Five Star award winner Robert Virden, ChFC®, RICP®

PROFESSIONAL PROFILE

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Robert Virden, ChFC^®, RICP^®

Financial Advisor

Investment Specialist

MassMutual Greater Washington / Crescent Financial

530 Gaither Rd Ste 350

Rockville, MD 20850

Office: (301) 354-3839

Cell: (571) 946-8573

rvirden@financialguide.com
https://www.crescentfinancial.net

Professional Approach

With over three decades of expertise as a Chartered Financial Consultant (ChFC®) and Retirement Income Certified Professional (RICP®), Robert has guided clients through every phase of their financial lives. He is devoted to weaving together the big picture of each client’s financial world, ensuring that the recommendations he provides are not only effective for current objectives but remain adaptable as life unfolds and priorities shift. Robert takes pride in creating highly individualized strategies that reflect his clients’ distinct values, beliefs, and, when important, faith-based principles. His comprehensive approach covers planning for a confident retirement, education funding, tax-smart investment positioning, family and charitable legacy arrangements, and safeguarding against the unexpected—be it health issues, accidents, or economic volatility. Robert’s ultimate goal is to champion the financial wellbeing of those he serves, bringing the benefit of extensive, real-world experience to every client interaction.

In 2009, Robert established Crescent Financial with a vision to simplify the complexities of financial planning, making it approachable and focused on each client’s unique circumstances, timing, and ambitions. Inspired by the evolving phases of the moon, he crafted Crescent Financial’s philosophy to mirror the evolving nature of financial needs—a guiding principle that underpins the Grow, Preserve, and Enjoy stages of each client’s journey. Supported by a seasoned team, Robert ensures every client receives strategies that evolve with them, helping them achieve their goals at every step.

Away from the office, Robert is an avid sports enthusiast, rarely missing a home game for his cherished University of Maryland Terrapins lacrosse and Baltimore Ravens football teams. As a goalie for lacrosse team in the 80's, he quickly adopted the “BeTheBest” life philosophy embedded in the culture of Maryland Lacrosse and continues to strive to BeTheBest in all he does. As an active Maryland alumni mentor, he is proud to help collegiate lacrosse players map out their futures beyond the field. When not rallying behind his teams or mentoring, Robert finds peace by local streams, often in the company of friends, neighbors, or his sons, devotedly fine-tuning his skills as a fly-fisherman—practicing patience, precision, and a love for the outdoors.

CRN202808-9241642

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This award was issued on 10/15/2025 by Five Star Professional (FSP) for the time period 01/15/2025 through 08/01/2025. Fee paid for use of marketing materials. Self-completed questionnaire was used for rating. This rating is not related to the quality of the investment advice and based solely on the disclosed criteria. 3811 Washington D.C.-area wealth managers were considered for the award; 156 (4 % of candidates) were named 2025 Five Star Wealth Managers. The following prior year statistics use this format: YEAR: # Considered, # Winners, % of candidates, Issued Date, Research Period. 2024: 3,408, 172, 5%, 10/16/24, 1/9/24 - 8/9/24; 2023: 2,627, 160, 6%, 10/17/23, 1/9/23 - 7/31/23; 2022: 2597, 159, 6%, 10/17/22, 1/10/22 - 8/26/22; 2021: 2091, 129, 6%, 10/17/21, 1/4/21 - 7/23/21; 2020: 2535, 115, 5%, 9/1/20, 1/27/20 - 8/21/20; 2019: 1956, 122, 6%, 10/1/19, 12/31/18 - 8/9/19; 2018: 1975, 100, 5%, 10/1/18, 2/1/18 - 8/24/18; 2017: 1417, 106, 13%, 10/1/17, 2/8/17 - 8/22/17; 2016: 1665, 208, 12%, 8/1/16, 3/2/16 - 8/30/16; 2015: 1837, 227, 12%, 9/1/15, 2/14/15 - 8/10/15; 2012: 449, 97, 22%, 10/4/11, 2/14/11 - 8/10/11.

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Insurance Representative of Massachusetts Mutual Life Insurance Comapny (MassMutual), Springfield, MA 01111-0001, and its affiliated US insurance companies. Registered Principal of and securities, investment advisory and financial planning services offered through MML Investors Services, LLC, Member SIPC and a MassMutual subsidiary. 530 Gaither Road Suite 350 Rockville, MD 20850 (301) 355-5800. Local sales agencies are not subsidiaries of MassMutual or its affiliates.

CRN202808-9241642

Wealth managers do not pay a fee to be considered or placed on the final list of Five Star Wealth Managers. The award is based on 10 objective criteria. Eligibility criteria - required: 1. Credentialed as a registered investment adviser (RIA) or a registered investment adviser representative; 2. Actively licensed as a RIA or as a principal of a registered investment adviser firm for a minimum of 5 years; 3. Favorable regulatory and complaint history review (As defined by FSP, the wealth manager has not; A. Been subject to a regulatory action that resulted in a license being suspended or revoked, or payment of a fine; B. Had more than a total of three settled or pending complaints filed against them and/or a total of five settled, pending, dismissed or denied complaints with any regulatory authority or FSP's consumer complaint process. Unfavorable feedback may have been discovered through a check of complaints registered with a regulatory authority or complaints registered through FSP's consumer complaint process; feedback may not be representative of any one client's experience; C. Individually contributed to a financial settlement of a customer complaint; D. Filed for personal bankruptcy within the past 11 years; E. Been terminated from a financial services firm within the past 11 years; F. Been convicted of a felony); 4. Fulfilled their firm review based on internal standards; 5. Accepting new clients. Evaluation criteria - considered: 6. One-year client retention rate; 7. Five-year client retention rate; 8. Non-institutional discretionary and/or non-discretionary client assets administered; 9. Number of client households served; 10. Education and professional designations. FSP does not evaluate quality of services provided to clients. The award is not indicative of the wealth manager's future performance. Wealth managers may or may not use discretion in their practice and therefore may not manage their clients' assets. The inclusion of a wealth manager on the Five Star Wealth Manager list should not be construed as an endorsement of the wealth manager by FSP or this publication. Working with a Five Star Wealth Manager or any wealth manager is no guarantee as to future investment success, nor is there any guarantee that the selected wealth managers will be awarded this accomplishment by FSP in the future. Visit www.fivestarprofessional.com.