Joel Simkins of XST Capital Group, LLC, Joins Stonehaven’s Affiliate Platform.

We are excited to announce that Joel Simkins, CEO & Founder of XST Capital Group, has joined as an Affiliate Partner.

Mr. Joel Simkins is the CEO & Founder of XST Capital Group LLC (“XST” or the “Company”) and brings a reputation for trusted industry insights, market relationships, and a rare track record of success advising both sell-side and buy-side clients for more than 25 years across the land-based and digital gaming (casino) industries.

XST Capital Group was founded in 2024 and is focused on serving rapidly growing companies across the digital gaming industry offering M&A advice, capital raising solutions, and strategy (ex: corporate development). The Company’s approach seeks to harness the power of its broad network of strategic & institutional investor relationships along with deep industry thought leadership & insights to help clients expand their businesses.

Prior to his recent tenure at Houlihan Lokey, Mr. Simkins was Head of Gaming & Leisure investment banking at Truist Securities, growing its business from a nascent state in 2016 to a top-seven platform during his tenure through March 2022. He was the only sector coverage banker with experience in sell-side debt/equity research and buy-side investment management and one of a few successful former analysts to convert. Earlier, Mr. Simkins worked for Credit Suisse Securities, Macquarie Capital, and Deutsche Bank Securities.

Before his career pivot, Mr. Simkins was an equity research analyst known for bold and correct stock picks, deep industry expertise, and substantial connectivity. He was named Best Up & Coming Analyst in the 2009 Institutional Investor Poll and subsequently ranked No. 6 overall in 2012. A highly recognized and respected voice in the industry, Mr. Simkins has appeared on CNBC, Bloomberg, Fox Business, and Yahoo Finance and is a regular featured speaker at many industry conferences and on other media outlets.

Mr. Simkins earned a B.B.A. in Banking and Finance, with highest Honors, from Hofstra University, where he sits on the business school advisory board. He is an outdoors enthusiast and also sits on the advisory board of Protect Our Winters, a climate advocacy foundation.

Mr. Simkins is a 6-time marathon finisher, avid yoga practitioner, and competitive tennis player. He lives in Madison, NJ with his wife and two children Josh and Juli.

Mr. Simkins holds series 7, 63, 79, 86, and 87 registrations with FINRA.