Profile
From NFL rookie to boutique investment advisor
Becoming a boutique investment advisor was not exactly in the cards for Christian Richards III. The former Division I athlete is now president and founder of Richards, Lathrop & Associates, the wealth management firm he co-founded with business partner Michael Lathrop in February 2026.
Richards attributes the firm’s success to the relationships he has cultivated with clients. “I know that it is only because of my clients’ trust and confidence that has propelled us to being a $110 million firm within our first year,” he says.
An unlikely path to wealth management
Richards played college football at the University of Michigan and Stony Brook University before his rookie season in the NFL introduced him to the idea of a career in financial services. “It was an experience where I realized that I could be an advocate for individuals who came from similar backgrounds and environments as I grew up in,” he says.
Within a year of deciding to pursue the industry, he had earned his tax preparation, insurance, Series 7, and Series 66 licenses, then worked his way up from operations manager to trader, associate advisor, junior advisor, and senior advisor before founding his own firm.
9870 Research Drive, Irvine, CA 9261
818 392 4164
chris@richardslathrop.com
linkedin.com/in/christian-richards-iii-2a885a89
richardslathrop.com
Christian Richards III
President and Senior Wealth Advisor
Richards, Lathrop & Associates
Read on
Special Report
Home
Bio
Milestones
2011–2014
2014–2016
2017–2022
2022–2025
Present
Investment Advisor Associate
2011–2014
Operations Manager and Trader
2014–2016
2017–2022: Portfolio Manager and Associate Advisor
2021: Investment Advisory
2017–2022
Senior Wealth Advisor
2022–2025
President of Richards, Lathrop & Associates
Present
Milestones
“My main goal is to be better every single day”
Christian Richards, Richards, Lathrop & Associates
“I know that it is only because of my clients’ trust and confidence that has propelled us to being a $110 million firm within our first year”
Christian Richards, Richards, Lathrop & Associates
From drawback to advantage
He considers his nontraditional path his greatest professional strength, and Richards notes it is part of what makes him a bespoke financial advisor rather than someone following an industry script.
“I think my greatest attribute as a financial advisor is the fact that I do not have the traditional background of an advisor,” he says. “I come from an area of Los Angeles County where most people fall on the lower end of the socioeconomic scale. I do not have a background in finance, and my professional background was in athletics.”
That difference, for Richards, is exactly what lets him connect with clients. “While this isn’t the traditional makeup of a financial advisor, I have found that it has made me able to relate to the clients I serve on a personal level.”
“Service First” before scale
Every advisor at Richards, Lathrop & Associates operates under a “Service First” principle. “A principle of my firm is that we work for our clients,” Richards says. He describes the firm’s approach to holistic investment management as one built around client outcomes rather than scale. That philosophy is part of why he and Lathrop left a top 10 firm to strike out on their own.
Richards traces that belief to his mentor, David Meltzer, who gave him opportunities and guided him early in his career. Meltzer remains someone he still turns to today. “If I needed him, I could always call,” he says.
Being named to InvestmentNews’ Rising Stars 2026 list is an accomplishment Richards is extremely proud of, though it hasn’t changed how he operates. “My parents raised my siblings and me to always be thinking about what comes next,” he says. “My main goal is to be better every single day.”