Building a Life, Not Just a Portfolio: A Plus-Level Client’s Equity Compensation Journey
Disclosure:
This testimonial was given by a current client of DiversiFi Capital LLC, and it is not representative of all client experiences. No cash or compensation was given for or to elicit this testimonial.
To safeguard our client’s privacy, names and other identifying details have been altered or omitted. However, the core stories and experiences remain authentic.
Where Our Journey Began
Meet one of our long-time Plus-level clients, a former Senior Vice President at Palantir, who’s been with DiversiFi for 10 years. When we began working together, Palantir had not yet gone public. With equity awards like RSUs, NSOs, and ISOs in her portfolio, she and her husband were seeking a trusted advisor who specialized in equity compensation strategy, someone they could trust outside of their professional circle, and a finance professional who could give advice that was nuanced and tailored to their specific financial journey. Beyond task-focused advice, they wanted someone who truly understood them, an advisor they could approach with difficult and complex questions, someone who could help align their financial strategy with their goals, passions, and the broader vision for their lives.
Read about their journey with their advisor, Alfred, and how it evolved over time as their personal & professional lives evolved.
Our Financial Planning Journey Together
During our 10-year partnership, we helped this client navigate a number of life events.
Going Through an IPO
In 2020, Palantir went public, dramatically changing this client's financial journey and situation. Because of Alfred’s longstanding relationship and understanding of her family dynamics and goals, he was able to develop a customized equity strategy that considered the nuances of her and her family’s short-term and long-term visions. This personalized approach allowed him to maximize the value of her equity, balancing diversification decisions with her risk exposure. Additionally, he implemented a tax strategy designed to optimize her overall financial outcomes as she went through this IPO.
As Palantir’s stock price continued to soar, Alfred’s collaboration with this client led to substantial growth in her and her husband’s net worth. It transformed the trajectory of both their personal and financial journey. With this newfound wealth, their focus naturally shifted from straightforward budgeting and saving strategies to deeper, value-driven conversations that centered on what they aspired to achieve and the legacy they hoped to leave behind.
Buying a Home
After Palantir went public, one of this client's goals was to use some of their newfound income to buy a new primary residence. However, with her and her husband’s financial situation having substantially changed post-IPO, there was an adjustment period, and they were still unsure about how much house they could actually afford. They wanted to feel confident that the cost of the home wouldn’t negatively impact their retirement goals as PLTR stock reached different price points or experienced volatility.
Since Alfred knew his clients on a deeper level and understood their values and long-term goals, he was able to develop a personalized strategy. He understood that this client was not planning to retire right away. He knew that they were also looking to grow their family and wanted a place to live for the longer term. Having experience with clients in similar situations, he felt confident in recommending her and her husband to buy a home at the higher end of their budget. Alfred ran them through various price scenarios and helped them assess how PLTR’s volatility could affect their financial future, ensuring they were comfortable, even at the stock’s lower price range.
Ultimately, they sold enough shares to cover the cost of the home while retaining significant upside potential. Now, looking back, their PLTR stock has performed well, making the decision feel like a no-brainer, but at the time, careful analysis of the home purchase relative to their stock holdings was what gave them the confidence to move forward.
Where We Are Today
Transitioning into New Employment
Over the years, our clients reached a point where they were ready to pursue life goals beyond earning an income. She was eager to step away from her long-standing role at Palantir to start her own business, while her husband wanted to leave his private-sector job to spend more time with their children. They were excited about these changes but wanted to feel financially secure before making the leap. While they had a strong financial cushion in their stock holdings, PLTR’s volatility made navigating a major shift in income a key concern.
They looked to Alfred for a strategy to balance cash flow, ensure their portfolio could support withdrawals if needed, and determine the right timing to sell stock and diversify their investments. Because Alfred deeply understood their values and long-term vision, their conversations weren’t just about financial security, they were about aligning their wealth with a fulfilling life. Based on their finances alone, they could have retired, but the real goal was ensuring their decisions supported both their financial foundation and personal fulfillment.
After working with Alfred, they have a solid financial foundation, with their stock growth eliminating day-to-day financial worries. With their baseline financial goals covered, their focus has shifted to pursuing meaningful personal and professional goals like spending time with family, building a business, and creating a fulfilling future.
Focus on Active Management Investing
Prior to the Palantir IPO, Alfred’s guidance focused on key financial priorities such as managing student loans, family planning, and building a foundation for a secure retirement. Over the course of their 10-year relationship with us, their financial landscape evolved through personal and professional milestones, and his approach adapted alongside these changes. Today, he focuses on actively managing their finances, including investments, to sustain and grow their wealth in alignment with their long-term priorities. The strong financial habits Alfred helped establish serve as the foundation for lasting financial stability, ensuring their wealth continues to support their evolving goals.
In Their Own Words
Describe in your own words the impact Alfred’s guidance has had on your financial journey and outcomes. What are some highlights? Include your feelings before and after the outcomes that were achieved.
“My husband and I joke that Al is part of our family, really our family therapist. People closest to us know of Al because we refer to him so often.
Al has been working with us since early in our careers - over the decade - and supported us as we have navigated major life-changing events, including having children, buying homes, a DPO, founding a startup, retiring and moving our parents, complex tax situations, and so much more. At every step, Al first listens (sometimes for hours) about our goals, some of which weren’t fathomable just a few years ago and can become very personal conversations; he then is highly strategic, offering opinions but letting us make the decisions; and finally he executes rapidly with his team all while helping us navigate these major life changes. He knows when to push us and when to hold based on our comfort level because he is intimately familiar with us and our situation, more so than almost anyone else in our lives.
With Al and team, I know not just our finances, but our futures, and our children’s futures are on solid footing and we have the freedom to pursue every goal and dream we can imagine.”
Ready to get started on your financial wellness journey?
DiversiFi Capital LLC is a registered investment adviser located in CA and may only transact business or render personalized investment advice in those states and international jurisdictions where we are registered, notice filed, or where we qualify for an exemption or exclusion from registration requirements. Any communications with prospective clients residing in jurisdictions where DiversiFi Capital LLC is not registered or licensed shall be limited so as not to trigger registration or licensing requirements.
Past performance is not indicative of future returns, and investing always carries inherent risks, including the potential loss of principal capital. Any investment strategies are specific to individual clients and may not be representative of the experiences of all clients.
Information presented is for educational purposes only and does not intend to make an offer or solicitation for the sale or purchase of any specific securities, investments, or investment strategies. Investments involve risk and, unless otherwise stated, are not guaranteed.