How LeCount Davis, history's first Black CFP, is still giving back

In a career that has spanned more than half a century, LeCount Davis has been the first to walk through many doors — and he's determined to leave them open for others.

Davis has been a wealth manager since 1970, when he started his own financial consulting firm. But it was eight years later that he began his career as a trailblazer: In 1978, he became the first African American to earn the certified financial planner (CFP) designation — widely considered the gold standard of wealth management certifications.

"I didn't know I was the first anything," Davis told the CFP Board years later. "I just did what was necessary to go to school, learn and pass the examinations."

Davis' modesty notwithstanding, this was a breakthrough for Black Americans in a profession that has historically been dominated by white men. Even today, 82.2% of CFPs are white, and only 1.9% are Black or African American, according to the CFP Board's latest data.

In spite of those tall odds, Davis excelled as a financial advisor. Equipped with his CFP designation, his roster of clients grew to include labor unions, pension funds, national organizations, religious groups, businesses and investment clubs.

"I found out how being a CFP propelled me into areas that I never would have gotten into if I had not been a CFP," Davis recalled.

One of those areas was the International Association for Financial Planning (IAFP), a precursor to the Financial Planning Association (FPA). There he was mentored by the president of IAFP's Washington, D.C. chapter at the time, Alexandra Armstrong.

"People just ignored the fact that I was there. No one came over except Alex," Davis told ThinkAdvisor in 2020. "She told me, 'When you come in, come in like you're supposed to be here. There's no need for you to feel like you don't belong.'"

When Armstrong stepped down, Davis rose to take her place — becoming the first Black president of an IAFP chapter. Years later, he won the organization's Lifetime Achievement Award.

But for Davis, it wasn't enough to achieve success in his own career. He was determined to help others in his community succeed in the same field. 

That's why, in 2001, Davis founded the Association of African American Financial Advisors (AAAA, or "Quad-A"). The nonprofit works to bring more Black professionals into wealth management, fostering their careers through education and advocacy.

And to pave the way for more African American CFPs, in 2022 Davis worked with the CFP Board to create a new scholarship. The LeCount R. Davis, CFP Endowed Scholarship program awards up to $5,000 per student to help aspiring planners study for the CFP exam. 

For Davis, it's a powerful way to help others accomplish what he did back in 1978.

"I've enjoyed a rewarding career as a financial planner since achieving CFP certification, and I believe financial planning is the solution to many of the socioeconomic problems in our community," Davis said as the CFP Board unveiled the scholarship. "It all starts with the knowledge of finance, and this scholarship will help students and young professionals see that you don't have to be born with a silver spoon in your mouth to make it in this world."

Read the other stories in this series: 

• Legendary role models whose achievements laid the foundation
• Stanley O'Neal's rise to top of Merrill was against all odds
• June Middleton made history on Wall Street, then left the industry
• Maggie Lena Walker triumphed in the Jim Crow era
• Gerald B. Smith blazed a trail in bonds