Seth Tobias was born in Philadelphia. He graduated with a bachelor's degree in finance from Boston University.

His first job on Wall Street, in 1987, was as a futures trader at Moseley Securities. He briefly worked with hedge-fund manager Jim Cramer and was an assistant trader at New York & Foreign Securities before joining JRO Associates, where he spent five years as a portfolio manager and equity trader. He founded Circle T in 1996.

Seth Tobiaswas found dead under mysterious circumstances at the age of 44. William Ash, who says he worked for five years as a personal assistant to Tobias and his wife, said:

"The marriage was a façade: He was gay, As far as I'm aware, he's always had boyfriends."

His most recent one, according to Ash, was an exotic dancer from a club in Palm Beach, Fla., who is to be deposed, along with Ash, on Monday, as part of Filomena Tobias' battle with her husband's family over his multi-million dollar fortune. Seth Tobias left his wife out of his will, though she is claiming to be his sole heiress.