Doctor Markas Gilmartin began his career as a biologist, gaining chartered status, which in the United Kingdom is equivalent to an attorney or a physician gaining a license to practice in the United States. What is notable about Dr. Gilmartin is that he has moved on from being a bioscientist to being a financial investment adviser.
As co-founder of Epoch Wealth Management Dr. Gilmartin has proven that making radical career changes is both possible and rewarding. Of course, he is a very smart fellow. And last year Markas Gilmartin and his colleagues gained chartered status for Epoch Wealth Management from the Chartered Insurance Institute. As a “holistic financial planning services firm” Epoch and similar companies assist clients with all types of financial planning, including choosing good insurance plans.
More recently Dr. Gilmartin became a fellow for the Institute of Financial Planning. Like a scientist racking up certifications and accreditations, Dr. Gilmartin is seeking widespread accreditation in his financial planning career.
More significantly, perhaps, is the fact that he openly advocates making the role of financial planning more professional overall. By demonstrating to his colleagues throughout the industry his commitment to professionalism, Dr. Gilmartin join a growing number of ethicists who are seeking to reform how financial planning services are rendered to the general public.
His quest for ethical financial planning is nothing new. Even many years ago Dr. Gilmartin advocated ethical investment choices. The call for ethics in financial planning is nothing new. Investors and planners alike have recognized the need for fairness and accountability going back many generations.
Financial planning is an important service even for people of modest means because we can never be certain of what our retirement will bring. The most carefully laid plans may be disrupted by unforeseen catastrophes, such as Bernard Madoff’s multibillion-dollar Ponzi scheme which may have cost investors from all walks of life and many countries as much as $50 billion. To learn so late in life that your savings has been squandered by a swindler is a devastating blow.
So let us be honest. We see too little attention paid to the ethicists who seek to make the world of investing a better place for everyone. This case study may, hopefully, provide you with some reassurance that not all financial planners are simply looking for fees and commissions. The hard-working members of this field deserve better than that.