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Item 1:
Cover Sheet
INFORMATIONAL BROCHURE
ONEASCENT FINANCIAL SERVICES, LLC
23 Inverness Center Parkway
Birmingham, AL 35242
(205) 847-1343
September 4, 2025
This brochure provides information about the qualifications and business practices of OneAscent Financial
Services LLC. If you have any questions about the contents of this brochure, please contact TJ Claud at the
number listed above. The information in this brochure has not been approved or verified by the United States
Securities and Exchange Commission or by any state securities authority. OneAscent Financial Services LLC
is a registered investment adviser. Registration does not imply any certain level of skill or training.
Additional information about OneAscent Financial Services LLC is also available on the SEC’s website at
www.adviserinfo.sec.gov.
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Item 2:
Statement of Material Changes
OneAscent Financial Services LLC is required to update its Form ADV in the event of a material change. There
are currently no material changes to report.
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Item 3:
Table of Contents
TABLE OF CONTENTS
Item 1:
Cover Sheet
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Item 2:
Statement of Material Changes
2
Item 3:
Table of Contents
3
Item 4:
Advisory Business
4
Item 5:
Fees and Compensation
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Item 6:
Performance-Based Fees
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Item 7:
Types of Clients
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Item 8:
Methods of Analysis, Investment Strategies and Risk of Loss
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Item 9:
Disciplinary Information
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Item 10:
Other Financial Industry Activities and Affiliations
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Item 11:
Code of Ethics, Participation or Interest in Client Transactions and Personal Trading
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Item 12:
Brokerage Practices
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Item 13:
Review of Accounts
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Item 14:
Client Referrals and Other Compensation
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Item 15:
Custody
30
Item 16:
Investment Discretion
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Item 17:
Voting Client Securities
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Item 18:
Financial Information
31
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INFORMATIONAL BROCHURE
ONEASCENT FINANCIAL SERVICES LLC
Item 4:
Advisory Business
The mission of OneAscent Financial Services LLC (“OneAscent”), founded in February 2017, is to
provide investment advisory services to clients and their professional advisors through the offering of
managed accounts, proprietary strategies and assistance to other investment advisors. OneAscent is owned
by OneAscent Holdings LLC, which in turn is principally owned by Harry Pearson and Robert Grubb.
Asset Management
Asset management services may be provided on either a “discretionary” or “non-discretionary” basis.
When a client engages the firm to provide asset management services on a discretionary basis, we will
monitor your accounts to ensure that they are meeting your investment objectives. If any changes are
needed to your investments, we will make the changes. These changes may involve selling a security or
group of investments and buying others, utilizing a separate account (third party) manager or keeping the
proceeds in cash. We may also allocate some or all of your assets to a Unified Managed Account platform
through our advisory affiliate OneAscent Investment Solutions LLC. You may at any time place
reasonable restrictions on the types of investments we may use on your behalf, or on the allocations to
each security type, though such restrictions may limit the potential performance of your portfolio. You
will receive at your request written or electronic confirmations from your account custodian after any
changes are made to your account. You will also receive statements directly from your account custodian.
Clients engaging us on a discretionary basis will be asked to execute a Limited Power of Attorney
(granting us the discretionary authority over the client accounts) as well as a written agreement that
outlines the responsibilities of both the client and the firm.
Asset management services may be provided to client accounts held at a custodian that is not directly
accessible by the firm (“Held Away Accounts”). The firm may, but is not required to, manage these Held
Away Accounts using the Pontera Order Management System that allows the Firm to view and manage
these assets.
Asset management services may be provided to clients by utilizing fee-based annuity and insurance
options via a third-party platform.
In certain limited circumstances, and in the discretion of the firm, a client may engage the firm to provide
investment management services on a non-discretionary basis. This means the firm monitors the accounts
in the same way as for discretionary services. The difference is that changes to your account will not be
made until we have confirmed with you (either verbally or in writing) that our proposed change is
acceptable to you.
