Tactical expertise built on a fundamental foundation
mike thompson, cfa
BS in Economics, University of Illinois at Urbana/Champaign ‘96
Leading the investment function and overseeing all strategies as CIO and portfolio manager, Mike has over 23 years of experience constructing and managing portfolios with a focus on volatility and risk management strategies. Early in his career, his work included portfolio management roles at The Northern Trust, William Blair and Premier Asset Management LLC, a $500M investment advisor spun out of Northern Trust. Mike later provided derivatives modeling expertise to a start-up derivatives exchange in Chicago before being recruited by a family office where he co-developed a VIX trading strategy that began trading on a proprietary basis using VIX ETPs in October 2011. In 2013, Mike began trading the strategy directly in the futures market for the proprietary trading desk of ED&F Man Ltd and as a Commodity Trading Advisor, first as a principal of Advocate Asset Management LLC and subsequently for Typhon Capital Management LLC. In 2015, Mike reconnected with his RIA roots in his role as Chief Investment Officer at Kaizen Advisory LLC, where he helped to launch the securities products currently managed by TCM.
Matt Thompson, CFA
BS in Economics, University of Illinois at Urbana/Champaign, ‘99
As Director of Research, Matt oversees TCM’s Volatility Dashboard and acts as co-portfolio manager on TCM’s strategies. Matt has over 20 years of capital markets and investing experience, focusing on futures trading with an emphasis on VIX-related exchange-traded products. Matt’s perspective and insights on risk, the VIX and the broader volatility ecosystem are sought after by peers and members of the financial press alike, with frequent contributions to articles in Barron’s, the Wall Street Journal and Reuters (view media). After his foundational experience at Northern Trust, Matt served in an analyst role at Envestnet before joining forces with his brother Mike as the head of operations at Premier Asset Management LLC, a $500M RIA in Chicago IL. Subsequently, Matt served in business development and financial modeling roles for a Chicago-based start-up derivatives exchange before being recruited to a family office in 2008 where he co-developed TCM’s Volatility Dashboard during the Financial Crisis. Matt subsequently traded the strategy directly in the futures market for the proprietary trading desk of ED&F Man Ltd and as a Commodity Trading Advisor, first as a principal of Advocate Asset Management LLC and subsequently for Typhon Capital Management LLC. In 2015, Matt reconnected with his RIA roots in his role as Director of Research at Kaizen Advisory LLC, where he was instrumental in launching the strategies currently managed by TCM.
Thomas W. Hines, CPA CFA
BS in Accounting, Marquette University MS in Taxation, University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee
Tom Hines is the Managing Director of Financial Planning at Thompson Capital Management. His primary responsibilities are providing independent, objective financial planning and asset management advice to the firm’s high net worth, family office and institutional clients. Tom is actively involved in investment manager research and due diligence and he is a member of the firm’s Investment Committee.
Prior to joining Thompson, Tom served as Vice President of Lowery Asset Consulting and Executive Vice President at a regional investment management firm. In addition, Tom was the National Director of Financial Planning at The Northern Trust Company and a tax partner at Ernst & Young in the financial planning group. He has been featured in Fortune Magazine, American Banker and in the Premier edition of Wealth Magazine.
Tom holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Accounting from Marquette University and a Master of Science in Taxation from the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee. Tom is a member of the AICPA, a CFA charter holder as well as being a member of the CFA Institute and the CFA Society of Chicago.
In his free time, Tom is an avid reader and likes to spend time with his wife and three children. Tom is also a member of the St. Thomas the Apostle finance committee as well as the high adventure coordinator for Boy Scout Troop 127 in Crystal Lake, IL. Tom has been blessed to have had the opportunity to persist through over 120 Triathlons including the Hawaii Ironman World Championship.