Jay Irons is a wealth management financial advisor based in Roanoke, VA.
Jay became part of CAPTRUST in 2018 when Catawba Capital Management joined CAPTRUST. He serves as a principal and financial advisor responsible for providing investment advisory services and comprehensive wealth management services to high-net-worth individuals, families, and institutions. Jay cofounded Catawba Capital Management in 1992. As a senior vice president at Catawba, he managed client portfolios and served as the firm’s chief compliance officer and corporate secretary. According to Jay, “I want to always make sure we focus on clients’ needs and objectives, create diversified, high-quality investment portfolios that survive the test of time and provide for beneficiaries for years in the future.” Prior to Catawba, he worked at Dominion Investment Banking as a senior vice president and institutional bond sales manager. Jay has been active in the investment management industry for more than 30 years.
When he’s not at the office, he likes to officiate college lacrosse, fly fish, golf, hike, and bike in the mountains surrounding Roanoke.
Education
- Bachelor of Arts degree in economics from Washington and Lee University
Memberships
- Treasurer, Southwest Virginia Lacrosse Association
- Former board member and volunteer, Blue Ridge Zoological Society
- Former board member, Bond Club of Virginia
- Former treasurer and vestry member, St. John’s Episcopal Church
- Former president and treasurer, Roanoke Symphony Orchestra
Awards & Recognition
- AdvisorHub Advisors to Watch list | 2023, 2024, and 2025
Disclosures
- CAPTRUST’s ranking on “NAPA’s 2026 Top DC Advisor Multi-Office Firms” list was based on defined contribution (DC) assets under advisement (AUA) as of Dec. 31, 2025. CAPTRUST is a paid member of The National Association of Plan Advisors (NAPA).
- CAPTRUST’s ranking on “Barron’s 2024 Top RIAs list” was based on both qualitative and quantitative data, including assets managed, technology spending, and staff diversity, along with other metrics, as of June 30, 2024. CAPTRUST nor its advisors paid a fee to Barron’s to obtain or use the ranking
- CAPTRUST teams named on the “Barron’s 2025 Top 100 Institutional Consulting Teams” ranking were evaluated using a proprietary formula including 1) assets, 2) revenue, and 3) quality of practice for the year ending December 31, 2024. Neither CAPTRUST nor its advisors paid a fee to Barron’s to obtain or use the ranking. For more information on the methodology, please click here.
- CAPTRUST’s ranking on the “Financial Advisor magazine’s 2025 RIA Discretionary & Non-Discretionary ranking” was based on CAPTRUST’s total assets as of December 31, 2024. Neither CAPTRUST nor its advisors paid a fee to Financial Advisor magazine to obtain the ranking, but does pay a licensing fee for the use of the award logo.
- CAPTRUST advisors named on the “PLANADVISER Magazine 2026 Top Retirement Plan Advisers list” were based on advisor assets among other quantitative metrics, as of Dec. 31, 2025. To be listed, advisors had to have a minimum requirement of 50 plan clients or retirement plan assets under advisement of $400 million or more. Neither CAPTRUST nor its advisors paid a fee to PlanAdviser to obtain or use the ranking.
- CAPTRUST’s ranking on “NAPA’s 2026 Top DC Advisor Multi-Office Firms” list was based on defined contribution (DC) assets under advisement (AUA) as of Dec. 31, 2025. CAPTRUST is a paid member of The National Association of Plan Advisors (NAPA). Neither CAPTRUST nor its advisors paid a fee to the National Association of Plan Advisors (NAPA) to obtain or use the ranking.
- CAPTRUST advisors named on the “NAPA’s 2026 Aces: Top 100 Retirement Plan Advisors Under 40 list” were based on a combination of data submitted by the nominees including the following: Plan size managed, advisor revenue percentage relative to total assets under advisement, total dollar value of defined contribution/defined benefit book of business managed, and other criteria as of October 2025. CAPTRUST nor its advisors paid a fee to the National Association of Plan Advisors (NAPA) to obtain or use the ranking.
- CAPTRUST’s ranking on the “Best Investment Consultant – Service & Investment Counseling – Large Investment Consultants for Institutional Investors in the U.S.” by Crisil Coalition Greenwich for 2025 was based on interviews conducted between February and September 2024 by Crisil Coalition Greenwich. They held interviews with 699 individuals from 563 of the largest tax-exempt funds in the U.S. These U.S.-based institutional investors are corporate, public, union, and endowment and foundation funds with either pension or investment pool assets greater than $150 million. Study participants were asked to provide quantitative and qualitative evaluations of their asset management and investment consulting providers, including qualitative assessments of those firms soliciting their business and detailed information on important market trends. Neither CAPTRUST nor its advisors paid a fee to Crisil Coalition to obtain or use the ranking.