Meet Our Team of Castellans

Our team's sole purpose is to steward your finances and assets. 
Get to know each castellan below.

Private Equity Team

Barry Brauch

Managing Director

Barry started his career at Deloitte & Touche as a CPA. He went on to hold a variety of senior finance and division CFO roles at Fifth Third Bancorp. In 2008, Barry led a recap of American Founders Bancorp partnering with Hillstreet Capital and became the CEO in 2012. A second recap and restructuring in 2015 delivered a 3x return to Hillstreet. A sale of the bank in 2018 returned 9x to equity holders. Barry co-founded Castellan in 2018.

 

Sean Smith

Entrepreneur Advisors

Sean is a serial entrepreneur in the healthcare tech industry, having co-founded several leading-edge businesses in cost management, fintech, and data analytics. The companies Sean founded have been listed in the Inc. 500 and Inc. 5000 multiple times. Sean was named E&Y Entrepreneur of the year, along with his brother Scott, in 1998. Sean co-founded Castellan and is active in deal sourcing and the Investment Committee.

Scott Smith

Entrepreneur Advisors

Scott, along with his brother Sean, is the co-founder of several highly successful companies in the healthcare tech industry. His leadership at the predecessor company to what is now Zelis Healthcare was instrumental in its current multi-billion dollar valuation. Scott now spends much of his time furthering the efforts of Castellan as a co-founder, helping the team build a network to increase deal flow and grow the portfolio companies.

 

 

Nate Kibby

Vice President

Nate.Kibby@castellangroup.com

Nate joined Castellan in 2022 after completing his MBA at The University of Chicago Booth School of Business. Nate’s responsibilities include deal sourcing, due diligence, and closing all venture capital investments in the healthcare technology sector. Prior to Chicago Booth, Nate spent three years in investment banking as an M&A Associate and three years with Northern Trust as a Senior Consultant in the leveraged loans group.

Camden Booker

Senior Associate

Camden Booker is a senior associate on the investment team, where his focus is on private direct investments in early and growth-stage businesses in the healthcare, financial technology, green technology & recycling, and restaurant spaces. He is involved with all aspects of the investment management process, including research, sourcing, structuring, due diligence, and post-transaction monitoring and management.

 

Investment Strategy Team

Kevin Storn

Portfolio Manager

Kevin is the Chief Investment Officer for Castellan, where he manages developers to build analysis software and automated trading systems. He is also the portfolio manager for Structured Notes, Dividend Growth, and Options strategies. Kevin received his M.B.A. from the University of Cincinnati, concentrating in Finance. He graduated from the University of Kentucky with a degree in Engineering. After spending ten years as a Software Engineer working on jet engines and cell phones, Kevin caught the entrepreneurial bug and opened a movie theater restaurant on the east side of Cincinnati. He then worked as a Project Manager for Cincinnati Bell, Pyramid Controls, and RoundTower Technologies before joining Castellan in the Fall of 2019.

Ben Davison

Quantitative Analyst

Ben is an analyst for Castellan on the public investments team. He has completed significant work in financial engineering, econometrics, and forecasting/modeling. His work at Castellan primarily focuses on quantitative research, strategy development, and data analysis. Ben contributes to several software projects, including construction & management of database software and web tools for derivatives strategies.

Operations and Family Office Team

Shannon Bradbury

Director of Operations

Shannon performs the dual roles of Chief Operating Officer and Chief Compliance Officer for Castellan. She graduated from Eastern Kentucky University with a B.A. in Paralegal Science. Shannon started her career at Fifth Third Bancorp. She spent the next seventeen years in the Wealth Management Division initially in the estate settlement department, then joined the high net worth department in Cincinnati, OH. After twelve years, Shannon relocated to the Lexington, Kentucky office where she provided an array of wealth management services to high net worth clients including: relationship building, risk management, short/long term planning, retirement services, life insurance trusts, 1031 exchanges for real estate and equine, tax support, family foundations, and management. In 2006, Shannon joined a registered investment advisor firm, E.S. Barr & Company, as Chief Compliance Officer.  Moving to Castellan was a natural transition to utilize her thirty years of experience to focus on ultra-high net worth families.

Kate Ponder

Operations Associate

Kate provides client services, back-office operational and compliance support. She graduated with a B.A. in Anthropology from Mount Holyoke College where she also completed majors in Mathematics and Biological Sciences, played Division 3 Field Hockey, and captained her Lacrosse team. She has provided front and back-office client and trade support at such financial institutions as The Bank of New York, Merrill Lynch, Washington Mutual Capital Corp., Smith Barney, and Morgan Stanley. Kate joined the Castellan Group in April 2021.

Get In Touch

We can be your modern-day castellan. Contact us today for the best management and protection of your castle’s assets.

Main Office
201 E Jefferson St.
Suite 150
Louisville, Kentucky 40202

South Florida Office
1061 E Indiantown Rd
Suite 309
Jupiter, Florida 33477

Castellan Group