Christopher M. Passarelli

Christopher M. Passarelli is an American investment manager, financial strategist, and entrepreneur. He is the founder, Chief Executive Officer, and Portfolio Manager of Bull Run Investment Management, a fee-only registered investment adviser based in McLean, Virginia. Under his leadership, the firm focuses on high-growth sectors such as artificial intelligence, e-commerce, software-as-a-service (SaaS), financial technology, and cybersecurity through its flagship Equity Innovation SMA.

Passarelli is known for his performance-driven investment approach emphasizing asymmetric upside and revenue-growth leadership within public-equity markets. His Innovation SMA has been recognized for delivering industry-leading returns, including gains of +98.4 % in 2023 and +39.3 % in 2024, ranking among the top 1–3 % of all U.S. and Canadian ETFs by total return.

Passarelli was born and raised in the United States. His interest in financial markets began in childhood, when he began collecting U.S. numismatic currency and made his first stock purchase at age 10. Early exposure to investing fostered a long-term fascination with market systems, technology, and business growth that later informed his professional career.

Passarelli earned a Bachelor of Science in Finance from the University of Colorado Boulder, where he ranked in the top 1 % nationally within the CME Trading Challenge. He achieved a near perfect 720 out of 800 on the mathematics section of the SAT, placing him in the top 2% of test-takers nationwide. He holds the Series 65 Investment Adviser license and is recognized for his analytical approach to quantitative research and portfolio design.

Before founding Bull Run Investment Management, Passarelli worked at several global financial institutions. He began his career at TD Ameritrade, where he contributed to quantitative-strategy research and portfolio optimization for advisory accounts. He later joined Morgan Stanley, serving on the Listed Commodity Derivatives team in New York, where he oversaw trade routing and operations for institutional clients.

He later joined Spectrum Financial, where he acted as a Strategy Research Partner, helping manage more than $400 million in client assets and developing proprietary performance indicators for equities and mutual funds.

Passarelli’s disciplined growth investing at Bull Run focuses on quantitative research, forward revenue analysis, and concentrated bets on tech and infrastructure innovators for superior, risk-adjusted returns with client alignment.