Unified Managed Accounts and OneAscent Investment Solutions LLC
Use of Overlay Manager
As mentioned above, we may allocate some or all of your assets to our advisory affiliate, OneAscent
Investment Solutions LLC (“OAIS”), an advisory affiliate of OneAscent. OAIS can create a Unified
Managed Account or “UMA”, which is a single portfolio with a mix of asset classes and investment
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positions through the use of model portfolios, which may consist of third party managers, and to a lesser
extent, other investment options such as mutual funds and exchange traded funds. This is accomplished
with the use of an Overlay Manager. The Overlay Managers that OneAscent has selected are Adhesion
Wealth Advisors Solutions (“Adhesion”) and GeoWealth Management LLC (“GeoWealth”), who
provide portfolio trading, re-balancing, reporting and other administrative services. Each UMA is
designed meet a specific goal, while maintaining diversification for the purpose of mitigating short term
risk, and at the same time positioned to appreciate and create income for the investor. UMAs are created
by OAIS and accessed by other advisors (including OneAscent’s advisory teams) for their clients.
OneAscent provides UMA services on a discretionary basis, meaning that you will grant OneAscent
discretionary authority to manage your account through the selection of an Overlay Manager, third party
managers, and other investment options. In addition, you will authorize your account custodian to follow
our instructions as well as instructions given by Adhesion or GeoWealth to effect transactions, deliver
securities, deduct fees and take other actions with respect to your account. We retain the right to replace
any third party manager on discretionary basis. You will not have a direct contractual relationship with
Adhesion or GeoWealth or any other third party manager.
When clients engage OneAscent to provide UMA services, the client and OneAscent will execute an
Investment Advisory Agreement that describes the services to be provided, the fees for the service, other
expenses related to the provision of the investment management services, and how to terminate the
agreement. Depending on the service a client has selected, OneAscent will separately provide each client
with the applicable disclosure documents for any third party manager or service providers utilized, which
includes information about their services, model portfolios, investment strategies at or before execution
of our Investment Advisory Agreement.
UMA Services without use of Overlay Manager
Representatives of OAFS will be responsible for the ultimate decisions as to the securities to be bought
and sold in the accounts, as well as the timing of implementation of those decisions. In the event that the
individual investment adviser representative servicing the account utilizes the services of OAIS, that
representative will receive trade “signals”, or trade suggestions, from OAIS and will determine if and
when to implement them. In the event that OAIS sends a trade signal, and the investment adviser
representative does not choose to implement it, or chooses to implement it after some delay, performance
in the accounts will likely differ from performance of the model.
Other Unified Managed Accounts
We may utilize other Unified Managed Accounts or “UMAs”, unaffiliated with OneAscent Investment
Solutions (“OAIS”), consisting of separate account portfolios, in the form of recommendations for
investment portfolio sleeves comprised of: (i) separate account strategies offered by various investment
advisers, (ii) separate account strategies offered through the use of model portfolios, (iii) mutual funds,
and (iv) exchange traded funds (“ETFs”). OneAscent has selected Natixis Advisors, LLC to provide
investment portfolio advisory services to client portfolios. OneAscent has selected Callan, LLC as the
Program Coordinator, to provide certain due diligence for sub-advisors providing investment strategies
for the UMAs.
Tax Overlay Manager Services
For clients who elect, OneAscent offers tax overlay management services as an additional option for
accounts utilizing the UMA Program through an Overlay Manager, Adhesion. Tax overlay management
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services are an additional service and will increase the management fee. Clients are no under no
obligation to elect to receive tax overlay management services. Adhesion will develop a tax strategy for
your account based on the information and instructions provided by us on your behalf. Tax overlay
management services in an investment account offer benefits and limitations, as described below. The
tax strategy developed for you by Adhesion is provided solely in connection with your account and the
Overlay Manager does not provide general tax planning services. If you do elect the tax overlay
management services option, please consider the following:
• The Tax Overlay Manager will implement tax overlay management services based on the
information and instructions provided for your account(s).
• The Tax Overlay Manager does not provide general tax advice, tax return preparation or tax
planning services.
