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About

Our Team
Of Experts

A Letter from the President & CEO
To Our Valued Clients and Partners,

Thank you for the trust and confidence you have placed in your team here at Carrera Capital Advisors. We are here for you and because of you.

Our mission is clear: to provide you with the highest standard of value, service, and experience. We aim to provide a white glove service to meet your unique needs, mission and aspirations.

We are fueled by unparalleled enthusiasm and passion to relentlessly help you enhance your financial success. Our veteran team of professionals is constantly pursing new ways to add value, we're here to help you win and achieve your financial goals with confidence and clarity.

Thank you for entrusting us with your financial future. We're honored to serve you and as we strive to exceed your expectations every step of the way.
Keith Nichol, President & CEO
Keith Nichol

Leadership

Keith Nichol
President and CEO
Keith Nichol
President and CEO

As President and CEO, and Partner of, Carrera Capital Advisors, Keith is tasked with deciding and leading the company mission, vision, and strategy, as well as growing the performance success of the business. In addition, Keith is experienced in tax efficient wealth management strategies and in his role serves as a Private Wealth Advisor to Business Owners, Professional Athletes, Entertainers, and successful Professionals.

Keith began building his business in Wealth Management during 2014 after a short career in the NFL. He attended Michigan State University and graduated from the Eli Broad College of Business on a full athletic scholarship to play football under legendary Coach Mark Dantonio. During his time as an athlete, Keith was a three-year starter at the wide receiver position for multiple Big Ten Championship teams while earning several Athletic and Academic All-Big Ten honors. He has experienced firsthand the incredible results that stem from investing in other people, to accomplish goals greater than any individual alone, and he looks to apply those experiences while he serves his clients and his team.

Keith currently lives in Bloomfield Hills Michigan with his wife, Adrianna, and their three young children. Away from the office, Keith especially enjoys spending time with his family and placing a priority on his health and wellness. Additionally, he enjoys competing with friends on the golf course.

Jacob Raska
Managing Partner
Jacob Raska
Managing Partner

As a partner of Carrera Capital Advisors, Jake works alongside a highly skilled team that focuses on delivering and simplifying tax mitigation strategies and advanced financial planning for business owners, executives, consultants, private equity professionals and investment bankers.

Jake holds a Business degree from the Eli Broad School of Business at Michigan State University. Prior to being a Financial Advisor, Jake spent over 5 years in Management Consulting and advised various Fortune 500 companies on financial restructuring and strategy. His prior business experience has given him the ability to provide complex analytical planning capabilities to his clients throughout the nation. In addition to personal planning, Jake also advises privately held and publicly traded corporations around corporate cash management and tax efficient executive compensation strategies.

Jake lives in Birmingham with his wife Chelsea, and three daughters. In his free time, Jake enjoys golfing, snowboarding, water skiing, and being outdoors.

Marty Schmidt
Partner
Marty Schmidt
CFP®, ChFC®
Partner

As a partner of Carrera Capital Advisors, Marty works to create a complete financial plan whether a client is focused on managing current financial success, or on protecting and preserving assets over the long term. Marty entered the financial services industry in 1984. He is a graduate of the University of Michigan with a B.S. in Economics and Finance.

Marty lives in Waterford MI with his wife, Patty, and they have four adult children. Away from the office Marty enjoys spending time traveling, boating, bike riding, exercising, skiing, and working remotely from Mooresville NC, seasonally. He is active in the community, including building and medical mission trips with his church, and volunteer work for local food kitchens and several business organizations.

Credentials & Awards

Chartered Financial Consultant (ChFC®)

CERTIFIED FINANCIAL PLANNER™ Certification

The  CFP® certification  is granted  by  Certified Financial  Planner  Board of  Standards, Inc.  (“CFP Board”).  To  attain  the  certification,  the  candidate  must complete  the  required  educational, examination, experience and ethics requirements set forth by CFP Board. Certain designations, such as the CPA, CFA and others may satisfy the education component, and allow a candidate to sit for the CFP® Certification Examination. A comprehensive examination tests the candidate’s ability to apply financial  planning  knowledge  to client  situations.  Qualifying  work  experience  is also  required  for certification. Qualifying experience includes work in the area of the delivery of the personal financial planning  process  to  clients,  the  direct  support  or  supervision  of  others  in  the  personal  financial planning process, or teaching all, or any portion, of the personal financial planning process. CFP® professionals must complete 30 hours of continuing education accepted by CFP Board every two years.

ChFC®  Certification  Examinations.  To  receive  the  ChFC®  designation,  one  must  successfully complete all courses in the Program, meet experience requirements and ethics standards, and agree to  comply  with  The  American  College  Code  of  Ethics  and  Procedures.  The  ChFC  Program  is comprised of eight examinations covering various aspects of financial planning, including tax and retirement  planning,  special  needs  advising,  wealth  management,  and  insurance. Requirements include  three  years  of  full-time  relevant  work  experience.  Ongoing  requirements  include participation in the Professional Recertification Program (PRP) every two years.

