Dave Polhill

Dave started Core Values Wealth Management in 2023 and affiliated with Benjamin F Edwards in the fall of that year. He holds series 7, 31, and 66 securities licenses as well as life and variable annuity licenses. Prior to entering the financial services industry, Dave owned a temporary employment agency with offices in Belvidere, Rockford, Elgin and Milwaukee. After selling his company he decided to go back to school to finish an undergraduate degree in psychology which he had started working on prior to starting his business. After completing his degree, he went on to graduate school and in 2008 earned a Master of Business Administration (MBA) degree from the University of Illinois. It was during this course of study he discovered his passion for finance. This passion seemed apparent to his professors as well. His finance professor noted his surprise that a liberal arts major had the highest grades in the class. Dave had outscored the 71 other students in his cohort, most of whom came from math and engineering backgrounds. Dave says, “I majored in Psychology because I found human behavior interesting, and because I had spent some time in the Army as a psychological operations specialist prior to starting my business.” Running his own company introduced him to balance sheets and cash flow statements, but it wasn’t until he began formally studying finance at the University that he discovered economics, finance, and investing were his true passions. His econ professor, recognizing his talent, guaranteed him a spot in the PhD program, telling him he could make that guarantee because he was head of the selection committee; however, Dave felt working directly with people helping them invest and plan for retirement was his true calling.

After graduating from the University of Illinois he spent two years in the Morgan Stanley training program after which he took a position in the Chicago suburbs as a financial advisor with PNC Financial, a division of PNC Bank. In 2016 he was recruited by Fidelity Investments to open their Geneva Illinois branch where he spent almost 7 years and was promoted to the level of Vice President. After spending almost 7 years at Fidelity he left to pursue his dream of running his own asset management practice. In 2023 he formed Core Values Wealth Management and chose Benjamin F Edwards as the firm to host his practice. Dave says, “I chose BF Edwards because they provide the resources, capabilities, and the flexibility I need to offer the same money management solutions to my clients as I do for myself and my own family.”

Dave lives in Saint Charles with his wife Dayana and their son Noah (age 9 as of this publication). Dayana is a realtor with C21 in Aurora. She also manages their 9 rental units along with another small business she owns that operates in the residential/commercial cleaning industry. They enjoy attending Noah’s sporting events, vacationing at the beach in Dayana’s native country Panama, and spending time in their cabin in the Great Smoky Mountains.