax, Haig was the President and CEO of Alex. Brown, America’s first investment banking firm. While at Alex. Brown, Haig oversaw 220 Financial Advisors in 18 offices and $70B in client assets. Haig was the Head of Global Wealth Solutions, the product and solutions platform supporting all of Raymond James’ more than 8,000 affiliated advisors. Prior to leading the sale and integration of Alex. Brown to Raymond James Financial, Haig was the head of Deutsche Bank Wealth Management in the Americas.

Haig joined Alex. Brown & Sons in 1996 as a client advisor in Greenwich, Connecticut. After several years of building a successful practice working with high-net-worth families and playing an integral role in Deutsche Bank’s acquisition of BT Alex. Brown, Haig was named Regional Executive of the Greenwich office. In 2005, he was promoted to manage the midtown New York City office, while continuing to oversee the Greenwich business. He was also responsible for opening Deutsche Bank’s Wall Street branch. In 2009, Haig served as Head of the Eastern Region of Private Client Services and one year later was appointed the Head of the American wealth management franchise. Haig started his career at Dean Witter Reynolds.

Haig is active on the board of trustees of the Diocese of the Armenian Church as well as the central council of the Armenian General Benevolent Union (AGBU). He has served as chairman of the Armenian Church Endowment Fund’s investment committee and is a member of the board of the Dadourian Foundation, a private family foundation based in New York. Haig is also a member of the board of the MassMutual Trust Company.

Haig holds a B.S. from Rutgers University.

Diego Galan

Chief Financial Officer

Diego Galan is the Chief Financial Officer of Arax Investment Partners.

At Arax, Diego is responsible for all financial-related activities, operations, and the company’s medium-to-long term strategy. Prior to joining Arax, Diego was the co-founder and COO of Bento Engine, a FinTech that combines a powerful advice engine, a proprietary content library and timing expertise to make Financial Advisors more impactful and efficient.

Between 2016 and 2021, Diego was the CFO and Head of Strategy of Alex. Brown and Raymond James Global Wealth Solutions, which provides the investment solutions platform for the Private Client Group’s 7,400 financial advisors. Diego was responsible for financial operations, strategy and broad change initiatives, including product strategy and roadmap, technology, acquisitions, and joint ventures.

Prior to Raymond James, Diego was the Head of Strategy and Corporate Development for the Deutsche Bank Wealth Management business in the Americas, leading a team responsible for strategy and business development for Deutsche Bank’s Private Bank and Brokerage businesses in the US and Latin America. Before joining Deutsche Bank, Diego was a Project Leader with The Boston Consulting Group, where he managed BCG and client teams on large-scale strategy and process improvement projects in the US, Europe and Latin America.

Diego holds a B.S. in Business Administration and Accounting from the Universidad Catolica Argentina, a Masters in Finance from the Universidad Torcuato Di Tella, and an MBA from Harvard Business School.

Amy Rizzo

Managing Director

Amy Rizzo is a Managing Director and Head of Practice Management of Arax Investment Partners.

At Arax, Amy leads recruiting, integration, and business development efforts. Amy’s 20 years in financial services began with roles at PaineWebber and Legg Mason, followed by 16 years at Alex. Brown where she acted as Regional Executive in South Florida. Most recently, Amy transitioned to the independent advisory space, consulting with advisors looking to break away from the wire house environment, as well as independent advisors seeking change for various reasons. Amy led due diligence efforts and supported advisors in some of their biggest life decisions. Subsequently, she became a Regional Director at Apollon Wealth Management, a fast-growing RIA where she led M&A efforts and spearheaded operational and platform enhancements.

Amy holds a B.A. from the University of Miami.

Zbynek Kozelsky

Head of Compliance and Supervision

Zbynek Kozelsky is the Head of Compliance and Supervision of Arax Investment Partners.

At Arax, Zbynek oversees the firms regulatory and legal work, and helps leverage compliance and risk management resources from acquisitions. Prior to joining Arax, Zbynek oversaw supervisory and operational functions of Deutsche Bank International Private Bank, including US and Latin America Investment Advisory. He had been with the bank for 23 years, including working with Key Client Partners of Deutsche Bank Wealth Management.

Zbynek holds a B.A. from New England College, and an MBA from Sacred Heart University.

Christiana Didizian

Associate

Christiana Didizian is an Associate of Arax Investment Partners.

At Arax, Christiana is actively involved with all stages of the acquisitions across the company and is also responsible for the marketing strategy.

Christiana holds a B.S. from the Carroll School of Management at Boston College.

David Vertsberger

Controller

David Vertsberger is the Controller of Arax Investment Partners.

At Arax, David is responsible for cost structure optimization across the Arax ecosystem for middle- and back-office functions including billing, accounting reporting, IT and more. Prior to joining Arax, David was the Legal Entity Controller of Summit Health, an approximately $9bn healthcare company, where he focused on financial reporting and accounting. David began his career at City MD and has a proven track record, successfully centralizing the finance function within HoldCo. David is CPA certified.

David holds an M.S. in Accounting from Yeshiva University.

Emma Verhaegen

Executive Assistant

Emma Verhaegen is the Executive Assistant of Arax Investment Partners.

Prior to joining Arax, Emma was a recruiter at WhiteCap Search, where she helped companies find talent for their teams in various services areas within the financial services sector. Before that, Emma was a talent acquisition manager at Premiere Response.

Emma holds a B.S. from The Anisfield School of Business at Ramapo College of New Jersey.