When Success Isn’t Enough: Merrill Breakaways Make the Case for Independence
The Diamond Podcast for Financial Advisors · 2026-03-19 · 49 min
Episode notes
With Todd Stankiewicz, President & CIO, and Joe Castiglie, COO & CIO - SYKON Capital Overview Todd Stankiewicz and Joe Castiglie of SYKON Capital join Jason Diamond to discuss redefining success after Merrill, launching their own RIA, and how independence allowed them to combine institutional-caliber investing with behavioral insights to deliver peace of mind to clients. Listen in… > Download a transcript of this episode… NOTE: The views and opinions expressed by the guests on this podcast are their own and do not necessarily reflect the views and opinions of Diamond Consultants. Neither Diamond Consultants nor the guests on this podcast are compensated in any way for their participation. Watch… About this episode… For many advisors, success at a wirehouse is relatively easy to measure by assets, production, and growth. But what happens when those metrics don’t reflect what should come by way of success - that is, a sense of feeling fulfilled? This episode dives into the moment when two successful Merrill advisors realized that growth alone wasn’t the true measure of their success: it was delivering on their vision of providing real peace of mind to their clients.
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