Centaurus Financial is a dual-registered firm based in Anaheim, CA, that holds a 45.0/100 Fidelon TransparencyScore (th percentile), with 562 registered advisors. Score based on public SEC and FINRA filings.
Centaurus Financial
Centaurus Financial, INC. · CRD #30833
A dual-registered firm offering both advisory and brokerage services.
Fidelon Fact Sheet
Centaurus Financial, Inc. is an investment adviser in Anaheim, California. It charges asset-based fees and fixed fees. The firm does not earn commissions. It manages investment portfolios and helps with financial planning. It also offers private and alternative investments. The firm has a retail client base. It has regulatory disclosures on file. The SEC, FINRA, and state regulators have taken action. The most recent action was in 2023.
Peer Context
How This Firm Works
Registration & Standard of Care
Dual-Registered — this firm operates as both an investment adviser (fiduciary) and a broker-dealer. Some services come with fiduciary protection, while brokerage services may involve commissions.
How This Firm Gets Paid
- Charges a percentage of assets under management
- Charges fixed fees for specific services
- Representatives can earn commissions on product sales
What you’d pay
Your balance falls in the All accounts band, charged at 2.25% on the full amount.
This fee is negotiable
Centaurus Financial, INC. states in its Form ADV that advisory fees may be negotiated.
From their Form ADV Part 2A. Most investors never ask.
Not included above
- • In addition to the wrap fee, depending on the program selected, additional charges such as custodial fees, transfer fees, internal fund fees, TPMM investment management fees and other administrative and operational-related fees may be assessed against the account. These charges are separate and apart from the wrap fee assessed against the account. Information regarding additional fees and expenses is available in the investment advisory agreement for the program selected along with the custodial fee schedule, prospectus or other fee-disclosure document for the particular security or party assessing the charge. Certain investments held within an advisory account such as mutual funds, UITs or ETFs may have internal expenses in addition to other fees for the account. Many mutual funds that CFI makes available to clients for investment are categorized into different share classes. Each share class represents an interest in the same portfolio of securities. Some of these share classes pay a 12b-1 fee to the custodian in which securities are held. A 12b-1 fee is derived from the fund’s assets and is paid for shareholder services, distribution and marketing expenses. Share classes that pay a 12b-1 fee generally have a higher cost than those classes that do not. As a result, a lower return may be realized from the investment if the IAR recommends a higher-cost share class when a lower-cost share class is otherwise available. CFI offers products from Pershing’s Fundvest® mutual fund platform, which features no-transaction-fee (“NTF”) mutual fund (e.g., no trading commissions, no front-end sales loads, no deferred sales charges). Once certain asset thresholds of Fundvest® mutual funds are met, CFI has the ability to receive revenue-sharing fees from Pershing related to certain Fundvest® investments. CFI offers a cash “sweep” program to clients who hold accounts at Pershing, our clearing firm. A cash sweep program enables clients to choose to automatically move uninvested free credit balances in certain brokerage and advisory accounts to a money market mutual fund or interest-bearing FDIC-insured bank deposit program. CFI receives third-party payments based on the amount of deposits held in the Cash Sweep Program through Pershing. These payments are generally referred to as “distribution assistance” and are paid based on CFI’s role in administering and complying with the terms of the program. For the money market fund option, CFI may be entitled to receive up to 55 basis points, or 0.55%, of the assets held in the money market fund by CFI clients. For the FDIC-insured bank deposit program, CFI is entitled to be paid a portion of the gross interest rate payable to clients by the depository institutions based on the underlying individual account balance held in the bank deposit program. Pursuant to CFI’s Clearing Agreement with Pershing, CFI receives payments deemed “transition credits” of up to $75 per retail and retirement account transferred onto the Pershing clearing platform after previously being held at other clearing firms or custodians. In an effort to provide a broad range of account options, certain advisory programs that are not “wrap fee” programs include a charge for individual transactions or “trades” in the account in addition to the advisory fee charged to the account. CFI receives compensation for each trade. Depending on the selection chosen in the advisory agreement for these programs, the transaction charges are billed to either the IAR or the client. CFI receives compensation through strategic marketing arrangements with several third-party money managers. These payments are designed to compensate CFI for the cost of providing services, such as marketing and events. Due to the additional resources required for the operational efforts, servicing, reporting, account maintenance and ongoing research required to select and maintain certain non-traded alternative investments, such as perpetual life REITs, CFI generally only makes available share classes that pay a service fee (generally up to 25 basis points, 1/4 of 1%) on total assets placed in the non-traded alternative investment by CFI client accounts (“Dealer Servicing Fee”). Tax Overlay Management (“Tax Overlay”) services are also available for an additional fee.
Estimated from the firm’s Form ADV Part 2A brochure — not a quote. Actual fees are set in your agreement and may differ. Costs charged by others (custodians, fund managers) are not included.