The Team

Steve Lane
Private Wealth Advisor
Steve Lane
CFP®, MBA
Private Wealth Advisor

Steve Lane is an Associate Private Wealth Management Advisor for Carrera Capital Advisors. He has an MBA from Oakland University and earned his undergrad in finance from Michigan State University. Steve has over 20 years of experience in the financial services industry. Areas Steve can help you is meeting with new referrals, identifying planning gaps and opportunities, conducting annual review meetings, facilitate account transfers and IRA rollovers, and trading/ monitoring investment accounts.

Steve is married to his wife Nicole, and they reside in Lake Orion with their two daughters Addison and Julia and dog Sadie. In his spare time Steve likes to exercise, downhill ski, and spend time with his family and friends.

Credentials & Awards

CERTIFIED FINANCIAL PLANNER™ Certification

Series 7 License

Series 66 License

Insurance License

The  CFP® certification  is granted  by  Certified Financial  Planner  Board of  Standards, Inc.  (“CFP Board”).  To  attain  the  certification,  the  candidate  must  complete  the  required  educational, examination, experience and ethics requirements set forth by CFP Board. Certain designations, such as the CPA, CFA and others may satisfy the education component, and allow a candidate to sit for the CFP® Certification Examination. A comprehensive examination tests the candidate’s ability to apply financial  planning  knowledge  to client  situations.  Qualifying  work  experience  is also  required  for certification. Qualifying experience includes work in the area of the delivery of the personal financial planning  process  to  clients,  the  direct  support  or  supervision  of  others  in  the  personal  financial planning process, or teaching all, or any portion, of the personal financial planning process. CFP® professionals must complete 30 hours of continuing education accepted by CFP Board every two years.

Mya Kulaga
Chief Operating Officer
Mya Kulaga
Chief Operating Officer

Mya Kulaga is the Chief Operating Officer for Carrera Capital Advisors. Mya has worked in financial services since 2013 and joined Marty's practice in 2017. Within this time, she has cultivated wide-ranging experience in the practices, policies, and procedures essential for operations. She is dedicated to supporting the President and Partners in their vision and initiatives across the organization by overseeing the day-to-day administrative and operational functions of Carrera Capital Advisors. Although Mya is focused on ongoing operations, areas where she can help you are scheduling appointments for Keith, Marty, and Jake, providing policy values and owner/ beneficiary changes, facilitating premium payments and billing account changes, processing loan requests and repayments, encouraging and accepting favorable introductions to new potential clients, and assisting with insurance and underwriting process.

Mya lives in Warren with her husband, Michael, and their two daughters. She enjoys bike riding, exploring nature trails, and cooking in her free time.

Credentials & Awards

Series 7 License

Series 63 License

Michigan Life, Accident, & Health Insurance License

Bachelor of Business Administration

Robin Petras
Director of Investment Services
Robin Petras
Director of Investment Services

Robin Petras is the Director of Investment Operations for Carrera Capital Advisors. She has worked in investment operations for over 20 years. Robin handles all things investment administrative related. Areas Robin can help you with are opening accounts, preparing investment proposals, processing account transfers, monitoring investment accounts, assisting with 529’s, and helping clients with distributions.

Robin lives in Macomb Township with her husband, Brian, and their two children. Away from the office, she enjoys spending time with family. On weekends you will typically find Robin with her camera, as she owns a photography business.

Credentials & Awards

Series 7 License

Series 63 License

Life, Accident, & Health Insurance License

Bryan Franco
Chief Investment Officer
Bryan Franco
CFA®
Chief Investment Officer

Bryan's work background spans both retail and institutional investing and utilizes a variety of techniques to help clients achieve their goals, including: quantitative, macroeconomic, technical and fundamental analysis. This has led him to a synthesized approach that is rooted in risk management. It's the cornerstone of his investing philosophy because he believes clients win by avoiding the big capital losses. Bryan has a Bachelors and Masters degree in Engineering from the University of Michigan.

​Bryan is married to the love of his life, Mandy. He lives in Northville, and has two girls that attend elementary school in the district. When not working, you can find him working on songwriting, playing the guitar, trying to figure out how to sing, exercising, and studying the markets.

