Scottsdale-based team brings $225 million to Steward Partners platform
NEW YORK, June 2, 2025 -- Steward Partners, a full-service, employee-owned, independent financial services firm, announces that Desert Sky Advisors – a private wealth advisory practice providing personalized, goals-based financial advice – has joined its platform, establishing the firm's first office in Arizona.
The addition of Desert Sky Advisors, which has locations in Scottsdale and Gilbert and oversees $225 million in assets under management, builds on Steward Partners' ongoing nationwide expansion, including in the Southwest. Founded in 2016, Desert Sky Advisors offers a broad range of investment planning, tax management, estate planning strategies, risk management, and retirement planning services to help high-net-worth clients execute customized, comprehensive strategies for achieving their goals.
"The fit and feel of Steward Partners is right for us as a home where we can continue to grow in ways that are in the best interests of our clients. This is evident from the deep, integrated back-office support we will be receiving to enable a seamless onboarding," said Matt Clay, Managing Director of Desert Sky Advisors. "Steward is truly focused on delivering everything an advisor needs to run a successful practice and fully customizing it. This model—which starts with ensuring advisors are satisfied that they are strongly supported—is what our industry needs right now, because only when that condition is met can advisors foster an environment where their team members and clients stay, and assets can grow."
In addition to Clay, three other Desert Sky Partners team members – one full-time advisor, one full-time support professional, and one part-time support staff member – will be joining Steward Partners.
"Desert Sky Advisors shares our unwavering commitment to excellence. As we learned during our meetings and initial collaboration with the firm's leaders, the name 'Desert Sky' not only pays homage to Arizona's stunningly beautiful sunrises and sunsets, but also symbolically embodies their goal to effectively guide clients through the sunsets of their lives," said Jeff Gonyo, Head of Wealth Management at Steward Partners. "We are proud to be able to assist Desert Sky Advisors with carrying out this mission even better. It is the ideal practice for us to work with as we continue to expand our ability to work with more wealth management firms throughout the western U.S."
Since its launch in 2013, Steward Partners has solidified its place as one of the industry's fastest-growing and most influential RIA firms. The firm was recently recognized on USA TODAY's Best Financial Advisory Firms 2025 list. Additionally, in 2025 several Steward Partners advisors and teams were honored on Forbes | SHOOK's 2025 Best-In-State Wealth Advisors and Best-In-State Wealth Management Teams lists, underscoring the firm's commitment to delivering exceptional client outcomes through collaborative, team-based service. Additionally, many advisors earned a spot on InvestmentNews' Top Financial Advisors in the USA list and celebrated its fifth consecutive appearance on Barron's latest Top 100 RIA Firms list, securing an impressive 18th ranking. These achievements reflect Steward Partners' continued momentum, client-first culture, and dedication to excellence in wealth management.
About Steward Partners
Representing some of the U.S.'s top advisors, Steward Partners is a full-service, employee-owned, independent financial services firm that offers wealth management solutions for families, businesses, and multigenerational investors. Established in 2013, the firm fosters a positive, transparent culture of camaraderie and excellence that has fueled its substantial growth in a highly competitive industry. With its commitment to exceptional client service and forward-thinking partnerships, the firm was ranked as the #18 RIA in the country in Barron's Top 100 RIAs for the year 2024. Offering services such as comprehensive wealth planning, private banking, institutional consulting, and business solutions, the firm was responsible for over $40 billion in client assets as of January 2025.
To learn more about Steward Partners, visit www.stewardpartners.com
About USA Today and Statista Best Financial Advisory Firms
USA TODAY and Statista selected the Best Financial Advisory Firms in 2025 based on two dimensions: recommendations by clients and peers and a firm's growth of Assets under Management (AUM). The recommendations were collected via an independent survey sent to over 30,000 individuals. The development of AUM was analyzed in both the short- and long-term based on publicly available data (Short-term AUM development was calculated over a twelve-month period from January 2024 to January 2025, while long-term development spanned a five-year period from 2020 to 2025). In the consideration for the top 500 RIA firms, recommendations had a weight of 20% while the development of AUM had a weight of 80% (short-term and long-term growth were weighted 30/70) to derive the final score. Neither Steward Partners, its affiliates, nor its Wealth Managers pay a fee to USA Today or Statista in exchange for the ranking.
