What happens when a traditional financial system collides with a new era of digital assets and investors are still trying to figure out where they fit?

In this episode, we are joined by Jake Claver, Principal of Digital Ascension Group, to unpack how digital assets are reshaping investing, financial infrastructure, and long-term wealth strategy.

Jake breaks down how crypto evolved from a speculative idea into an emerging institutional asset class, and why the real shift isn’t just about coins but about how money, settlement, and ownership itself are being rebuilt.

Listeners will learn how blockchain technology is moving beyond speculation into real-world financial infrastructure, why institutional adoption is accelerating, and how families and investors can think about crypto within a broader portfolio strategy.

The conversation also explores custody, regulation, risk, and opportunity, plus how digital assets may integrate into everything from payments to global markets over the next decade.

What you’ll take away:

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About Our Guest:

He is Chairman of Digital Ascension Group, a multi-family office serving high and ultra-high net worth clients, and founded Digital Wealth Partners, a standalone wealth advisory practice. He also leads the SPV investment management platform at Syndicately. Across all three, the focus is consistent: helping families navigate blockchain, tokenisation, and digital assets before those decisions are forced on them.

On the credentials side, he holds a Certified Qualified Family Office Professional designation and an R3 Corda Certified Business Professional certification in tokenisation—specialised qualifications that are still rare in this space. He has also built education programs for family office and digital asset professionals to address a gap he repeatedly encountered in the market. He studied finance at the University of North Texas.

Markets aren’t just about stocks and bonds anymore; they’re about access, structure, and who you’re investing alongside.

In this episode, Michael Parise sits down with Jeff Coury II and Tom Deutsch of The Coury Firm to unpack how high-net-worth families are navigating public and private markets, and why traditional portfolio strategies may no longer be enough.

They share how their multi-family office approach evolved from business advisory into full-scale asset management, as well as why alternative investments are playing a bigger role than ever.

Listen in to learn how families transition after a liquidity event, why private markets can offer stronger long-term opportunities, and how The Coury Firm built its P.I. Gateway platform to solve access, diversification, and administrative challenges in alternative investing.

What you’ll take away:

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About Our Guests: 

Jeff Coury II is President & Co-Chief Investment Officer at The Coury Firm, a multi-family office and financial services firm with over 40 years of experience advising business owners and high-net-worth families. He focuses on asset management, strategic capital allocation, and building investment platforms that provide access to institutional opportunities.

Tom Deutsch is Co-CIO of The Coury Firm and brings over 20 years of investment experience, including time at Lehman Brothers and Neuberger Berman. He specializes in portfolio construction, manager selection, and aligning investment strategies with long-term client goals.

Together, they oversee investment strategy across public and private markets, helping families build and preserve wealth across generations.

Markets are moving on more than just fundamentals. 

Michael Parise sits down with Eric Fuhrman of City National Rochdale to talk about investing in a world driven by tariffs, tax law changes, and shifting Fed policy. Eric shares how CNR’s high-net-worth clients benefit from customized, multi-asset strategies that adjust for both long-term goals and short-term volatility.

You’ll learn why they’re staying market-neutral for now, what sectors look resilient, and how demographic trends and global policy shape opportunities in the U.S. and abroad.

What you’ll take away:

Resources:

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About Our Guest: 

Mr. Fuhrman joined City National Rochdale in 2022 and has over 20 years of professional investment management experience. He works closely with each client’s advisor to develop a customized portfolio based on the client’s investment objective, time horizon, income needs, and tolerance for market volatility. In this role, he is responsible for the investment strategy implementation and monitoring of private client portfolios, as well as direct relationship management.

Prior to City National Rochdale, Mr. Fuhrman worked at Rice Hall James & Associates as Chief Investment Officer and Co-Portfolio Manager of the Value/International team. Mr. Fuhrman began his career at HGK Asset Management, serving as an Analyst and Trader before launching the firm’s Small Cap equity strategy in 2007 as lead Portfolio Manager. As a Managing Partner, he was a member of HGK’s Investment Policy Committee, overseeing their Global Equities, Fixed Income, and Private Credit strategies.

Mr. Fuhrman earned his BS in Business Administration from the University of Richmond and his MBA from the Stern School of Business at New York University, where he concentrated in Finance, Economics, and Real Estate. He also holds the Chartered Financial Analyst® and Certified Private Wealth Advisor® designations.

Outside of the office, Mr. Fuhrman enjoys spending time with his family, coaching youth hockey, and serving on the board of Ramapo College’s Student-Managed Investment Fund.

What if your portfolio could evolve with you, like a financial blueprint that updates in real time?

Michael Parise sits down with Ben Ludwig of City National Rochdale to unpack what truly personalized investing means for high-net-worth families, and why it matters more than ever. From shifting risk tolerance to multi-generational planning, Ben breaks down how CNR collaborates with financial advisors to design tax-sensitive, goal-aligned portfolios that flex with each client’s life and legacy.

This isn’t about choosing a model or a fund, it’s about building a strategy from the ground up, around real people and real priorities.

What to expect:

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About Our Guest: 

Ben Ludwig joined City National Rochdale in 2014 and has over 20 years of investment experience. He is responsible for business development in Delaware, Pennsylvania, and New Jersey, where he communicates and fosters relationships with high-net-worth investors who may benefit from City National Rochdale’s investment management services.

