The architect behind Meridian Wealth Protocol — 30 years of integrated financial advisory experience built into a single, structured system for entrepreneurs and business owners who carry too many financial decisions at once.
After graduating from Lehigh University with a B.S. in Finance and Accounting, A. Erik Westphalen began his career with the New York City office of Price Waterhouse LLP. Over the course of 30 years, he has advised a diverse collection of partnerships and small companies — real estate, healthcare, financial services, and technology — each with their own intersection of business performance, personal income, and tax exposure.
A. Erik earned an M.B.A. from Cornell University's Johnson Graduate School of Management and a Master's in Legal Studies of Taxation from New York University School of Law. He is also an Enrolled Agent with the Internal Revenue Service — authorizing him to represent taxpayers before the IRS in all matters including audits, collections, and appeals.
Those 30 years taught him one thing consistently: the owners who struggle most are not the ones with the hardest problems — they're the ones getting advice in pieces from people who don't talk to each other. Meridian Wealth Protocol is Erik's answer to that. One advisor. One picture. Every direction coordinated from a single fixed point.
Explore Meridian Wealth ProtocolMost financial professionals advise clients in one lane — tax preparation, investment management, bookkeeping, or business consulting. Meridian Wealth Protocol was designed to occupy the space between those lanes, where the most consequential decisions for owners and entrepreneurs actually happen.
Decisions made today compound over time. Meridian Wealth Protocol is structured around multi-year horizons — not just the current return or the current quarter.
Tax, business, and personal planning inform each other. Inside Meridian Wealth Protocol, they're not separate conversations — they're a single, unified strategy.
Every Meridian Wealth Protocol engagement is designed to deliver measurable outcomes — lower tax exposure, clearer cash flow, stronger retirement position — not just activity or compliance.
Phoenix TCA is led by A. Erik Westphalen, an Enrolled Agent with nearly 30 years of advisory experience spanning tax, business strategy, and integrated financial planning. He began his career at PricewaterhouseCoopers’ New York City office and has advised partnerships and closely held companies across real estate, healthcare, financial services, and technology.
Erik holds a B.S. in Finance and Accounting from Lehigh University, an M.B.A. from Cornell University’s Johnson Graduate School of Management, and a Master’s in Legal Studies of Taxation from NYU School of Law — a combination of finance, business strategy, and tax law that informs every Phoenix TCA engagement.
Yes. He began his career at the New York City office of PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP — one of the most rigorous training environments in public accounting. That foundation shapes the rigor and precision he brings to client work today.
No — and that distinction matters. His work spans tax, business structure, and holistic financial planning. His Enrolled Agent status means he can represent clients before the IRS, but the value he brings to Phoenix TCA is far broader: connecting tax decisions to business structure, personal goals, and long-term planning in a way a tax-only advisor cannot.
His advisory experience spans partnerships and closely held companies in real estate, healthcare, financial services, and technology. That cross-industry breadth means he brings pattern recognition to client situations that most advisors encounter for the first time.