• The Tax Overlay Manager will seek to reduce the overall tax burden of the account while seeking
to maintain the risk and return characteristics of the model portfolios received from Strategists
and/or Managers.
• When providing tax overlay management services to the account, short-term gains are avoided
where possible, but long-term gains are not limited unless you have requested a mandate to limit
realized long-term gains.
The Overlay Manager will provide tax overlay management services with the assumption that the Overlay
Manager will continue to provide services to the account for an entire tax year. The termination or
removal of the overlay management services before the completion of an entire tax year may result in
adverse tax consequences, including without limitation realization of short-term capital gains. Regardless
of your account size or any other factors, we strongly recommend that you continuously consult with a
tax professional prior to and throughout the investing of your assets.
The Tax Overlay Management Services are offered at an additional cost to you.
Outsourced Chief Investment Officer
OneAscent provides Chief Investment Officer (“CIO”) solutions for teams both within and outside
the OneAscent family of firms. As an outsourced CIO, OneAscent will provide all or some aspects
of the investment function for its advisor clients. This can include providing overall economic and
market research to drive strategy as a whole, providing overall strategy recommendations,
providing recommendations for individual client accounts on behalf of the advisor client, and
implementing those recommendations.
Advisory Teams
OneAscent works directly with clients through individual investment adviser representatives, who may
work with other representatives providing financial planning and asset management services.
Depending upon the individual professional working with the client, OneAscent may also provide
assistance with debt management or other matters. We are a distinctly biblically based firm, and our goal
is to help clients align their assets with their values.
We provide these advisory services through numerous investment teams. The investment teams that
comprise OneAscent are listed below:
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Advisor Team Name
Hampton Square Wealth Management
Sovereign Private Wealth
Zahoranski Wealth Management
Anthem Advisors
Team Leader
Scott MacKenzie
Mike Kuckel & Will Hines
Stacey Zahoranski
Cavett Cooper
Trina Hanner
Trina Hanner
Tevebaugh & Associates
Mark Tevebaugh
Adventure Financial
Suzuanne Foster
2:24 Wealth Group
John McDonald
Provident Oak Financial
Nelson Negron
Stonebridge Wealth Management
Mitch Martin
Flight Financial Advisors
Cameron Collier
The Cornerstone Financial Group
Mark Morrison
Providence Financial Advisors
Brad Nelson
Wealth Stewards
Paul Tyers
Tate Financial Partners
John Tate
Strategence Capital
Tim Stoller
River Oak Financial
Ben Craft
Lone Oak Financial Services
Ben Wilhelm
Sovereign Family Office
Justin Cramer
Resolute Capital Group
David Anderson
Financial Strategies Group
Stephen Moore
Legatum Group
Josh Arrington
Pure Capital Advisors; Pure Capital Sports
Wesley Hodges
Solomon Private Wealth
Bradley Small
Life & Wealth Advisors
Gary Gardner
Hardt Financial Group
Dan Hardt
Franklin Wealth Management
Randy Franklin
Affiliated Financial Planners
Eric Dorman
Financial Planning
In many cases, the client will supply an OneAscent representative with information including income,
investments, savings, insurance, age, the values the client would like to see advanced as part of their
planning process, and many other items that are helpful to the firm in assessing financial goals. The
information is typically provided during personal interviews and supplemented with written information.
Once the information is received, we will discuss your financial needs and goals with you and compare
your current financial situation with the goals you state. Once these are compared, we will create a
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financial and/or investment plan to help you meet your goals, and work with you to educate you about
household finances and investments.
The plan is intended to be a suggested way to achieve financial goals in keeping with the client’s values.
Not every plan will be the same for every client. Each one is specific to the client who requested it.
Because the plan is based on information supplied by you, it is very important that you accurately and
completely communicate to us the information we need. Also, your circumstances and needs may change
as your engagement with us progresses. It is very important that you continually update us with any
changes so that if the updates require changes to your plan, we can make those changes. Otherwise, your
plan may no longer be accurate.
