About Us

* Forbes recognized Independent Financial Partners for their growth in total assets under management as reported March 31, 2011, through March 31, 2013.

Ben Graham is President and Founder of Nico Miles Wealth Management. Ben specializes in building and managing custom teams of financial specialists and sub-specialists. His teams focus on wealth building and wealth protection for his clients. He started his career in investment management and retirement planning at AG Edwards. After the financial meltdown of 2008, he concluded that his clients would be better served by an independent financial advisor.

In the fall of 2009, he met Bill Hamm who was building Independent Financial Partners (IFP). In short order, he joined with Bill and this growing multi-billion dollar SEC Registered Investment Advisor firm.

When time permits, he serves as an Instructor for local colleges and universities on financial topics. His classes are engaging, interactive and fun. This makes them very different than what most people have experienced before in a financial presentation. He feels that financial knowledge is too important to be presented in the stereotypical sterilized manner we have all suffered through. He says, “Just because it’s important, doesn’t mean it has to be dry and boring”.

Ben is from Mississippi but now lives in Punta Gorda, Florida. When he is not working or spending time with his family he enjoys road biking, sporting clays, drumming, and some fishing. Ben is a supporter of TEAM Punta Gorda, helping spread the word about Pedal and Play in Paradise. Recently, he found a new hobby in sporting clays and has founded The Punta Gorda Clay Shooters. He is a proud graduate of Leadership Charlotte Class of 2009.

President and Founder of Nico Miles Wealth Management, Partner at Independent Financial Partners, Series 7 Registered – LPL Financial, Series 66 Registered – State of Florida, Life, Health and Variable Annuity Licensed – State of Florida, Chartered Retirement Planning Counselor, CRPC® from the College of Financial Planning – Greenwood Village, Colorado.

Ben holds an M.P.H. Masters of Public Health with an Administrative and Policy Emphasis. B.S. Bachelor of Science Pre-Professional Psychology and Social and Rehabilitative Services from the University of Southern Mississippi – Hattiesburg, Mississippi Our Partnership with Independent Financial Partners and LPL Financial:

Nico Miles Wealth Management is proud to be supported by Independent Financial Partners (IFP) and LPL Financial in the effort to provide the best combination of services and programs to our clients.

Nico Miles Wealth Management, IFP, and LPL are three separate and independent entities working together within a highly regulated framework. In the independent financial services arena, a financial advisor has the ability to select those platforms, programs, and services that he or she thinks are the most appropriate to meet the needs of his or her clients. Ben Graham has selected IFP and LPL to meet those needs.

There are two primary channels through which Nico Miles Wealth Management can provide financial advice and services. These channels differ by 1) the way in which the advisor is compensated, and 2) the entity that supervises the business being done, among other things. The two channels are as follows:

• Fee-based – where a financial advisor is compensated by a recurring fee for services provided. These services are offered by, transacted through, and supervised by IFP, an SEC Registered Investment Adviser (RIA)
• Commission based – where a financial advisor is compensated by commissions earned on solicited and non-solicited transactions. This business is transacted and supervised by LPL, a broker-dealer member of FINRA.

All three entities Nico Miles Wealth Management, IFP, and LPL) are interwoven through LPL’s hybrid platform, allowing an advisor to tap into either business channel when deemed most appropriate. Through the use of state of the art technology and regulated relationships, the IFP/LPL infrastructure provides a seamless way to integrate all the offerings of an advisor’s practice.

What makes this hybrid and complex platform the preferred platform of Nico Miles Wealth Management is that it allows for the most independent, flexible, non-biased method of serving our clients’ needs. There are no proprietary products or sales quotas that have to be met, and we can select products and services for our clients with minimal outside influence or conflict of interest.

You are a client of Nico Miles Wealth Management, and we are committed to providing you with the highest level of service to meet your financial needs. Our relationship with IFP and LPL gives us, in our opinion, the best opportunity to deliver on our commitment to you.

About Independent Financial Partners:

Independent Financial Partners (IFP) is a Registered Investment Adviser (RIA) located in Tampa, Florida. We support a network of over 475 financial advisors located throughout the United States who specialize in wealth management and retirement plan consulting. As a whole, the advisors at IFP collectively oversee in excess of $35 billion, giving us the ability to access resources such as enhanced technology, vendor support, and marketing opportunities not available to an individual office.

Our goal as a firm is to leverage our network and give our advisors access to state-of-the-art resources while still maintaining the feel of a smaller service-driven boutique firm. IFP advisors maintain their independence while owning and operating their books of business, but they always have IFP’s support in building and growing their practices. For more information, please visit www.ifpartners.com.

About LPL Financial:

LPL Financial is one of the nation’s leading financial services companies and a publicly traded company on the NASDAQ under ticker symbol LPLA. The firm’s mission is rooted in the belief that objective financial guidance is a fundamental need for everyone.

LPL does not offer proprietary investment products or engage in investment banking activities; this means advisors affiliated with LPL are not pressured or influenced by LPL to sell its products. Thousands of financial advisors nationwide are able to rely on the firm’s tools and resources to help them provide financial guidance and recommendations to help meet their clients’ needs.

For more information about LPL Financial, visit www.lpl.com.