Ross Van Houten's broad and deep background is exactly what a rapidly growing company wants in an advisor. Before joining Axcelus, he acted as the CEO of Freedom Cove, and is a Registered Investment Advisor, consulting with business owners and individuals to develop and implement effective strategies to accumulate, preserve and ultimately distribute their wealth. He holds a Juris Doctor (J.D.) law degree, an MBA with an emphasis in Financial Management and a BA in Political Science and Economics. Ross is a CERTIFIED FINANCIAL PLANNER™ professional and holds the Chartered Mutual Fund Counselor (CMFC®) designation.

Ross is a veteran in the banking and investment industry where he has worked with business owners and entrepreneurs to manage and grow their enterprises. He has held senior banking and investment management positions at several financial institutions including US Bancorp where he was the National Platform Investment Program Manager. This highly successful program, with over 1,500 investment professionals, provided investment services at US Bank branches covering 17 states. Ross was also a Regional Manager in the Licensed Personal Financial Representative program for WM Financial Services (the broker/dealer subsidiary of Washington Mutual Bank "WaMu"), managing investment sales in 8 Western states with over 400 licensed bankers and brokers.

In addition to US Bank and WaMu, Ross has held leadership positions at banks including American Federal Bank, MultiBanc Savings, Dallas Federal and Glendale Federal Bank. Ross also worked in the bank regulatory environment where he was a Supervisory Analyst for the Federal Home Loan Bank. Additionally, he helped found Elliott Cove Capital Management, a Seattle-based Registered Investment Advisor, and served as its Executive Vice President. He was also a Regional Vice President with Essex Corporation, a third-party investment and insurance marketing company.

Ross instructs graduate level finance courses for the University of Phoenix in the greater Seattle area, and recently joined the faculty of City University. His enthusiastic teaching style receives rave reviews from his students. During his career, Ross has provided financial product and sales training to thousands of bankers, brokers and insurance agents, assisting them to effectively develop their business.

Ross is active in a number of community groups, and has held leadership positions in Rotary Clubs, Chambers of Commerce and other community service organizations.