Tax Preparation
For some clients, OneAscent can arrange for tax preparation services to be completed by a third party
and reviewed by OneAscent. OneAscent’s tax services are designed to make the tax filing process simple
and stress free for each client, while also working to reduce a client’s tax liability on current and future
returns.
Financial Consulting
OneAscent may provide financial consulting services (including investment and non-investment related
matters, including estate planning, retirement planning, tax planning, etc.). Prior to engaging OneAscent
to provide planning or consulting services, clients are generally required to enter into a written agreement
with OneAscent setting forth the terms and conditions of the engagement (including termination),
describing the scope of the services to be provided, and the portion of the fee that is due from the client
prior to OneAscent commencing services.
OneAscent provides investment consulting services to certain broker/dealers’ customers (“Brokerage
Customers”) who provide written consent requesting to receive OneAscent’s consulting services.
Brokerage Customers have entered into a written consulting agreement with OneAscent.
Seminars and Educational Workshops
OneAscent also provides information and guidance on general finance, retirement, and charitable giving
issues for our clients and the public. We do not charge for these seminars.
Services to Employer Sponsored Retirement Plans
OneAscent provides investment advisory services to qualified plans. While linked to investments and
investment advice, consulting to pension plans can involve a great deal more than selecting investments.
OneAscent offers two approaches to its ERISA clients: investment option selection and full pension
consulting.
Back-Office Services
OneAscent provides back-office services to registered investment advisory firms and individual
investment adviser representatives. Back-office services include, but are not limited to, account servicing,
billing, trade execution, and reporting.
Participant Directed Retirement Plan ERISA Investment Fiduciary Services
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As a Plan Sponsor, you may want to appoint a qualified investment firm to serve as the named Investment
Fiduciary for your Plan to minimize your fiduciary responsibility regarding the investments available to
your plan participants. OAFS may serve as the named Investment Fiduciary to a qualified retirement plan
which may include being an “investment manager” within the meaning of ERISA Section 3(38) and a
“fiduciary” within the meaning of ERISA Section 3(21). OAFS will acknowledge our fiduciary status
and duties in writing. The primary clients for these services will be pension, profit sharing, 403(b), and
401(k) plans that provide for participant directed investments. ERISA Investment Fiduciary Services are
comprised of three distinct services. Clients may choose to use any or all of these services.
The Investment Fiduciary shall have the following discretionary authority and responsibility:
• To manage the investment of the Trust Fund using only the investment options available through
the recordkeeper, products, and/or platforms chosen by Plan Sponsor;
• To appoint and remove one or more investment managers;
• To establish, revise from time to time, and communicate to the Trustee and/or Investment
Manager(s), assist in building and investment policy for the Plan. We will meet with you and/or
your plan committee (in person or over the telephone) to determine an appropriate investment
strategy that reflects the Plan Sponsor’s stated investment objectives for management of the
overall plan. Our firm then prepares a written IPS detailing those needs and goals, including an
encompassing policy under which these goals are to be achieved. The IPS also lists the criteria
for selection of investment vehicles as well as the procedures and timing interval for monitoring
of investment performance.
Schwab Performance Technologies Institutional Intelligent Portfolios
We offer an automated investment program (the “Program”) through which clients are invested in a range
of investment strategies we have constructed and manage, each consisting of a portfolio of exchange-
traded funds and mutual funds (“Funds”) and a cash allocation. The client may instruct us to exclude up
to three Funds from their portfolio. The client’s portfolio is held in a brokerage account opened by the
client at Charles Schwab & Co., Inc. (“CS&Co”). We use the Institutional Intelligent Portfolios® platform
(“Platform”), offered by Schwab Performance Technologies (“SPT”), a software provider to independent
investment advisors and an affiliate of CS&Co., to operate the Program. We are independent of and not
owned by, affiliated with, or sponsored or supervised by SPT, CS&Co., or their affiliates (together,
“Schwab”). We, and not Schwab, are the client’s investment adviser and primary point of contact with
respect to the Program. We are solely responsible, and Schwab is not responsible, for determining the
appropriateness of the Program for the client, choosing a suitable investment strategy and portfolio for
the client’s investment needs and goals, and managing that portfolio on an ongoing basis. We have
contracted with SPT to provide us with the Platform, which consists of technology and related trading and
account management services for the Program. The Platform enables us to make the Program available to
clients online and includes a system that automates certain key parts of our investment process (the
“System”). Based on the information the client provides to us, we will recommend a portfolio via the
System. The client may then indicate an interest in a portfolio that is one level less or more conservative
or aggressive than the recommended portfolio, but we then make the final decision and select a portfolio
based on all the information we have about the client. The System also includes an automated investment
engine through which we manage the client’s portfolio on an ongoing basis through automatic rebalancing
and tax-loss harvesting (if the client is eligible and elects). We charge clients a fee for our services as
described below under Item 5 Fees and Compensation. Our fees are not set or supervised by Schwab.