What This Firm Charges
| Account Size | Annual Fee |
|---|---|
| All accounts | 2.25% |
Billed monthly in arrears for most programs; monthly or quarterly in arrears or advance for aa & vl
Extracted from Form ADV Part 2A brochure
Specializations
Extracted from Form ADV Part 2A brochure
Who They Typically Serve
Extracted from Form ADV Part 2A brochure
Key Findings
Strengths
- Registered as investment adviser with fiduciary obligation
Things You Should Know
- Also operates as a broker-dealer — may not always be required to put your interests first
- 26 regulatory complaints reported by FINRA
- $5.6M in regulatory fines
Conflict Audit
Multiple structural conflicts identified in regulatory filings. These are disclosed business arrangements — worth asking about, not disqualifying.
Source: Form ADV Part 1, Items 6-8; Part 2A, Items 10-14
What this firm says about how it gets paid
“You will be charged more when there are more trades in your account. This creates a conflict in that we may have a financial incentive for you to trade more often.”
“Compensation we receive from third parties when we recommend or sell certain investments.”
Source: the firm’s own Form CRS, filed 2026-07-28 — quoted directly
Regulatory Track Record
26
Disclosures
$5.6M
Total Fines
Regulatory Events
TransparencyScore Dimensions
Disclosure Record
Customer complaints, arbitrations, and fines. Frequency and recency matter.
25/100
Poor
Avg for dual-registered firms: 66.8 | Top 10%: 97.2
Filing Quality
How clearly the firm describes services, fees, and investment approach in regulatory filings.
81/100
Strong
Avg for dual-registered firms: 70.4 | Top 10%: 80.7
Conflict Disclosure
How openly the firm explains who pays it and what it's paid to sell. The conflict isn't the problem — hiding it is.
73/100
Fair
Avg for dual-registered firms: 62.2 | Top 10%: 79.3
Enforcement History
Past actions taken by the SEC, FINRA, or state regulators, and how well the firm supervised its people.
0/100
Poor
Avg for dual-registered firms: 59.6 | Top 10%: 86.5
Next Steps
Advisor Roster
562 advisors
| Advisor | CRD | Score | Grade |
|---|---|---|---|
| Kevin Michael Ferm | 4877766 | — | — |
| Roger Neil Walker | 5715047 | — | — |
| Brendan Turelli | 6771027 | — | — |
| Dylan Gregory Callahan | 8007393 | — | — |
| Dillan Joe Micus | 4102466 | — | — |
| Adam Brett Simon | 2524249 | — | — |
| Kevin Lee | 3143283 | — | — |
| James Orth Davis | 1530880 | — | — |
| Joanna Dawn McComsey | 3101022 | — | — |
| Bradford Daniel Creger | 2415028 | — | — |
Marketing Brands137 brands
Names advisors at this firm use when marketing to clients
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Frequently Asked Questions
What does the TransparencyScore measure?
The TransparencyScore measures how clearly and completely an advisor or firm discloses important information in their regulatory filings — things like fees, conflicts of interest, disciplinary history, and business practices. A higher score means better disclosure quality, not better investment performance.
Where does this data come from?
All data comes from public regulatory filings: SEC Form ADV (Parts 1, 2, and 3), FINRA BrokerCheck, and the SEC's Investment Adviser Public Disclosure (IAPD) database. These are official filings that firms and advisors are legally required to submit.
Does a low score mean they're a bad advisor?
Not necessarily. A low score means the firm's public filings are less transparent — they may use vague language about fees, skip details about conflicts, or have a more complex regulatory history. Some excellent advisors work at firms with poor disclosure practices. The score measures the filing, not the person.
What does dual registration mean for me?
It means your advisor can act as a fiduciary (putting your interests first) for some services and as a broker (suitability standard) for others. The key question to ask: 'For this specific recommendation, are you acting as my fiduciary?' Get the answer in writing.
How often is this data updated?
Fidelon refreshes data from SEC and FINRA sources on a regular schedule. Form ADV filings are updated annually by firms (with amendments throughout the year), and BrokerCheck data is updated as events are reported. Scores are recalculated after each data refresh.
Can an advisor or firm improve their score?
Yes. Scores are based on what's in public filings. A firm that rewrites its ADV brochure in clearer language, discloses conflicts more specifically, or resolves outstanding regulatory issues will see its score improve at the next refresh. The incentive structure is intentional.
Data Sources
Scores are generated using Fidelon's published scoring methodology and reflect the quality of public disclosures, not the quality of investment advice. A firm that improves its disclosures will see its score improve. Fidelon does not provide investment advice.
Verify on SEC IAPD · FINRA BrokerCheck
Last scored: · Score version: 3.8 · CRD #30833