# Steven Woods

> Steven Woods is the founder and CEO of Stirlingshire Investments, a New York based, SEC-registered, FINRA-member broker-dealer trying to rewire how financial advisors get paid. He started at 26 with a GED, cold-calling for $500 a day, and grew into an advisor producing millions before walking away to build a 'Hybrid Broker-Dealer' that lets advisors keep 100% of their fees and commissions with zero expenses. His 'advice on demand' model gives clients three choices: trade free, pay only when recommendations make money, or hand over full management. He frames the whole project around one question: 'How do we make this better?'

- **Role:** Founder & CEO at Stirlingshire Investments
- **Organizations:** Stirlingshire Investments
- **From:** Kansas City, Missouri, United States
- **Nationality:** American
- **Education:** General Management Program (alumnus), Harvard Business School, Oxford Advanced Management and Leadership Programme (associate alumnus), University of Oxford
- **Known for:** Founded and won FINRA/SEC approval for Stirlingshire Investments, a hybrid broker-dealer, Built a 100% advisor-payout model with zero expenses to advisors, Negotiated a clearing arrangement where APEX Clearing took a warrant for 3% of Stirlingshire in lieu of clearing fees

## Career timeline

- **~age 26** — Started as an intern at a boutique firm with a GED, earning roughly $500/day cold-calling
- **2010s** — Built a book of business as a financial advisor generating millions in annual production
- **2022** — Stirlingshire passes FINRA and SEC approval and begins beta launch
- **2023-10** — Partners with QuoteMedia to power the Stirlingshire trading platform with Quotestream Trader
- **2024-10** — Stirlingshire raises a Series A round (latest reported funding)
- **2025-02** — Featured on FinTechTalk: 'Uberizing Wealth Management'
- **2025-09** — Appears on the Tearsheet podcast on Stirlingshire's advisor-first economics

## Achievements

- Founded and won FINRA/SEC approval for Stirlingshire Investments, a hybrid broker-dealer
- Built a 100% advisor-payout model with zero expenses to advisors
- Negotiated a clearing arrangement where APEX Clearing took a warrant for 3% of Stirlingshire in lieu of clearing fees
- Launched an 'advice on demand' client model with self-directed, pay-on-profit, and full-management tiers
- Holds FINRA Series 24, 7, and 66 licenses

## Latest updates

- **2026-02** — Featured on The Business Game Group podcast discussing his journey from Kansas City to New York and leaving a lucrative advisory career
- **2025-09** — Appeared on the Tearsheet podcast on Stirlingshire's advisor-first economics
- **2025-02** — FinTechTalk episode 'Uberizing Wealth Management' published

## Links

- Website: https://stirlingshire.com
- LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/stirlingshireinvestments/
- Twitter/X: https://twitter.com/StirlingshireBD
- YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F1yv5UTYJp8
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/StirlingshireSteve/

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Profile page: https://yespress.io/steven-woods
Published by YesPress — https://yespress.io
Last updated: 2026-06-04