Clients do not pay brokerage commissions or any other fees to CS&Co. as part of the Program. Schwab
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does receive other revenues, including (i) the profit earned by Charles Schwab Bank, SSB, a Schwab
affiliate, on the allocation of the Schwab Intelligent Portfolios Sweep Program described in the Schwab
Intelligent Portfolios Sweep Program Disclosure Statement; (ii)
investment advisory and/or
administrative service fees (or unitary fees) received by Charles Schwab Investment Management, Inc., a
Schwab affiliate, from Schwab ETFs™ , Schwab Funds®, and Laudus Funds® that we select to buy and
hold in the client’s brokerage account; (iii) fees received by Schwab from mutual funds in the Schwab
Mutual Fund Marketplace® (including certain Schwab Funds and Laudus Funds) in the client’s brokerage
account for services Schwab provides, and (iv) remuneration Schwab receives from the market centers
where it routes ETF trade orders for execution.
Flourish Cash
Flourish Cash is an online cash management solution that seeks to provide clients with competitive APY
and elevated FDIC coverage for their deposits placed at program banks. Flourish Cash is offered by
Flourish Financial LLC, a registered broker-dealer and FINRA member. OAFS is not affiliated with
Flourish Financial LLC or any of the program’s banks. OAFS clients utilize Flourish Cash only with client
consent.
Assets Under Management
As of December 31, 2024, OneAscent had $2,610,953,335 in assets under management across 11,150
accounts. OneAscent also provides consulting services for qualified plans giving OneAscent
$545,512,453 in assets under advisement.
Item 5:
Fees and Compensation
A.
Fees Charged/ Fee Schedule:
Unified Managed Accounts (Adhesion and GeoWealth)
Generally, fees may vary from 0.50% to 2.00% per annum of the market value of a client’s assets in the
UMA. The Overlay Managers (Adhesion and GeoWealth) and third party managers charge separate and
additional fees with respect to client accounts for account models and administration. Portions of these
fees are paid directly to OAIS. In addition, the client will be billed by OneAscent for the advisory fee.
Fees are negotiable, based on the nature of the account. Factors affecting fee percentages include the size
of the account, complexity of asset structures, and other factors.
Unified Managed Accounts (Natixis)
Generally, fees may vary from 0.50% to 2.00% per annum of the market value of a client’s assets in the
UMA. The Overlay Manager (Natixis) and third party managers charge separate and additional fees with
respect to client accounts for account models and administration. In addition, the client will be billed by
OneAscent for the advisory fee. Fees are negotiable, based on the nature of the account. Factors affecting
fee percentages include the size of the account, complexity of asset structures, and other factors.
Financial Planning
Financial planning fees can be hourly, fixed fee basis (which may be per project or per quarter), or
included with asset management services. Our typical hourly charge is between $125 and $500 per hour,
depending on the professional working on the project. Fixed fees will typically be between $0 and
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$15,000, and in special circumstances, can be greater than $100,000. The fee range stated is a guide. Fees
may be higher or lower than this range, based on the nature of the engagement. Fees are negotiable, and
will depend on the anticipated complexity of your plan and the professional(s) working on the plan.
