UMW alum Nick Francia named on 2021 Top Next-Gen Wealth Advisors list

by KAITLIN SMYTH

Staff Writer

University of Mary Washington alum Nick Francia was recently named to a prestigious advisor list in the financial industry. He was one of only 10 Washington, D.C.-based financial advisors named to 2021’s Forbes Top Next-Gen Wealth Advisors list, which features 500 of the top young advisors in the country.

Francia credited his accomplishment to his coworkers, saying it was a “team effort.” 

“I was humbled and thankful for the team I have around me,” said Francia. “It might have been my name on the award but it is truly a team effort. The team is our family and we work together extremely hard.”

Francia is a co-head of The Capital ESOP Group with his business partner Keith Apton, a UBS Private Wealth Management practice, where they manage a 10 person team. Francia has been with UBS Financial Services, Inc. for over a decade.

“Our entire practice is dedicated to work with business owners on different ways to monetize a privately held business,” he said. “When a business owner is looking for different ways to transition their business, we have the intellect and resources to advise them on the most tax-efficient way to sell their business.”

According to his coworkers, Francia leaves a lasting impression on the people he works with.

“There are few people who stack up like Nick and he embodies our core values,” said Breton Laubscher, Wealth Strategy Associate for The Capital ESOP Group. “I’m proud to work with him and everyone on this team every day.  He’s an incredible motivator for me personally and is one of the people that if you happen to have a brief interaction with him, it’s a lasting memorable one.” 

“The Alumni Relations office was pleased to hear that Nick Francia ’11 had been named to Financial Planning’s Top 40 Advisors Under 40 list. A significant accomplishment for someone who graduated just ten years ago,” said Mark Thaden, executive director of alumni relations. “We are so proud of the professional achievements of UMW alumni, like Nick.”

Prior to attending UMW, Francia was always interested in pursuing a career in financial services, especially because of his father.

“My father has always been my role model and was always in finance,” he said. “We would have deep conversations about numbers, lending, investing and financial decisions overall. … I cannot really see myself doing anything else than this.”

Francia chose to attend UMW both because of athletics and academics.

“[UMW] was the perfect combination, so I got recruited to play baseball,” he said. “That was really the driving factor because not only was I going to get a great education, but also UMW would be able to provide me a platform to continue to play baseball and develop myself as a student-athlete.” 

Baseball has always been an integral part of Francia’s life, and that didn’t stop at UMW.

“I have been playing baseball my entire life since I could walk,” he said. “It was always a passion of mine. It was something that allowed me to fit right in at UMW. What could have been a really scary transition from high school in Connecticut to a college in Fredericksburg, Va., not knowing anybody, ended up being an unbelievable experience. The second I got to UMW, I immediately had a network of friends and teammates. A lot of them are still my close friends today.”

Francia graduated with a degree in economics. His favorite class was Game Theory with economics professor Brad Hansen.

“It was a course around how to problem solve,” said Francia. “When you get into the real world, regardless of finance or not, a lot of what you will do requires you to have solutions. Being able to think outside the box and understand the perspective of everyone around you and creating that solution that can solve someone’s problem is really what makes a difference to them long term.” 

Hansen remembers Francia as a strong student.

“Although one class may stand out for him, I remember him being an excellent student in all the classes he took with me,” said Hansen.

Francia admired UMW’s close-knit community during his time as an undergraduate student. 

“The network of people surrounding UMW is one of the reasons why I am fortunate to be successful today from the [combinaton] of the faculty and peers,” he said. “The size of the classes were imperative. It felt like the teachers took a genuine interest in your academic success and were also accessible if you needed help after graduation.”

Francia highlighted the importance of internships, one of the key factors that influenced his success today. 

“I had a lot of internships, which were instrumental in what I wanted to do and best for me to do long term,” he said. “I would do everything that I could to get the experience. I would try to learn as much as I could. Even though you learn a tremendous amount in college, there is no substitute for those real-life scenarios.” 

He also noted the importance of surrounding oneself with the right people. 

“If you spend time with five successful, well-rounded people, you inherently become a better person because of having intellectual conversations and thinking deeper,” he said. “Those internships helped me build a core base of people that I could reach out to and discuss ideas with.”

This year, Francia would like to focus on helping members of his team be successful. 

“My biggest goal in 2022 is to see some of the new members of our team really excel [in] their own careers,” he said. “I am focused on teaching them what I have learned over the 10-plus years and allowing them to continue to grow, learn and excel.”

Francia advised UMW students to work hard and be coachable.

“I firmly believe that there are four characteristics no matter what industry will make you successful: strong work ethic, coachable, humble and consistently learning not only from your mistakes but also from the people around you that are successful,” he said. “There is an inherent competitiveness to people who are successful. Find your inner competitiveness that drives you and let that fuel your fire. Always be humble and outwork everybody.”