ABOUT THIS EPISODE
We’re still surprised people did this but... 50+ founders worth $10M to $4B reveal their personal finances. Here it is: https://joinhampton.com/mw-wr
Why do we do this? Because if you’re an aspirational person or someone who runs a business and is making money, it’s incredibly challenging to figure out what to do. Information is impossible to find — and that’s what we put together: the net worth reveal and why we do this podcast, Moneywise.
His dad died with $133,000. Now he’s worth $35 million, and his life is optimized for moments of financial generosity.
Adam Katz is a wealth advisor to venture-backed founders who’s as rich as the people he advises. His dad was a guidance counselor in the Bronx who made $48,000 after 31 years and died with $133,000. Adam didn’t board a plane until he was 16. He cold-called his way into Merrill Lynch, left to start a multifamily office, sold it to one of the largest non-bank wealth managers in the world, and now sits on a net worth somewhere between $25M and $50M. He asked his kids to guess the number. One said $8M. The other said $75M.
This episode gets into exactly where that money sits (75% illiquid, 30 K-1s, 20% in cash on purpose), the mortgage move he and most of his clients use to deduct every dollar of interest, and a full walkthrough of his $1M annual spend: $300K on vacations, $150K in donations, $100K at restaurants with $35K of it in tips. He explains his tipping system, why he tipped $2,000 on a $3,000 bill, the $33K mattress, the $200K watch, and the “three-digit rule” that reshaped how I think about giving.
Also, this podcast is made by Hampton, which is a community for founders doing on average $25 million a year in revenue. We saw a lot of these money conversations happening privately behind closed doors and we thought, “What the heck, let’s make it public.” If you are a founder, apply here: http://joinhampton.com/mw
Timestamps:
00:00 — Cold open: a dad who died with $133K, a son worth $35M, and two kids who guessed $8M and $75M
01:16 — What Adam does and why a wealth advisor is as wealthy as his clients
02:31 — Growing up in the Bronx: “I used to think luxury for an automobile was a headrest in the back”
04:43 — First plane at 16, first time his feet touched sand at 24
05:17 — Cold-calling the white pages into Merrill Lynch: a $50K job vs. his dad’s $48K after 31 years
08:37 — Leaving Merrill, building a multifamily office, and selling it
09:53 — “Raising kids in a Zillow world”: the $125K safari and the net worth guessing game
11:40 — The balance sheet: 75% illiquid, 60–65% equities, 10% private credit, 30 K-1s
14:16 — Why he’s sitting on 20% cash and spends all $1M of his after-tax income every year
16:33 — The mortgage move: buy with cash, take the loan after, deduct 100% of the interest
19:28 — “You’re either going to get paid on time or over time”: how he picks private credit
22:23 — Vacations as a line item, and why you have to explain your why
24:00 — The whole family flies first class, and the three-digit rule
26:30 — 6 to 8 trips a year, $250–300K: South Africa, Iceland, Galapagos, Thailand
29:00 — He reads the last page of his book: the scarcity seesaw
31:37 — $100K at restaurants this year, $35K of it in tips
33:24 — The tipping system: $25 breakfast, $50 lunch, $100 dinner, only 20s and 100s in his pocket
35:27 — The $33K mattress and $100 to each delivery guy: “If I don’t know what I have in my pocket, I don’t have the right to keep it there”
37:00 — A $2,000 tip on a $3,000 bill
38:06 — $400–500K donated, renovating the synagogue, and 1,000 people asked to stand
40:20 — The $37K all-inclusive and the $250-a-day tip epiphany
42:00 — 13 years on an Apple Watch, the Rolex his wife chased for nine months, the $200K “house watch”
47:23 — The full annual spend: mortgages, taxes, vacations, food, donations, shopping, $45K liability insurance
50:43 — The Alpina green BMW and the bell curve of consumption
52:13 — Die with $600M or $800M? “I don’t meet anyone that actually cares”
53:06 — The legacy plan, the roach apartment, and being “supportive, not overly enabling”
54:35 — Threshold number: $20–25M throwing off $1M a year
57:28 — Daniel’s takeaway: the three-digit rule works at $20 too
Sponsors:
Silvia, your personal AI CFO. Bring your investments, cash, property, and debt into one view and get answers built around your finances, your family, and creating generational wealth. https://www.cfosilvia.com/moneywise
Daily Body Coach - achieve your dream body with https://moneywise.dailybodycoach.com
Subscribe to Moneywise: https://www.youtube.com/@themoneywisepodcast
Follow Daniel on X: https://x.com/danielcberk
Listen on Spotify / Apple Podcasts: [search “Moneywise Hampton”]
