Meet Phil Cannella
Phil Cannella, Founder of Crash Proof Retirement
Phil Cannella developed the Crash Proof Retirement System to protect retirees from losing their hard-earned retirement savings to the fees, volatility and corruption of Wall Street that has been making retirement an unnecessary struggle in America for decades. He has since successfully protected thousands of retirees and ensured they have a safe, secure and comfortable retirement.The story of Crash Proof Retirement began in the 70s, when the Cannella family lived together in a row home in suburban Philadelphia, working together as a family to make ends meet. After a long career working to provide for the family, Phil Cannella’s grandfather was finally able to retire, but suffered a debilitating stroke shortly after. The years that followed were supposed to be blissful and relaxing but turned out to be a financial nightmare for the Cannellas, as nursing home bills piled up and erased everything Phil Cannella’s grandfather had worked for. It was then that a young Phil Cannella vowed that he would find a way to prevent others from having to suffer the way his family had.Phil Cannella had to make sacrifices to achieve his goal. When his grandfather suffered his stroke, Phil Cannella was forced to drop out of college and take a job to help pay for medical and nursing home bills. During this time, he began studying the insurance industry and aspired to get his license to sell insurance. That’s how he found out about Nursing Home Insurance. Phil Cannella wished he had known about the benefits of this insurance years earlier, so he could have saved his family from their financial burdens. After he passed his licensing exam, Phil Cannella continued to research new ways to provide protection for those entering retirement and even pioneered consumer driven Long Term Care Insurance contracts that are still used today.When the 2001 market crash hit, Phil Cannella saw a need for a new type of investment, especially for people in or near retirement, who didn’t have the time to go back to work and rebuild their nest eggs. The crash that year robbed so many people of the money they had worked for decades to accumulate. Given Phil’s experience in the senior market, he began looking for a solution, which he finally found in guaranteed financial investment vehicles based in the life insurance industry that could provide steady growth while protecting from losses during market crashes. This was the beginning of the Crash Proof Retirement System and Phil had no idea that the work he was doing would blossom to be his dream come true as his life’s goals took shape as Crash Proof Retirement.
Over the next four years, Phil Cannella perfected the Crash Proof Retirement System, adding important consumer protections. Phil Cannella knew that many advisors were pushing financial vehicles that would land them the biggest commissions, rather than the ones that would work the best for their clients. That’s why he instituted a salaried design team to select the Crash Proof vehicles in his clients’ portfolios. With no vested interest in selecting the investments, the design team was free to design income solutions that truly worked for the consumer. He founded First Senior Financial Group as a firm that would utilize this consumer-oriented approach and help consumers get on the path to a Crash Proof Retirement future.
Now that he had established himself as a consumer advocate and developed a fool-proof way to protect retirement savings, Phil Cannella wondered why more people didn’t know about these Crash Proof investments. As he discovered, the reason was that the mainstream media were not reporting on these vehicles. Instead of reporting on Crash Proof investments that are capable of protecting savings in a market crash, the media chose to hype risky investments that claimed the biggest returns. These investments largely favored the mainstream media outlets, all of which are owned by corporations that thrive off of stock market investors. That’s why, in 2008, Phil Cannella used his own money to start The Crash Proof Retirement Show®, a weekly radio show on AM radio 1210 WPHT, where he sought to expose the truth about the financial industry, a truth that others were reluctant to reveal.
In the ensuing years, Phil Cannella landed many groundbreaking interviews that helped him show the average investor how corrupt Wall Street really was. He also used this platform to educate investors about the Crash Proof investments on which he had staked his reputation. In the process of furthering these two goals, he spoke to CEOs, regulators, and high-ranking government officials like former SEC Inspector General H. David Kotz.
Pursuing the truth and fighting to change an industry that has been built over decades to work against the everyday investor does not come without resistance. Phil Cannella has been met with his share of obstacles as he confronted Wall Street and its regulators alike, taking them head on and forcing them to face their demons. One of Phil Cannella’s more notable battles in his pursuit was with the Securities and Exchange Commission. After filming an hour and forty five minute interview with the then Inspector General of the Commission, which exposed the inner conflicts within the regulatory agency, Phil Cannella received a letter requesting that the interview not be shared with the public. Knowing that no worthy achievement is accomplished without dedication to the cause, Phil Cannella responded with a six page letter, as a voice of the people, to tell the SEC that he would not stand down. Phil Cannella made it clear that it is the SEC that needs to start making changes. (Click here to read both letters).
Phil Cannella so enjoyed his new role as a consumer defender, he decided to create his own media company so he could pursue a full-time career of bringing his unique message to people in or near retirement all across the country. He established Retirement Media, Inc. and left First Senior Financial Group in the capable hands of his business partner and Crash Proof Retirement Show® co-host, Joann Small.
Phil Cannella, The CEO of Retirement Media, Inc.
Since stepping down, Phil Cannella has expanded his role as CEO of Retirement Media, Inc, an alternative media source bringing Truth to the American Retiree. He speaks regularly at educational events throughout the tri-state area, educating retirees about the alternatives to stock market investing that can provide them with the security they deserve in retirement. He continues his ongoing investigation into the financial industry and seeks out powerful and revealing interviews. In addition to that, he mentors other advisors who work with the senior demographic, teaching them about the Crash Proof Retirement System and how it can help their clients achieve a safe retirement.
Phil Cannella on Voice of Reason
In recognition of all his accomplishments, numerous media outlets have sought out Phil Cannella as a financial expert for appearances on their shows. Most recently, he appeared as an expert panelist on Larry Kane’s Voice of Reason to provide his perspective on retirement in America and the new challenges faced by retirees as they make the transition into their golden years.