ACG's Roger Kiger

The Hendersonville-based Angel Capital Group has named Roger Kiger, CFP, managing director of ACG's Knoxville office.

Apart from his ACG role as an equity owner of ACG, itself, Kiger is also owner of Visionary Horizons LLC, which provides financial-planning and wealth-management services as Visionary Horizons Wealth Management Group.

Kiger told VNC that ACG has also retained the services of a full-time business-development person, Steve Williams, in order to augment Kiger's part-time involvement in ACG and to ensure that marketing for ACG and Kiger's personal business are separated.  Kiger said Williams is a former manufacturer and business consultant.

ACG is a for-profit angel-investor network, founded here two years ago by owner and CEO Rachael Qualls (at left).

Qualls told VNC yesterday that ACG now has 27 angel investors:  17 in Nashville and 10 in the Knoxville area. The Knoxville figure represents an increase from the seven East Tennessee investors ACG reportedly had aboard in October.

Qualls also said ACG has, thus far, invested in four companies:

►  TrakLok Corporation (Knoxville), which offers a container security and tracking technology.  Traklok Chief Technology Officer Joel Reed told VNC yesterday his company is seeking further funding. He indicated he believes the company will soon emerge from its pre-revenue status.

►  BugleMe (Nashville), a performer-fan communications service partly owned by Expert Insight, the Bay Area company owned by poker celebrity Phil Gordon. Qualls serves as chief financial officer for the company, which is led by investor-CEO Debbie Gordon (reportedly, no relation to Phil), who is the Nashville entrepreneur most closely associated with eBay reseller SnappyAuctions.

►  Optivia Medical, a Winston-Salem company that develops and markets products for the practice of endoscopic medicine. CEO Marc Finch has, as previously reported by VNC, presented to Nashville investors more than once.

►  Screen Yo Body, a Collierville, Tenn., company that offers a range of equipment and products for applying sunscreen for outdoors activities.

The ACG advisory-board listing online includes, among others, Chris Sloan, an attorney in the Nashville office of Bradley Arant Boult Cummings; Tod Fetherling, president of Nashville Technology Council; and, Joe Rolwing, director of Tennessee Biotechnology Association.

ACG has previously announced an alliance with six angel-investor networks that exist within Inception Micro Angels Fund's Family of Seed Stage Funds, based in Winston-Salem.

In 2008, ACG signaled interest in establishing a presence for itself in Memphis.   However, Qualls confirmed for VNC this morning that ACG has since determined there's no immediate opportunity for ACG in Memphis, in that "they are doing really amazing things in Memphis, already," a reference to Memphis' early-stage Innova fund and the Memphis BioWorks Foundation's new TECWorks program. 

According to background materials Kiger provided at VNC's request, his financial-planning career began in 1996, when he joined American Express Financial Advisors.  Kiger said he also spent a total eleven years with AmSouth and SunTrust Bank, advising clients of those institutions. In addition, Kiger said he has previously owned marinas and restaurants, often jointly with his brother, David Kiger.

Kiger said he is a Certified Financial Planner®; holds life and health-insurance licenses; and, holds securities licenses through Commonwealth Financial Network.  He said he is a member of the Financial Planning Association and the East Tennessee Economic Council.

Kiger, 41, was reared in Maryville, Tenn., and earned a bachelor's in management and leadership studies through Lincoln Memorial University, which is located at Harrowgate, Tenn.  Kiger also studied at the University of Tennessee.

Kiger said ACG's next Knoxville event will be July 11, at Cherokee Country Club.  He said that Qualls is coordinating the event, and persons interested in attending should contact her via e-mail.

Among other civic and community activities, Kiger volunteers with United Way in Anderson County. He and his wife live in South Knoxville. ♦