Originally published in Invest: Tampa Bay, 7th Edition, by Capital Analytics Associates | September 2026
Tampa Bay has become one of the fastest-growing wealth centers in the Southeast, and with that growth comes complexity. In the seventh edition of Invest: Tampa Bay, Capital Analytics Associates sat down with Ryan Best, CFP®, Senior Wealth Advisor and Shareholder at HB Wealth, to discuss the team’s first year and a half in Tampa, the rising demand for family office services, and what independent, fee-only fiduciary advice looks like for families navigating growing financial complexity. Highlights from the conversation are below.
“There are really no limits to what we can do for the clients we serve, but you need to have the resources and talent to be able to deliver.”
— Ryan Best, CFP®, Senior Wealth Advisor and Shareholder
How has the first year and a half in Tampa shaped HB Wealth’s strategic direction?
The first year and a half in Tampa has been both energizing and highly validating for us. We joined HB Wealth in September 2024 as a team of 11 professionals who had spent most of our careers in a traditional big-bank wealth management environment. From the outset, our goal was to bring a more integrated, fiduciary-driven model to the Tampa Bay market, where client needs are becoming increasingly complex.
The community’s response has exceeded our expectations. It has reinforced the trends we were already seeing – clients are becoming more complex, and families are increasingly seeking independent, comprehensive advice that extends well beyond investment management. Tampa’s growth, combined with the increasing sophistication of local business owners and families, has strengthened our conviction that a family-office-style model is not only relevant here but increasingly essential.
What recent initiatives at HB Wealth stand out for you?
The most notable initiative for me has been HB Wealth’s continued investment in the family office segment and the resources dedicated to supporting it. At HB, our family office clients are served through a purpose-built multifamily office platform designed to coordinate investment management, tax strategy, estate planning, philanthropy, and overall financial oversight under a single fiduciary framework. This is not transactional advice—it’s an integrated, ongoing solution designed to address complexity and support multi-generational decision-making.
When our team joined HB, the family office platform was already well established, with strong infrastructure, expertise, and processes in place. Since then, HB has continued to build on that foundation by investing in additional resources and talent to further strengthen the offering. Over the past 12 months, what has stood out most is the firm’s recognition that the family office segment is not only growing, but is likely to become a meaningful long-term growth engine for HB.
HB Wealth is a registered investment adviser (RIA) with approximately $29 billion in assets under management and more than 300 employees across 12 offices in six states, as of March 31, 2026.
How does HB Wealth engage with the Tampa Bay community, and why is local involvement important?
Tampa Bay is a unique and rapidly growing market, and in many ways, the epicenter of Florida’s economic expansion. We’re seeing strong employment growth, significant private equity and venture capital activity, and an increasing number of high-net-worth families being created here or relocating to the area.
That level of growth has driven rising demand for more sophisticated family office services. Much of our work locally involves helping families transition after a business sale—moving from operating a company to managing the complexities that come with newly created wealth. As families look beyond traditional wealth management, our fee-only fiduciary model and fully integrated approach align well with what the market is demanding.
What key trends are you seeing in the wealth management space?
One of the most significant trends we’re seeing in wealth creation is driven by private market activity, particularly through business transitions. As a result, the family office segment continues to grow. As wealth grows, our clients’ needs become more sophisticated. Families are increasingly demanding comprehensive, fee-only fiduciary advice that addresses their entire financial picture, not just investments. That expectation is foundational to how we operate at HB.
As wealth grows, expectations change. Families are now demanding fee-only fiduciary advice that covers their entire financial situation. That demand is foundational to how we operate. HB has always been a fee-only fiduciary firm, which is especially important at the family office level, where decisions span investments, liquidity, governance, and multigenerational planning.
Having spent more than two decades in a traditional bank wealth management environment, I’ve watched these trends develop. What’s notable today is how clearly they are playing out across our client base. After joining HB, we realized that the importance families place on truly unconflicted advice is even greater than we initially expected.
Read Ryan’s full interview in Invest: Tampa Bay, 7th Edition.
