User475983607 posted
IMHO, it is much easier to do math on an actual typed result set rather than writing a bunch of code to parse strings.
With that being said, use Decimal.Parse() or Decimal.TryParse().
Dim value As Decimal
value = Decimal.Parse("-$3.1415", System.Globalization.NumberStyles.AllowDecimalPoint Or System.Globalization.NumberStyles.AllowLeadingSign Or System.Globalization.NumberStyles.Currency)
Dim result As Decimal = 0.00
Decimal.TryParse("-3.1415", result)
Console.WriteLine(result)