Credentials & Awards

Bachelor and Masters Degree from University of Michigan

CFA (Certified Financial Analyst)

The Chartered Financial Analyst® (“CFA®”) designation is a professional designation given by the CFA Institute that measures the competence and integrity of financial analysts. The CFA Program is a graduate-level self-study program that combines a broad-based curriculum of investment principles with  professional  conduct  requirements.  Candidates  are  required  to  pass  three  levels  of examinations  covering  areas  such  as  accounting,  economics,  ethics,  money  management  and security analysis. Before a candidate is eligible to become a CFA charterholder, he/she must meet minimum experience  requirements  in  the  area  of  investment/financial  practice.  To  enroll  in  the program, a candidate must hold a bachelor’s degree.

Al Spicuzzi
Marketing Manager
Al Spicuzzi
Marketing Manager

Al Spicuzzi is the Marketing Manager for Carrera Capital Advisors. He attended Northwood University and was a captain of their football team. He studied operations and supply chain management and was a two-time All-Conference Football Selection. Areas Al can help you with enhancing client experience, connecting you with an advisor, and identifying potential marketing opportunities with our team.

Al is married to his wife, Samantha. In his free time, he enjoys attending sporting events, concerts, skiing, and surfing with family and friends.

Credentials & Awards

Life, Accident, & Health Insurance License

Bachelor of Business Administration from Northwood University

Michael Hassa
Investment Services Associate
Michael Hassa
Investment Services Associate

Michael Hassa is an Operations Assistant for Carrera Capital Advisors. Michael attended Cleary University and has 4 years of finance/investment experience. Areas Michael can help you with are opening, maintaining, and funding investment accounts, completing transfer and rollover requests, and helping facilitate money movement and periodic ACH instructions.

Michael was born and raised in Pinckney Michigan, and now lives in White Lake Michigan. In his free time Mike enjoys traveling, hiking, exercising, and playing or watching soccer.

Credentials & Awards

Life, Accident, & Health Insurance License

Bachelor’s Degree from Cleary University

Kimberly Lovejoy
Administrative Assistant
Kimberly Lovejoy
Administrative Assistant

Kim Lovejoy is an Administrative Assistant for Carrera Capital Advisors. Her background spans in areas of recruitment, HR, and management. Kim can assist clients by serving as a key conduit to scheduling appointments. When not working, you can find her spending time outdoors with her son, Colton, and dog, Ruckus. As a family they enjoy traveling, hiking, swimming, skiing, and camping.

Credentials & Awards
Anthony Sellors
Financial Planning Analyst
Anthony Sellors
Financial Planning Analyst

Anthony Sellors is the financial planning analyst for Carrera Capital Advisors. He attended Western Michigan University. He studied elementary education with a major in social studies and a minor in language arts. He participated with the soccer club and made the dean’s list while attending. Anthony is responsible for designing comprehensive financial plans for current and future clients. Areas Anthony can help you are, making recommendations that enhance your current financial plan, analyzing hypothetical outcomes based on current conditions, and providing overall support to your financial team. 

Anthony is married to his wife Lana, and they reside in Chesterfield with their two sons Cristiano and Frankie. In his spare time Anthony enjoys working out, snowboarding, playing pickleball, and spending quality time with friends and family. 

Credentials & Awards

Life, Accident, & Health Insurance Licensed 

Series 6 License

Series 63 License

Ken Pettit
Chief Compliance Officer
Ken Pettit
Chief Compliance Officer

Ken is Senior Counsel with Calfee, Halter & Griswold LLP, and a business partner who serves as Chief Compliance Officer, directing Carrera’s compliance program. (In addition to being a licensed attorney (Ohio), Ken is also a CPA (Ohio).)

Ken has deep experience in the compliance/risk and legal fields, with prior overall oversight of functions as a chief compliance officer and chief legal officer. Immediately prior to joining Calfee in 2024, Ken was a Senior Principal Consultant for a large, international governance, risk, and compliance (GRC) consulting firm in the financial services industry, working with Registered Investment Advisers (domestic and foreign) and Registered Investment Companies, establishing compliance programs and providing counseling regarding regulatory requirements, including pertaining to alternative investment vehicles and ETFs. He also served as an outsourced chief compliance officer.

Ken’s earlier career also emphasized compliance functions - with chief compliance officer and general counsel roles in the investment management industry, including serving as a group compliance manager for a Tier 1 bank; as the Director of Finance for the Hamilton County (Cincinnati), Ohio Auditor’s office; and via experience at large, full-service law firms in Cincinnati and Anchorage, Alaska.

Prior to law school, Ken began his career with a Fortune 100 company’s international corporate financial audit department (a financial-management training program),and later initially entered the investment management industry as a mutual funds administrator.

Ken received his J.D. from Duke University, where he was Editor-in-Chief of the Alaska Law Review and a member of the Moot Court Board.  He also received an M.A from Duke University in Public Policy Studies.  Ken earned his BBA (with distinction) from the University of Wisconsin-Madison, majoring in (1)Accounting and (2) Management Information Systems Analysis & Design.

Credentials & Awards

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