Carly Nathanson traces her career to a first-grade memory: watching her older brother do division and multiplication homework and refusing to be left out. "I was really into numbers and math," she said. "I was one of those kids who actually wanted to work in finance for my work life."
That numbers focus led her through an economics degree at Columbia University, internships on trading floors and a role in portfolio management at Northern Trust. But Nathanson wanted more than just numbers, she wanted to connect with people, too. Joining Wilmington Trust in 2021, she got to combine her love of numbers with a close connection to clients.
"I'm able to be analytical with numbers that I love and also be client-facing," she explained. "I love getting to know people and their families and businesses."
That combination serves Nathanson well as she partners with some 80 ultra-high-net-worth clients at Wilmington Trust's New York tri-state practice. John Lawson, her team leader, describes it as an art and a science practiced simultaneously. "She figures out a way to meet Wilmington's best thinking with her clients' particular needs," he said. "Our clients have different levels of sophistication — some are hedge fund people, portfolio managers in their own right, and some are, when it comes to investments, very unsophisticated and maybe intimidated. She's really good at understanding her audience."
Such understanding was on full display when she was approached by a prospective client in the middle of a divorce, having never managed her own finances. Nathanson and her team ran simulations to cover thousands of market scenarios to show that the proposed settlement would fall well short of supporting the client's long-term lifestyle. Armed with that analysis, the attorneys negotiated a settlement double the original offer. That won the person's business. A year later, Nathanson visited her and found the client thriving from her advice. "It was just night and day. She was finally able to do a lot on her own, and not just from an investment perspective."
Lawson sees that case as emblematic of Nathanson's approach to the role. "She wears the idea of being a fiduciary on her sleeve," he said. "She's putting herself in the position of saying, 'I'm your advisor, but I'm going to make sure that you not only have the best investment experience, but you have the best advisory experience.'"
At Wilmington Trust, she is well known as a mentor, while outside the office she is building an informal network of women across finance, law and accounting. She is also involved with First Tee, the youth development organization that uses golf to build character and leadership, a sport she played competitively through college and one she returns to as a professional analogy.
"It's a game of small decisions in the moment, but focusing on the long-term mindset," Nathanson said. "One shot doesn't define your round, just like one day or quarter in a specific investment doesn't define your full return for your investment portfolio."
