What we do
Tax Minimization
Estate Planning & Wealth Transfer
Investment Management
IVERNIA CAPITAL is a multi-family office for discerning clients who prioritize transparency, objectiveness and execution. Our clients entrust us to not only provide expertise, but to work hand in hand with their tax and legal advisors to optimize their entire financial structure. We oversee this close and careful coordination of resources to deliver a superior client experience.
We are an independent boutique that works primarily through referrals, to maintain client satisfaction and service levels. Our founding principles are:
Tabula rasa — We built our firm from a blank slate, to avoid entrenched complexities and biases on how we work, and what we do to solve our client's problems.
Shoshin — We approach our work with a beginner's mind, one that is always listening, exploring new possibilities and seeking improvements to better serve our clients.
Who We Are
Ronald W. Phillis
Managing Partner
Ron co-founded Ivernia Capital after a career in Institutional Fixed Income at Goldman Sachs, Bank of America Securities, Fidelity Management & Research Company, and Houlihan Lokey. He has functioned in the capacities of high yield, and, distressed credit analyst, distressed securities salesman, and, as an investment banker working on corporate financial restructuring transactions.
Throughout his tenure as a fixed income analyst, he received many accolades. Institutional Investor Magazine named him one of the top High Yield Bond Analysts in all of the five years that he served. He was also recognized by Institutional Investor in several customer service categories in other investor polls taken in 2001 and 2002. His work has been cited in many financial publications such as the Wall Street Journal and Louis Rukeyser's Wall Street newsletter.
Ron earned an M.B.A. at the Leonard N. Stern School of Business of New York University and holds a B.S. in Finance from California State University Northridge.
Johnny Chuchen
Managing Partner
Johnny is Chief Investment Officer of Laurel Wealth Advisors (LWA), an SEC registered investment advisor based in La Jolla, California. He co-founded Ivernia Capital with Ron Phillis to support their ultra-high net worth clients, who were seeking customized, tax-efficient solutions.
Prior to LWA, Johnny spent over 10 years in the ultra-high net worth groups at UBS Private Wealth Management and Lehman Brothers Private Investment Management in Los Angeles. He helped wealthy families invest for multi-generational goals, and specialized in tailoring their investment advice to interact seamlessly with their tax and estate planning.
Johnny received an M.B.A. in Finance from Yale, and, a B.A. in Political Science from the University of California, Los Angeles.
Julie Montgomery-Phillis
Client Service Director
Julie has over 30 years of industry experience in the investment banking and hedge fund/asset-management businesses. Julie has supported senior management at Goldman Sachs, Morgan Stanley, and, Oakhill Advisors in New York and Los Angeles. During her time at Goldman Sachs, Julie spent 15 of her 19 years with the office of the firm’s Vice-Chairman.
Julie is a native Californian, and attended the University of Southern California on full scholarship.
