Broker Check

Get to know... 
Catina 
Koenig

Catina began her career in the financial services industry as a sales assistant in 1999 — despite her best efforts to talk Ken Smith out of hiring her. Luckily, he didn’t listen. 

Ken saw something in Catina that she did not see in herself, and insisted she take the job. 

When you first meet Catina, what will strike you is just how bright and bold and honest she is — all of which read as “confident,” though she’ll argue she’s anything but.  

The daughter of a teen mom who could not catch a break, Catina had to grow up fast—faster than most. So she knows what it is to be fearful and insecure — and as a result learned to take responsibility and advocate for herself. 


Simply put, Catina pulls no punches.

Rather than see her unfiltered honesty as a character flaw, she sees it for what it is: Her superpower.

Ken Smith promoted Catina to partner in 2009, and when he retired in 2016, Catina formed the Koenig Jones Group, which she continues to lead with vision and empathy. She remains the person who will ask just about any question you can think of — and be ready to support whatever answer you provide. 

Catina resides in Eden Prairie with her husband, Troy, and two sons, Tavin and Asher. When she is away from the office, she enjoys spending time with her family, reading, global travel, and participating as an member of the Campaign Council for the Twin Cities chapter of Habitat for Humanity.


She remains the person who will ask just about any question you can think of — and be ready to support whatever answer you provide.

In Her Own Words

“They call me the Queen of Awkward Conversations. OK, fine, no one actually calls me that, but it is the place I reign supreme—mainly because no one else wants to ascend the throne.”

It started a long time ago. Like, high school. I was the one every kid came to when they needed something said and didn’t want to say it themselves.

For Gen Xers who grew up watching breakfast ads, I was essentially Life Cereal’s Mikey, and given things to do that no one else would. 

I never saw myself as bold or confident. Capable? Yes. Because I had to be. I didn’t think I “could” do anything; only that I would do what I had to. That included assuming the role of third parent to my little brothers when my parents were unable to do it.


“I never saw myself as bold or confident. Capable? Yes. Because I had to be.” 

When I was 15, my resources included: a jar of coins totalling $125.27, a month’s worth of food stamps, and a car that barely worked. With that, I had to pay the bills, put gas in the car, and feed myself and my 4- and 5-year-old brothers. I took them with me everywhere—so much so that people often asked me if I was a single mom! 

Fast forward 30+ years and I realize now that what my friends saw in me was bravery, which I had cultivated out of necessity, and certainly not a word I would have used to describe myself, simply because I didn’t know any other way to be. 

Today, I’m the one to politely send back your undercooked steak if you don’t like it (because you feel weird asking), and to let you know you have lipstick on your teeth (sorry, and you’re welcome, Julie).

“I can and will talk about anything, with anyone who matters to you, and it will be a conversation we’ll both be glad we had.”

I’m also the one who won’t retreat during a tough conversation about money, family, goals, even regrets. I can and will talk about anything, with anyone who matters to you, and it will be a conversation we’ll both be glad we had.

Certified Private Wealth Advisor® (CPWA®) Catina Koenig has been the head of Koenig Jones Group since 2017, having worked closely with former senior partner Ken Smith—and many of her existing clients—for nearly 25 years.

A member of the Investments and Wealth Institute she served previously on the Baird Women's Advisor Council and the Baird Women's Associate Resource Group Advisory Council. She earned her B.S. in Psychology from the University of Wisconsin-LaCrosse. She also serves as a member of the Leadership Council for Twin Cities Habitat for Humanity.

Catina lives in Eden Prairie with her husband Troy, two sons, Tavin and Asher, and their French bulldog Daisy, whom she adopted from a dear client.

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Location

7650 Edinborough Way
Suite 300
Edina, MN 55435

Hours

Mon-Fri: 8:30 AM - 4:00 PM

Contact

Office: 952-838-8065
Toll-Free: 800-955-9093
Fax: 952-857-5538
ckoenig@rwbaird.com