Katherine (Kate) Hyland Mercer founded Ferris Wheel Finance, Inc. as an independent financial planning and investment firm based in Venice, Florida. The firm's goal is to help clients make wise financial decisions through highly personalized service, depth and breadth of knowledge, trust, and integrity. With over 20 years in finance, engineering, and entrepreneurship, Kate brings a holistic perspective to the planning and educational process of investing and wealth management. Kate continually updates her knowledge in the many facets of the financial industry including securities, insurance, taxes, real estate, and other areas that affect client portfolios.
Prior to starting her own firm, Kate was a financial advisor with Wells Fargo Advisors and previously with Edward Jones Investments. Earlier in her career, she successfully founded and operated two consulting companies. Kate's technical and financial background allowed her to personally write the software code for the country's first online banking application for BayBank Financial Institution (now FleetBank), as well as the first hypothetical program for variable annuities and mutual fund performance simulation for financial advisors to use at Putnam Investments. Kate has taught graduate level courses at Harvard University, Boston University, and undergraduate courses at the University of Massachusetts. She has been proud to serve on the board of directors for multiple private companies.