Management

President/CEO, Founder

  Ricky Agosto is the Founder, President/CEO and of Aureus Partners, Inc., a financial sales and institutional marketing firm established in 2004. Aureus Partners has raised in excess of $9 billion in pension assets across over 70 institutional accounts and is dedicated exclusively to raising assets and expanding investor relationships for a select group of quality institutional investment management firms. Mr. Agosto is Chairman of Aureus Global Core Plus Real Estate Fund, an institutional global real estate fund of funds. Mr. Agosto was managing partner in KraneShares Fund advisors, a global Chinese opportunity ETF investment firm. 

Prior to founding Aureus Partners, Mr. Agosto was Vice-President of Harbor Capital Management where he established, expanded, and oversaw new business development. In addition Mr. Agosto was Senior Vice President of Fortis Investments where he was primarily responsible for overseeing the new business development and client relationships for the US institutional investment platform for the Fortis Group covering all public funds, endowments, and corporate pension funds. Mr. Agosto has over two decades of a proven record of success, in addition, to substantial experience and knowledge across a broad range of asset classes. 

J. David Wetzel,  MPAS, CPC, CFP, AAMS, QKA, QPA 

Vice President of Strategy Development

J. David Wetzel (Dave) has over 35 years of pension and investment consulting experience, Dave offers a unique perspective on investment consulting, addressing both the asset and liability side of the equation for institutional clients throughout the United States.  Dave’s work experience is supplemented with focused, technical training. Dave graduated from Western Michigan University in 1979 with a Bachelor of Business Administration (BBA) where his studies centered on Finance, Economics and Accounting. Supplementing is undergraduate work, he obtained his Masters of Science in Personal Financial Planning from the College for Financial Planning. Additionally, he holds the Master Planner Advanced Studies, Certified Pension Consultant, Certified Financial Planner, Accredited Asset Management Specialist, Qualified 401(k) Administrator and Qualified Pension Administrator designations.  Mr. Wetzel is a member of the Certified Financial Planner Board of Standards Inc. and the American Society of Pension Professionals and Actuaries. 

James Trainor, CIMA, CIS

Vice President of Strategy Consulting

James Trainor (JT) is a Managing Principal at Aureus Partners Inc. James has over 25 years of portfolio management experience in global equities and fixed income. James provides Aureus and its clients with a broad range of investment portfolio perspectives and investment expertise. 

Prior to joining Aureus, JT was a Managing Partner, Global Strategist & Senior Portfolio Manager for Newgate Capital Management, an investment boutique focused on institutional Global Emerging Markets, Global Fixed Income, and Global Natural Resources strategies. 

JT is distinguished speaker at numerous US and international investment conferences including; the Economist Group, the Investment Management Consultants Association, the Money Management Institute, Barron’s, the Wharton School, Morgan Stanley, UBS, Citibank, Smith Barney, Wells Fargo, Schwab, APIC and IBC. JT's areas of expertise included emerging markets, alternative investments, commodities, currencies, domestic and international fixed income, global water, alternative energy, and geopolitical/macro-economic trends. James holds a Bachelor of Science, Mechanical Engineering, University of Vermont, & MBA, Columbia University. James is a Certified Investment Management Analyst, The Wharton School and is a Certified Investment Strategist, New York University. 

Chief Financial Officer

 Mr. Gonzales provides executive leadership and direction for the Aureus Companies and affiliates. In addition, He is the CFO of the Aureus Global Core Plus Real Estate Fund Fund, LLC which entails regular interaction with lenders, equity partners, and other related parties. A Texas CPA , Mr. Gonzales brings finance, technology, and operations together to solve complex problems, drive growth, and operational efficiency for our clients and Aureus Partners development projects.   

Howard Heald

Managing Partner of Capital Markets

Howard Heald is responsible for the capital markets activities at Aureus Advisors, focusing on building equity relationships with institutional investors such as real estate funds, family offices, endowments/foundations/, sovereign wealth funds, pensions, and life companies. Howard has 38 years of experience in finance and investing in the acquisition/disposition, asset management, property management, and agency leasing of high-quality real estate assets. In addition to fundraising and assisting in developing growth strategies at Aureus, Howard also actively participates in investment analysis, asset management, and brand strategy across the firm. Howard is the President and Founder of Verador Property Management. Since 1986, Mr. Heald has been active in the ownership and operation of large Class A and B office buildings in major Texas cities. Mr. Heald served as a Presidential Advisor to the Texas Public Employees Retirement System (TEXPERS) Board of Directors.