Asset Management for Non-UMA Clients
Generally, fees may vary from 0.50% to 2.00% per annum of the market value of a client’s assets managed
by OneAscent. In limited circumstances, asset management may also be done on a flat fee basis. Flat
fees will be between $1,000 and $100,000 per annum. The fee ranges stated are a guide. Fees are
negotiable, and may be higher or lower than this range, based on the nature of the account. Factors
affecting fee percentages include the size of the account, complexity of asset structures, and other factors.
Asset Management for Held Away Accounts
Generally, fees may vary from 0.50% to 1.00% per annum of the market value of a client’s assets managed
by OneAscent. In limited circumstances, asset management for Held Away Accounts may also be done
on a flat fee basis. Factors affecting fee percentages include the size of the account, complexity of asset
structures, and other factors. In addition to the Firm’s advisory fee, Pontera charges a separate and
additional fee with respect to client accounts, which is borne by the client’s adviser.
Asset Management for Fee Based Annuities and Insurance
Generally, fees may vary from 0.50% to 2.00% per annum of the market value of a client’s assets managed
by OneAscent. In limited circumstances, asset management for fee based annuities and insurance may
also be done on a flat fee basis. The fee ranges stated are a guide. Fees are negotiable, and may be higher
or lower than this range, based on the nature of the account. Factors affecting fee percentages include the
size of the account, complexity of asset structures, and other factors. In addition to the Firm’s advisory
fee, the third-party platform charges a separate and additional fee with respect to client accounts.
Separate Managers
When an OneAscent advisor allocates client assets to a separate manager (which may be in some cases a
private placement), including an affiliated manager including, but not limited to OAIS, fees payable to
such managers are separate from, and in addition to, fees payable to OneAscent. This means that the
overall fees to OneAscent and these managers may be significantly higher than if OneAscent had managed
the assets directly. OneAscent will consider these fees in its decision to recommend the use of any third-
party manager, including OAIS. OneAscent has a conflict of interest because OneAscent has the incentive
to refer clients to OAIS, because of common ownership, and therefore are likely to receive greater overall
compensation if assets are allocated to their respective affiliated firms as opposed to a different third-party
manager or in-house management. This conflict of interest is disclosed to clients verbally and in this
brochure. OneAscent also attempts to mitigate the conflict of interest by requiring employees to
acknowledge the firm’s Code of Ethics, their individual fiduciary duty to the clients of OneAscent, which
requires that employees put the interests of clients ahead of their own.
Financial Consulting
Financial consulting is done on a fixed fee basis (which may be per project or per quarter). Fixed fees
will be between $500 and $4,000 per annum. The fee range stated is a guide. Fees may be higher or
lower than this range, based on the nature of the engagement. Fees are negotiable and will depend on the
anticipated complexity of your plan.
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OneAscent receives a consulting fee on the assets under management from Brokerage Customers who
have provided written consent to a broker/dealer to receive the investment consulting service from
OneAscent and have entered into a written consulting agreement with OneAscent. The consulting fee is
calculated as a percentage from the assets under management as of the end of a calendar quarter period.
The initial fee is paid only after the completion of one full calendar quarter period following the date of
the executed agreement with broker/dealers.
Tax Preparation
Tax Preparation can be arranged on a fixed fee basis or included with asset management services. The
fixed fee rates for stand-alone tax preparation will vary, but due to the extreme variations in client tax
complexity (various states of residence, international issues, business ownership) there is no guideline for
tax costs that can be determined in an abstract manner. Each fee must be determined on a case-by-case
basis.
Back-Office Services
Back-office services are negotiable and be arranged on a flat-fee or hourly basis.
Trading Costs
OAFS utilizes various technology platforms for the purpose of providing clients with account reporting
services, and provides additional services related to the processing of trades and non-investment
transactions and other client needs. Costs related to account reporting services, processing trades, and
other non-investment transactions may vary from 0.02% to 0.15%. The fee ranges stated are a guide. Fees
are negotiable, and may be higher or lower than this range, based on the nature of the arrangement between
OAFS and the IAR servicing the account.
