"Building on a legacy of innovation and trust, I am committed to guiding our clients toward a prosperous future with unwavering integrity and strategic foresight."
-R. Adam Smith
Meet R. Adam Smith
Adam is a special advisor to Krown Impact, a global sustainable investment firm focused on farm ecosystems optimizing food resilience. Adam is a special advisor to the Avestix Group, the alternative investing activities led by a U.S., women-led, single family office.
Adam was recently Vice Chairman of Salomon Brothers, covering hundreds of family office and private equity relationships focused on buy-side and sell-side global mergers and acquisitions solutions. Adam was a key resource in the relaunch of the firm - one of the world’s most respected on Wall Street, originally founded 1910 in New York - and a founding member of the firm’s accomplished global advisory board.
Adam is an expert in investment banking, alternative investing, governance, capital raising, and possesses particular expertise in consumer sectors (including luxury, accessories, retail, apparel, beauty, art and design, digital & media, food & beverages, wellness) and real estate and wealth management.
Through private equity partnerships he has directly led and/or sponsored since 2002, Adam has invested in over a dozen privately-held companies (including seven acquisitions) with a combined $600 million in sales and over $250 million of contributed equity invested capital, while also forming and serving on the Board of Directors, or Advisory Boards, of each company.
In 2002, Adam founded Circle Peak Capital LLC, a private investment merchant banking partnership which served tens of limited partners with over $50 million in direct equity investments over time. The partnership is based in NYC, controlled by a private holding company, RAS Capital Partners LLC. Circle Peak Capital was one of the most active independent sponsor private equity investors of the decade.
Earlier in his career, Adam served as a principal at two leading NYC private equity firms, each holding over $2 billion in aggregate managed equity capital at their peak. At Caxton-Iseman Capital, an affiliate of Caxton Associates, one of the world’s legendary alternative investment organizations (founded 1993), Adam led several leveraged buyouts worth over $1.5 billion (including a going-private transaction, at the time, the firm’s largest investment to date). At Castle Harlan, Inc. (founded 1987), Adam led several financial services private company acquisitions, and was the first non-founder employee of an acquisition operating company.
Adam’s early career was built on Wall Street, starting in 1993, holding positions at top firms including Salomon Brothers Inc., J.P. Morgan, and Lehman Brothers Inc.
Adam has been involved in various high-profile advisory and entrepreneurial positions since the late 1990s. Adam been an external advisor to Bain & Company, the world’s most respected global consultancy firm, founded 1973. Adam is the sole founder of Wisdom Board Inc, founded 2020, a pioneering strategic advisory firm providing multi-faceted and thoughtful advice to Boards and their company directors, members, CEOs, and investors. Adam is a founding special advisor, from 2010, to a successful, private hedge fund seeding platform, Stride Capital LLC.
Following Salomon Brothers, Adam earned an MBA with highest honors (Beta Gamma Sigma) from the Graduate School of Business at Columbia University (CBSGSB) in 1998. Adam holds a BA, cum laude, in International Relations and Economics from Boston University.
Adam is an active alumnus of CBSGSB, a founding board member of the its Private Equity Advisory Board, a founder in 1996 of the school’s now legendary Investment Management Conference (running consecutively since its founding), and selected by the school as a three-time reunion committee member for his graduating class.
Prior to business school, Adam was instrumental in the success of a global emerging markets (half a billion dollar) alternative investment firm formed in 1996, Columbus Advisors LLC. Columbus was formed by the former global department heads of emerging markets at Merrill Lynch. Adam was the firm’s first non-founder employee, essential in the launch of the fund and its first $100 million of family office and institutional commitments.
Adam is married and a proud father of three children, is active in foreign affairs, the arts, design, and is an avid collector. Adam has been a host, patron and / or sponsor of numerous arts related events including the International Fine Art and Antique Show, Weill Carnegie Recital Hall, The Avenue Show. Adam has been a special advisor to one of the world’s most respected private modern art galleries with original origins from 1760. Adam has been an amateur classical pianist since the age of 5 and competed at the state championship level.
Frequent speaker, podcast guest, host and/or sponsor at conferences, including Family Office Center (Europe), Columbia Business School, OPAL, Uncorrelated ALTS, the United Nations (Logic Day), Mack Podcast, Buyouts Insider, ACG, the Corner Series, CEO Zones, iGlobal Forum, InvestorConnect, the Disruptive Successor, Marcus Evans, and the Scott Becker podcast.
Adam is an active patron, innovator, collector and philanthropist. Adam is founder of two active non-profits, Caring Capitalism (a global sustainable finance mission), and Leukemia Fighters at Weill Cornell College (one of the leading oncology non-profits affiliated with a top U.S. hospital). Adam was previously, a board member of the Musicians Treatment Foundation (the leading national injury treatment non-profit for musicians), a founding board member of National Sawdust (aka, Original Music Workshop) in Brooklyn, advisor to the Museum of Arts and Design - the leading global museum in craft, art, and design (founded 1956),a special advisor to global peace resolution charity - the Tanenbaum Center, a board trustee of VentureCapital(org), and a founding member of the Dean’s Advisory Board of the Frederick S. Pardee School of Global Studies of Boston University.
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R. Adam Smith