Michael Karsa

Next-Gen + Best-in-State · rank 11 · Chicago, Illinois · listed firm: Lido Advisors

Identity & firm

• Firm — Lido Advisors, LLC (high)
  • “"currentIAEmployments": [{"firmId": 269866, "firmName": "LIDO", "iaOnly": "Y", "registrationBeginDate": "1/22/2016"” — sec_finra_regulatory
  • “Michael Karsa Senior Managing Director, President, Midwest & Arizona Chicago, IL” — firm_official
• Parent company — independent (high)
  • “Greg Kushner founded Lido Advisors in 1999 after years advising families with complex financial needs within a consortium of family offices.” — firm_official
  • “We were built from within a family office, not from a brokerage or a bank.” — firm_official
• Firm type — independent_ria (high)
  • “"currentIAEmployments": [{"firmId": 269866, "firmName": "LIDO", "iaOnly": "Y", "registrationBeginDate": "1/22/2016", "firmBCScope": "NOTINSCOPE", "firmIAScope": "ACTIVE"” — sec_finra_regulatory
  • “We don’t earn commissions. We don’t sell products. And we offer full transparency about our fees and any potential conflicts of interest.” — firm_official
• Team name — gap: not_found_after_search
• Team size — 20 (medium)
  • “He opened Lido’s Chicago office solo in September of 2015, and he has grown the team to over 20 advisors managing over $4 billion**.” — firm_official
• CRD — 6069477 (high)
  • “"basicInformation": {"individualId": 6069477, "firstName": "MICHAEL", "middleName": "JOSEPH", "lastName": "KARSA"” — sec_finra_regulatory
• Years experience — 13 (high)
  • “"daysInIndustryCalculatedDateIAPD": "3/2/2013"” — sec_finra_regulatory
• Designations — — (high)
  • “Education & Certifications B.B.A., Finance, University of Iowa” — firm_official

Book of business

• Team AUM ($M) — 4100 (high)
  • “{"rank":10,"firm":"Lido Advisors","city":"Chicago","state":"Illinois","minAccountSize":"$1M","teamAssets":"$4.1B","typicalNetWorth":"$3.5-10M","typicalHouseholdSize":"$2-20M"}” — forbes_shook
  • “He opened Lido’s Chicago office solo in September of 2015, and he has grown the team to over 20 advisors managing over $4 billion**.” — firm_official
• Account minimum ($M) — 1 (high)
  • “"Minimum account size for new business":"$1M"” — forbes_shook
• Typical client net worth ($M) — 6.75 (high)
  • “"Typical Net Worth of Relationships":"$3.5-10M"” — forbes_shook
• Client niche — entrepreneurs, executives and multigenerational families needing family-office-style coordination (medium)
  • “Since the beginning, we have served entrepreneurs, executives, and multigenerational families who require complex wealth management solutions and unbiased advice to grow and preserve their wealth.” — firm_official
  • “Mike was a lead financial advisor for a boutique hybrid advisory firm specializing in tax planning and alternative investments for affluent families.” — firm_official
• Custodians — Charles Schwab, Fidelity (low)
  • “Client assets are held with leading third-party custodians including Charles Schwab and Fidelity, among others.” — firm_official
• Fee model — aum_fee (high)
  • “We don’t earn commissions. We don’t sell products. And we offer full transparency about our fees and any potential conflicts of interest.” — firm_official

Positioning & marketing

• Website url — https://www.lidoadvisors.com/team/michael-karsa (high)
  • “Michael Karsa Senior Managing Director, President, Midwest & Arizona Chicago, IL LinkedIn” — firm_official
• Value proposition (verbatim) — Mike’s vision is to help his clients achieve peace of mind through trust, communication, and investment strategies that seek consistent, durable returns. (high)
  • “Mike’s vision is to help his clients achieve peace of mind through trust, communication, and investment strategies that seek consistent, durable returns.” — firm_official
  • “Mike was inspired to become a trusted advisor after his parents struggled to navigate the 2008 Financial Crisis.” — firm_official
• Differentiators — Family office heritage — built inside a family office, not a brokerage or bank, In-house proprietary investment strategies rather than outsourcing to third-party managers, Institutional-level access to private markets with lowered minimums, Fee-only fiduciary: no commissions, no product sales, Coordinated advice across investment, tax, estate and planning specialists (high)
  • “We were built from within a family office, not from a brokerage or a bank. That origin shapes how we think: long-term, coordinated, and always client-centered.” — firm_official
  • “Rather than outsourcing your portfolio to third-party managers, Lido primarily implements proprietary investment strategies in-house. This gives us greater control, deeper transparency, and more leverage over fees.” — firm_official
• Content marketing — none (low)
  • “Professional Summary Mike’s vision is to help his clients achieve peace of mind through trust, communication, and investment strategies that seek consistent, durable returns.” — firm_official
• Has podcast — no (low)
  • “The search results did not specifically mention appearances on AdvisorHub, InvestmentNews, Barron's, podcasts, or webinars.” — firm_official
• Books published — 0 (low)
  • “Education & Certifications B.B.A., Finance, University of Iowa” — firm_official
• Linkedin url — https://www.linkedin.com/in/michaelkarsa/ (medium)
  • “Michael Karsa - Lido Advisors, LLC | LinkedIn” — social_or_third_party_db
• Social presence — linkedin_active (low)
  • “Michael Karsa Senior Managing Director, President, Midwest & Arizona Chicago, IL LinkedIn” — firm_official
• Press awards — Forbes 2025 Top Next-Gen Wealth Advisors — #1 Chicago, #10 nationally, Forbes 2026 Best-In-State Wealth Advisors — #11 Chicago, Illinois, Youngest Managing Director in Lido Advisors history (January 2020) (medium)
  • “Mike was nationally ranked in Forbes’ 2025 Top Next-Gen Wealth Advisors as #1 in Chicago, Illinois and #10 nationally. He was also ranked #11 among all high net worth wealth advisors in Chicago, Illinois by Forbes in 202” — firm_official
  • “He joined Lido in 2015, and in January 2020, he became the youngest Managing Director in the firm’s history.” — firm_official

Visual brand

• Has distinct logo — no (high)
  • “” — firm_official
• Logo url — https://www.lidoadvisors.com/wp-content/themes/lido-advisors/img/brand/logo.svg (high)
  • “” — firm_official
• Visual brand notes — Navy-and-white corporate palette, modern sans-serif type, restrained SVG service icons; uniform studio headshots on light backgrounds. Nautical-harbor naming story, no estate or lifestyle photography on advisor profiles. (medium)
  • “Our name traces back to the original Lido, a narrow strip of land that shelters and protects the harbor of Venice, Italy. That image resonated: sheltering and protecti” — firm_official
  • “” — firm_official

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