Building CenterPoint’s Community in the Office and on the Court
CenterPoint, a division of Clear Street, caters to active and professional traders by providing a suite of tools and services designed specifically for active traders.
Headquartered in San Diego, CenterPoint prioritizes community outreach. The CenterPoint team hosts beach clean-ups, fundraises with the non-profit Traders4ACause, and supports local athletes. The relationship between CenterPoint and its sponsored athletes developed from a friendship between CenterPoint’s founder Scott Herman and WAVE Volleyball coach Mike Placek. While training with Placek, Herman was introduced to several aspiring and current professional beach volleyball players. Herman was excited to nurture the growth of CenterPoint’s community by sponsoring top athletes with ties to southern California.
The rest is history - CenterPoint now sponsors five professional and collegiate beach volleyball players, all of whom play professionally on the Beach Pro Tour and are vying for a spot to represent the USA at the 2024 Olympics in Paris. Keep reading to get to know the players on CenterPoint’s volleyball team:
Name: Megan Kraft
Age: 20
Hometown: San Diego, CA.
Megan Kraft is a student-athlete on the University of Southern California’s beach volleyball team. Placek was involved in Kraft’s career early on as her youth coach at WAVE. Their relationship has strengthened and expanded throughout her collegiate career. A few years ago, Placek and Herman invited Kraft to an exhibition match at WAVE along with Miles Partain and Paul Lotman, followed by a reception at the CenterPoint office in Del Mar.
"After such a positive first impression of the CenterPoint community, a sponsorship opportunity was an exciting milestone. Representing the United States at the Olympic games is a lifelong goal. Being sponsored by CenterPoint brings me closer to that goal by allowing me to compete in domestic and international competitions."
Name: Paul Lotman
Age: 37
Hometown: Lakewood, CA.
Paul Lotman joined the CenterPoint team in 2022 alongside Savvy Simo and Miles Partain. Lotman played collegiate-level volleyball at Long Beach State and continued his career by representing the United States at the 2012 London Olympics.
In 2016, Lotman retired from indoor volleyball and switched to beach volleyball full-time. Similar to Kraft, Lotman was introduced to Scott Herman by Mike Placek.
"CenterPoint’s sponsorship plays a vital role in my professional beach volleyball career. They continue to support my goal to compete in the 2024 Paris Olympic Games."
Name: Savvy Simo
Age: 24
Hometown: San Diego, CA.
Savvy Simo is a former indoor and beach volleyball student-athlete at UCLA. After graduating, Simo pursued beach volleyball professionally. Simo met Herman in 2020 while coaching volleyball college prep practices at WAVE volleyball. There, she connected with Placek, Herman, and the CenterPoint team and they expressed interest in sponsoring Simo in her professional beach volleyball endeavors.
"The CenterPoint culture, which prioritizes hard work and community - aligns with my personal values. Since joining the CP community, I’ve felt continuous support from the CenterPoint team and I’m excited to continue building my professional career alongside CenterPoint."
Name: Andy Benesh
Age: 28
Hometown: Ranchos Palos Verdes, CA.
Andy Benesh, a former student-athlete at USC, joined the CenterPoint team in 2022. Andy’s introduction to CenterPoint stems from his partner, Miles Partain, and coach at WAVE, Placek. Benesh and Partain are the number 1 ranked USA Men’s team in the nation and 9th in the world.
"The journey to our success has taken us around the world. In 2023, we traveled to compete in Brazil and Czechia, and will go to Switzerland, France, Dubai, Mexico, and Australia later this year. Now, I plan on going to the Paris 2024 Olympic Games. None of this would have been possible without CenterPoint."
Name: Miles Partain
Age: 21
Hometown: Pacific Palisades, CA.
Partain’s involvement with CenterPoint is seen on the court and in the office. After accepting sponsorship from CenterPoint in 2021, Partain interned in the firm’s engineering department. Moving to San Diego to work as an intern allowed him to train with his former partner, Lotman, and coach, Placek. That summer, the duo won their first AVP (Association of Volleyball Professionals) professional beach volleyball tournament, a significant milestone for both athletes.
" Experiencing two sides of CenterPoint allows me to better understand its message to the company’s community, whether you’re a client or an athlete. "
CenterPoint values community relationships and continues to expand its reach beyond the traditional workplace. The company’s sponsored athletes support CenterPoint’s mission which promotes hard work and an inclusive team.
Acquired by Clear Street in 2021, CenterPoint is a Division of Clear Street LLC, Member FINRA/SIPC. Since its inception, the principles of CenterPoint have applied first-hand experience to create the ideal brokerage firm for active traders. Its products and services give traders an edge: Competitive Rates, Customized Execution, High-End Customer Service, and more.