R. Adam Smith

R. Adam Smith is a Global strategic advisor, author, deal maker, family office expert, and financier to private companies. Veteran on board of directors since 2002. Trusted consigliere to single family offices, investors, founders, boards, CEOs. Repeat entrepreneur, board member, founder, general partner, philanthropist.

Adam is a leading global expert in private company finance, family offices, and strategy, having served as an investor, advisor, and/or financier to over fifty venture and private equity-backed companies since the mid-1990s. Adam has participated in several billions of transaction value in his professional career, beginning in 1993, including almost a billion of his own.

Adam is one of the world’s leading family enterprise experts - an expert across many elements of the family firm, family office, and family enterprise global ecosystem. Adam advises elite global single family offices and super entrepreneurs in their investment, strategy, balance sheet, governance and legacy matters.

Adam is the founder, creator, and owner of a fast growing digital expert content media company comprised of the Family Business Audiocast (launched 2022) and sister newsletter, Family Business Chronicle (launched 2024) - the platform is now a global leader covering the family enterprise industry.

Adam is a special advisor to the Avestix Group, the alternative investing activities led by a U.S., women-led, single family office.

Adam was recently Vice Chairman of Salomon Brothers, covering hundreds of family office and private equity relationships focused on buy-side and sell-side global mergers and acquisitions solutions. 

Through private equity partnerships he has directly led and/or sponsored since 2002, Adam has invested in over a dozen privately-held companies (including seven acquisitions) with a combined $600 million in sales and over $250 million of contributed equity invested capital, while also forming and serving on the Board of Directors, or Advisory Boards, of each company.

In 2002, Adam founded Circle Peak Capital LLC, a private investment merchant banking partnership which served tens of limited partners with over $50 million in direct equity investments over time. The partnership is based in NYC, controlled by a private holding company, RAS Capital Partners LLC. Circle Peak Capital was one of the most active independent sponsor private equity investors of the decade.

Adam’s early career was built on Wall Street, starting in 1993, holding positions at top firms including Salomon Brothers Inc., J.P. Morgan, and Lehman Brothers Inc.

Adam is married and a proud father of three children, is active in foreign affairs, the arts, design, and is an avid collector.