About Forbes | SHOOK
2025 Forbes Best-in-State Wealth Advisors
Forbes Best-in-State Wealth Advisors ranking was developed by SHOOK Research and is based on in-person, virtual and telephone due diligence meetings to evaluate each advisor qualitatively, a major component of a ranking algorithm that includes: client retention, industry experience, review of compliance records, firm nominations; and quantitative criteria, including: assets under management and revenue generated for their firms. Investment performance is not a criterion because client objectives and risk tolerances vary, and advisors rarely have audited performance reports. Rankings are based on the opinions of SHOOK Research, LLC and are not indicative of future performance or representative of any one client's experience. Neither Steward Partners, its affiliates, nor its Wealth Managers pay a fee to Forbes or SHOOK Research in exchange for the ranking. For more information, see www.SHOOKresearch.com
About Forbes | SHOOK
2025 Forbes Best-In-State Wealth Management Teams
Data provided by SHOOK® Research, LLC. Data as of 3/31/24 Source: Forbes.com (January, 2025). Forbes Best-in-State Wealth Management Teams ranking was developed by SHOOK Research and is based on in-person, virtual and telephone due diligence meetings and a ranking algorithm that includes: a measure of each team's best practices, client retention, industry experience, review of compliance records, firm nominations; and quantitative criteria, including: assets under management and revenue generated for their firms. Investment performance is not a criterion because client objectives and risk tolerances vary, and advisors rarely have audited performance reports. SHOOK's research and rankings provide opinions intended to help investors choose the right financial advisor and team, and are not indicative of future performance or representative of any one client's experience. Past performance is not an indication of future results. Neither Steward Partners, its affiliates, nor its Wealth Managers pay a fee to Forbes or SHOOK Research in exchange for the ranking For more information, please see www.SHOOKresearch.com. SHOOK is a registered trademark of SHOOK Research, LLC.
About Barron's Top 100 RIA Firms
Steward Partners has been recognized from 2020-2024. Barron's is a registered trademark of Dow Jones & Company, L.P. All rights reserved. Participation in this ranking is by invitation only and limited to firms that meet the minimum eligibility requirements. Barron's selected firms that manage 2% or more of the total assets of all ranking applicants. This year, that creates a threshold of $70 billion in assets. Participating firms were evaluated and ranked on a wide range of quantitative and qualitative data, including: assets overseen by the firm, revenue generated by the firm, level of technology spending, number of clients, size of staff, diversity across staff, and placement of a succession plan. The ranking may not be representative of any one client's experience, is not an endorsement, and is not indicative of the advisor's future performance. Neither Steward Partners, its affiliates, nor its Wealth Managers pay a fee to Barron's in exchange for the ranking.
About InvestmentNews' Top Financial Advisors in the USA
To compile the second annual Top Advisors list, InvestmentNews first solicited nominations from advisors, industry professionals, and clients. Only advisors nominated were eligible for the list. All information on the nominees had to be verified by their compliance team before it could be accepted. The final list was determined based on each advisor's weighted ranking in overall AUM, AUM growth, and client growth (between August 2023 and August 2024). The InvestmentNews team assigned a ranking to each advisor in each category and then calculated a combined score to determine the advisor's final placement on the 2025 Top Advisors list. Neither Steward Partners, its affiliates, nor its Wealth Managers pay a fee to InvestmentNews in exchange for the ranking.
Securities are offered through Steward Partners Investment Solutions, LLC ("SPIS"), registered broker/dealer, member FINRA/SIPC. Investment advisory services are offered through Steward Partners Investment Advisory, LLC ("SPIA"), an SEC-registered investment adviser. SPIS, SPIA, and Steward Partners Global Advisory, LLC are affiliates and collectively referred to as Steward Partners.
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