Michael Fontanini

Advanced Planning & Design

Michael Fontanini, MT, CFP®, TPCP®, AEP®, CLU® is Senior Vice President, Advanced Planning and Design with Lion Street, Inc., a national network of fiercely independent life insurance and wealth management advisors.  Michael specializes in developing sophisticated life insurance solutions to meet the sophisticated needs of the high-net-worth and corporate & business clients of the 225+ Lion Street Firms nationwide, and mentors a team of four design analysts.  He is widely recognized as a leading authority in advanced life insurance planning for high-net-worth individuals and business owners, and is frequently consulted by tax and legal professionals on life insurance taxation and strategic design.

Prior to Lion Street, Michael’s background consists of diverse experience with several life insurance companies in the areas of personal financial planning, life insurance product development and advanced planning.  He has earned a Master of Taxation (MT) Degree with an Estate Planning Certificate through the Graduate Tax Program of Villanova University Charles Widger School of Law/Villanova School of Business, the designations of CERTIFIED FINANCIAL PLANNER (CFP®) from the CFP Board, Tax Planning Certified Professional (TPCP®) from The American College, ACCREDITED ESTATE PLANNER (AEP®) from the National Associate of Estate Planners and Councils, and Chartered Life Underwriter (CLU®) from The American College.  He has a FINRA series 7 and 26 registration, is a current member of the Estate Tax Working Group committee for Finseca (the preeminent political advocacy organization for the Financial Security Profession), which advises Finseca and its lobbyists on estate tax policy considerations to help inform its legislative advocacy strategy, and a past member of the Advanced Sales Committee for LIMRA.  Michael is from Des Moines, IA and currently resides in Austin, TX.

Chelsea Graf

Contracting & Licensing

Chelsea Graf is the Manager of Lion Street’s Contracting and Licensing department, where she and her team provide support and guidance to financial professionals on establishing the required contracting and carrier appointments to conduct business with Lion Street. She has been working in the insurance industry since a high school internship that sparked her interest in the field. Over the course of the last 20 years, Chelsea has worked with firms and agents across the country in most aspects of the behind-the-scenes detail work that is essential to their success, including commissions, contracting, licensing and new business processing. She holds California Life and Health Agent licenses.

Tiffany Hyde

Head of Underwriting

Tiffany Hyde has led Lion Street’s Underwriting Division since 2012, where she provides oversight to underwriting efforts, new firm selection, vendor relationships and strategic initiatives. Her additional areas of expertise include reinsurance staging and negotiations, foreign nationals, complex medical history, advanced case design, product selection and premium finance. Active in the life insurance industry since 1990, Hyde has served in various leadership capacities for prominent companies including U.S. Financial, Mutual of Omaha and Voya. She also brings considerable medical knowledge from her previous career in nursing.

Passionate about continuing education, Tiffany has earned her FALU designation and currently teaches underwriting courses of all levels for hundreds of field office staff across the country. Tiffany participates in several industry groups, serving on the committee of the Texas-Wide Underwriting Conference. She is also a member of the American Academy of Insurance Medicine and is a regular contributor on trends and innovations within underwriting and the life insurance industry.

David Janacek

Advisor Compensation

Dave “D.J.” Janecek has oversight for operational efficiencies between Lion Street, its firms and supporting carriers, with special emphasis on compensation, contracting and carrier relations. D.J. has over 40 years of insurance industry experience with various wholesalers and distribution companies. As one of the original Lion Street employees, D.J. was previously with Partners Financial, a division of NFP, holding various positions in operations, marketing, case design and new business. D.J. earned a Bachelor of Business Administration in business management from the University of Texas and holds the Chartered Life Underwriter® (CLU) and Chartered Financial Consultant® (ChFC) designations from The American College.

Aaron Lemoine

Carrier Relationships

Aaron Lemoine, Vice President of Carrier Relationships, is responsible for Lion Street’s carrier management and partnership strategy, helping to drive growth and maximize revenue opportunities. Aaron has been in the financial services industry for more than 10 years. His work in a variety of roles helps him understand the many aspects of distribution. Prior to Lion Street, Aaron held multiple roles at NFP Securities, Inc. (now Kestra Financial) where he worked closely with financial advisors. Aaron attended Lamar University where he studied financial accounting.

Lisa Lombardo

Case Management

Lisa Lombardo is Lion Street’s Director of New Business Operations and Case Management, working directly with firms in receiving, processing, and managing formal and informal business from submission to paid for over 20 carriers. Lisa partners closely with each case manager, carrier, and vendor to establish successful working relationships in order to secure a smooth policy experience. She recognizes that a cohesive team approach adds value to the company, since all are working together toward a common goal. Lisa has been with Lion Street since 2013 and has been in the financial services industry for over 30 years, holding various roles including licensing and contracting, sales support, production reporting, commissions, and case management in both BGA and career environments.

Dan Stanley

Life Operations

Dan Stanley brings more than 30 years of life insurance experience to Lion Street. Dan has run operations for several insurance carriers and distributors, with specific expertise in finding solutions to optimize the customer experience. Dan has held several key roles over the years: Vice President of Operations at Ash Brokerage, Vice President of Underwriting at Partners Financial, and Director of Operations at ING. In addition, Dan spent seven years managing one of Lion Street’s most successful Firms, IPS Advisors. This line of sight allows Dan to work closely with Lion Street Firms to find ways to improve the business model. Dan has the perfect combination of direct sales experience with high-net-worth clients, carrier underwriting, and operations. Dan served in the Marine Corps for six years and enjoys golf, traveling, and spending time with family.

Matt Veatch

Corporate & Business Solutions

Matt Veatch serves as Vice President of Corporate & Business Solutions for Lion Street.

With more than 25 years of experience in corporate executive benefit consulting, and specialized expertise in non-qualified plans and tailored corporate solutions, Matt designs and implements tailored solutions to help business owners address succession, retention, and benefit restoration objectives. He has worked with organizations ranging from Fortune 1000 companies to small privately held businesses and professional service firms.  Matt is a frequent industry speaker and has worked with insurance carriers on product design and application within the broad range of corporate executive benefits plans.

Prior to joining Lion Street, Matt founded and led a nationally recognized consulting practice, oversaw nonqualified plan and COLI market distribution for Pacific Life, and built corporate executive benefit divisions within leading brokerage and advisory firms.

He holds a bachelor’s degree from Kansas State University and holds his 6 and 63 FINRA registrations, as well as life and health insurance licenses.

Dan Stanley

Sales and Operations

Dan Stanley brings more than 30 years of life insurance experience to Lion Street. Dan has run operations for several insurance carriers and distributors, with specific expertise in finding solutions to optimize the customer experience. Dan has held several key roles over the years: Vice President of Operations at Ash Brokerage, Vice President of Underwriting at Partners Financial, and Director of Operations at ING. In addition, Dan spent seven years managing one of Lion Street’s most successful Firms, IPS Advisors. This line of sight allows Dan to work closely with Lion Street Firms to find ways to improve the business model. Dan has the perfect combination of direct sales experience with high-net-worth clients, carrier underwriting, and operations. Dan served in the Marine Corps for six years and enjoys golf, traveling, and spending time with family.