Money Matters

By 2030, women in the United States are projected to control or inherit $30 to $34 trillion in financial assets. As part of the “Great Wealth Transfer,” HALEY ELLIS sees this as an opportunity to not only bring more women into the financial planning industry but also guide other women to take control of their finances. 

As a certified financial planner (CFP), partner and chief operating officer of Allegiance Financial Group Advisory Services LLC, Ellis has experienced rapid success in her eight-year career. Today, only 24% of CFPs are women, a statistic she credits to inspiring her current-day mentorship and career growth. 

“When I was in high school, I had no idea what a financial planner was. I did not come from a lot of money; I didn’t see that actually growing up,” she says. “I want to increase that awareness. Money is power, and I think it can provide peace of mind and happiness. Every small step we can take to get women in the industry and increase financial literacy as a whole helps advance us.” 

She notes that while the industry can seem intimidating, it is one of collaboration and support, which she first encountered during a college internship with SHANNAN DENISON, of Denison Financial. The experience propelled her to pursue a career in financial planning, with one caveat – trading harsh Michigan winters for somewhere southern and warm.   

Ellis joined Wilmington-based Cooke Capital in 2018 as a financial planner. After the company’s merger with Allegiance Financial Group in 2021, she found herself naturally stepping into a leadership role, hiring and training new team members while building the operational infrastructure to support the company’s growth. As the firm evolved, she gradually shifted from working directly with clients to mentoring employees, overseeing operations and leading strategic priorities. Today, she is one of four partners at Allegiance, and the only female partner. 

“It’s really important to me that every single team member on our firm feels valued and heard, knows I’m advocating for them, and has a clearly defined career path that is based on their strengths and what they’re good at,” she says. 

Mentorship is a key facet of her career. Ellis is a mentor with the Certified Financial Planning Board, coaching prospective CFPs through the rigorous exam process. She also works with Invest in Girls, a program through the Council for Economic Education that guides high school and college students interested in the profession and helps them navigate coursework and career options in both business and finance. 

For her, these efforts help shape the future of the industry, recruiting women to the field while serving as their support system. She highlights that female clients typically prefer to work with female financial planners, and as women are set to control more assets and money, now more than ever this guidance is needed from both sides. 

“I think there’s so much opportunity, but the lack of awareness is the challenge,” Ellis says. “That’s where I think programs like Invest in Girls are so important; it raises awareness not just for younger women, but career-changers – women coming back from raising kids or looking to make a career pivot. All of that experience is so important in this industry.” 

As a mentor, it’s important she shares her own challenges regarding her nonlinear career journey.  

“I started as a financial planner and eventually realized my strengths and passions were more aligned with operations, leadership, and developing people. Transitioning into the COO role required me to build my own path,” she says. “Being willing to share what has worked for me, what has not, what I wish someone had told me earlier is my own way I can help make someone else’s journey a little easier.” 

Her community-minded approach can be seen away from work, too. She serves on the communications committee for the Carolina Beach-based nonprofit Island Women, raising money for a plethora of nonprofits through local charitable events. Her volunteer work with Hoppy Tides, a local rabbit rescue, shines a different light on her resourcefulness and planning. 

“Hoppy Tides has been established for a year now, and we’ve rescued over forty rabbits,” she says. “People buy them for Easter or as presents and think they can live outside. … They are not trained to live outside, and they will die. We go out, set up traps, rescue them, and foster them. That’s my passion side project. I have two of my own at home, and they’re the best.” 

To view more of photographer Daria Amato’s work, go to dariaphoto.com

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