Hightower President Roberto Stewart is stepping down from his role and leaving the organization less than three months after joining the firm.
According to a Hightower spokesperson, Stewart “made the difficult decision to step away from his role for personal reasons,” and the firm intends to name his replacement “in the near future.”
“He remains committed to Hightower and will work closely with the leadership team to support a smooth transition,” the spokesperson said. “We are grateful for his leadership and contributions to the firm and wish him all the best.”
Stewart originally joined Hightower as its president and chief business officer in April to lead “enterprise services and support the firm’s next phase of growth” by overseeing Hightower One, the firm’s newly established back- and middle-office platform.
Before joining Hightower, Stewart was the chief operating officer for Engle Martin, a portfolio company of BW Forsyth Partners, with additional multi-year tenures at AIG, McKinsey & Company and Allstate, among others.
Stewart succeeded Gurinder Ahluwalia as Hightower’s president. Ahluwalia, who had served as the firm’s interim president since 2024, is also an executive partner to the financial technology and services vertical at Thomas H. Lee Partners, Hightower’s private equity owner.
In an initial statement after assuming his roles at Hightower, Stewart said his focus would be on “creating greater clarity, efficiency and alignment across Hightower One, enabling advisors to spend more time with clients and grow their practices.”
Hightower One is the firm’s new centralized platform, originally set to roll out at the end of the year as the main wealth management platform for Hightower firms in its new Signature Wealth Division. However, Hightower Investment Management Head Randy Bullard said in April that the platform would eventually be accessible for all Hightower advisors.
According to Bullard, Hightower One would “dovetail” with the firm’s Signature Wealth strategy launched last October. The division will act as a W-2 employee channel, bringing existing Hightower-affiliated firms and new additions under a single, Hightower-branded firm.
According to Bullard’s interview with Wealth Management in April, advisors within Signature Wealth were set to transition clients to Hightower One starting this summer.