Prior to joining the firm, Mr. Ludwig spent 9 years at BNY Mellon in various leadership roles, most recently serving as Director of Investments and Head of Advisory Consulting for the Lockwood Advisors business. In this role, Mr. Ludwig was responsible for driving Lockwood’s portfolio management, manager research, and advisory consulting efforts. Prior to that, Mr. Ludwig held investment research and relationship roles at SEI Investments and The Vanguard Group.

Mr. Ludwig earned his BS in Finance from Bloomsburg University in Pennsylvania and his MBA in Finance from St. Joseph’s University. He holds the Chartered Financial Analyst® designation and the Chartered Alternative Investments Analyst designation. Mr. Ludwig is a member of the CFA Institute and the CFA Society of Philadelphia. He resides in the suburbs of Philadelphia with his wife and four children. Mr. Ludwig spends much of his free time volunteering as a coach for numerous youth sports organizations in his community.

What if launching your company at the brink of the 2008 financial crisis turned out to be the smartest move you ever made?

That’s exactly what happened to Greg Friedman, CEO of Peachtree Group, who joins Michael Parise on The Truth About Wealth to share how timing, adaptability, and a deep understanding of risk helped shape his firm’s rise to a national powerhouse.

Greg explains how Peachtree Group invests across private credit, commercial real estate, and even film financing—always with an eye for “mispriced risk.” In this episode, he shares how they’ve made over 600 credit investments with a sub-3% foreclosure rate and how they’re navigating today’s volatile interest rate environment.

What you’ll learn by listening:

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About Our Guest: 

Greg has more than 23 years’ hospitality experience with an emphasis on deal structure and financing. He has successfully led Peachtree in more than $8 billion in hotel acquisitions, investments, and development since co-founding the company.

He formerly was senior vice president of business development for Specialty Finance Group, LLC, a direct lender providing hotel first mortgage and FF&E financing, where he originated more than $2 billion of hotel debt. Previously, Greg was vice president of business development for GMAC Commercial Mortgage – Asset-Backed Lending Division. During his six-year tenure, he originated, closed, and funded more than 300 hospitality FF&E financing transactions with an aggregate capital structure exceeding $10 billion.

Greg holds a Bachelor of Arts in Biology from the University of Texas at Austin.

https://youtu.be/IFnSx8u2xVY

Copper Beech has coined something they like to call a “family investment club”. It’s a new way to manage generational wealth.

How can you implement it in your family?

John and Michael Parise are exploring how these can be a unique way to unite family members across generations, enhancing financial education and responsibilities while managing family wealth creatively and inclusively.

John and Michael discuss:

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Vincent Tassone of Causeway Securities, one of the world’s largest independent structured note distributors, joins John and Michael Parise to demystify structured notes and their expanding role in today’s investment portfolios. 

Listen as he breaks down what structured notes are; hybrid financial instruments combining a bond with a derivatives package, and explains how they offer customizable risk-return profiles tailored to an investor’s specific goals.

Often considered complex or “exotic,” structured notes can actually be powerful tools when used appropriately. Vincent walks through the four primary types; principal protected, income, growth, and dual directional, and shares how each can be aligned with an investor’s need for safety, income, or growth.

Key discussion points include:

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Vincent Tassone of Causeway Securities, one of the world’s largest independent structured note distributors, joins John and Michael Parise to demystify structured notes and their expanding role in today’s investment portfolios. 

Listen as he breaks down what structured notes are; hybrid financial instruments combining a bond with a derivatives package, and explains how they offer customizable risk-return profiles tailored to an investor’s specific goals.

Often considered complex or “exotic,” structured notes can actually be powerful tools when used appropriately. Vincent walks through the four primary types; principal protected, income, growth, and dual directional, and shares how each can be aligned with an investor’s need for safety, income, or growth.

Key discussion points include:

Connect with Vince Tassone:

Connect with John and Michael Parise:

What happens when a business suddenly loses a key player or faces a supply chain disruption? 

That’s where Madison Insurance Group’s unique strategies come into play, offering peace of mind and financial protection for unforeseen business challenges.

Join John and Michael Parise as they chat with Mark Sims and Aaron Quinn from Madison Insurance Group to discuss how their partnership, spanning over 15 years, has provided invaluable enterprise risk coverage solutions. 

You’ll learn how Madison’s innovative approach allows business owners to participate in underwriting profits and navigate recent IRS regulations with confidence.

Other key conversations in this release include:

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About Our Guests: 

Mark Sims is Vice President of Business Development for Captive Alternatives, LLC. He has more than 25 years of experience in risk management and insurance consulting, and focuses on the use of Private Insurance Companies for insuring the catastrophic business risks and employee benefits programs of medical groups, business owners in many sectors, and other high net worth groups throughout the United States. Mark is a charismatic and popular professional speaker on the use of Private Insurance Companies for risk management, asset protection, wealthy preservation and exit strategies. He is a member of the Captive Insurance Companies Association and the Self Insurance Institute of America. Mark has extensive working experience with tax attorneys, estate planning firms and other trusted advisors to high net worth business owners and families, and frequently provides customized webinars to advisor groups who want to learn about Private Insurance Companies and the Puerto Rico solution.

What does it mean to treat all family members fairly in terms of wealth distribution? 

John and Michael Parise dive into the complexities of estate equalization within family businesses. In this episode, they unravel a recent case study highlighting the challenges faced when generational wealth intersects with family dynamics.

Listeners are in for a detailed exploration of best practices for ensuring fair treatment, asset protection strategies, and the nuances of managing family businesses across different generations. Discover pragmatic insights on structuring estate plans that both honor family values and preempt potential conflicts.

Other key discussions include:

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