Flourish Cash
If a client participates in the cash management program from Flourish, the service fee, if applied, is 0.25%.
This fee is deducted from the client’s overall APY. This fee is not negotiable. This account is separate
from OAFS’s advisory fee and trading costs.
B.
Fee Payment
Asset Management
Investment advisory fees will generally be debited directly from each client’s account. The advisory fee
is paid on a quarterly basis, in advance, with adjustments made for deposits and withdrawals greater than
$25,000 intra-quarter. Fees are calculated by multiplying the overall asset value, as of the last day of the
prior quarter, of the account (or overall household, if applicable) by the annual fee rate, and then dividing
the result by 4. Thereafter, adjustments are made to pro-rate fees for any deposits or withdrawals greater
than $25,000 made during the prior quarter. Once the calculation is made, we will instruct your account
custodian to deduct the fee from your account and remit it to the firm.
For clients who elect to be billed on a flat fee basis, fees are payable on a quarterly basis, in advance, and
no adjustments are made for deposits and withdrawals made intra-quarter. The annual flat fee will be
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renewed upon the anniversary of the execution of the contract each year, and fees for renewal services
will be agreed upon by the parties at the time of renewal. Once the fee calculation is made each quarter,
we will instruct your account custodian to deduct the fee from your account and remit it to the firm.
Clients whose fees are directly debited will provide written authorization to debit advisory fees from their
accounts held by a qualified custodian chosen by the client. The client will also receive a statement from
their account custodian showing all transactions in their account, including the fee. It is the responsibility
of the client to verify the accuracy of all fee calculations. The client may terminate the investment advisory
agreement by notifying OneAscent in writing at its principal place of business.
The advisory agreement may be modified as mutually agreed upon in writing. The agreement is
terminable by you at any time. The agreement is not assignable by OneAscent Financial Services LLC
without the advance written consent of the client.
Please note that clients invested in certain programs with smaller accounts (roughly under $10k) are
likely to pay fees on a percentage basis higher than those of clients with larger accounts due to the fact
that some costs incurred are fixed in terms of dollar amount. Your advisor will consult with you about
your anticipated fees and costs prior to opening your account.
Financial Planning
For financial planning clients, fees will generally be billed for fees incurred, but clients may request that
planning fees be debited from an investment management account or via AdvicePay.
Tax Preparation
Invoices for tax preparation services will be issued upon delivery of the prepared returns and are payable
upon receipt.
Back-Office Services
Invoices for back-office services will be issued by OneAscent to the individual registered investment
adviser or individual investment adviser representative and payable upon receipt.
Trading Costs
Trading costs will generally be debited directly from each client’s account. The trading fee is paid on a
quarterly basis, in advance, with adjustments made for deposits and withdrawals greater than $25,000 intra-
quarter. Trading fees are calculated by multiplying the overall asset value, as of the last day of the prior
quarter, of the account (or overall household, if applicable) by the annual fee rate, and then dividing the
result by 4. Thereafter, adjustments are made to pro-rate trading fees for any deposits or withdrawals greater
than $25,000 made during the prior quarter. Once the calculation is made, we will instruct your account
custodian to deduct the trading fee from your account and remit it to the firm. For clients with accounts
feeding to either of our portfolio and billing software, Black Diamond or Orion, please consider that the
advisory fee and platform fee (trading cost) are combined when entered into the software because the
software cannot accommodate separate fees. Thus, your agreement will state the advisory fee (i.e., 1%),
but in the software the fee entered for billing purposes is higher than 1% (i.e., 1.05%, which represents
the 1% advisory fee and the 0.05% for the platform fee). Also, the custodial statement will read 1.05%
due to the combination. Please consult with your advisor, who will assist you in showing the fee
breakdown in any billing period.
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For clients who elect to be billed on a flat fee basis, trading fees are payable on a quarterly basis, in
advance, and no adjustments are made for deposits and withdrawals made intra-quarter. The annual flat
fee will be renewed upon the anniversary of the execution of the contract each year, and trading fees for
renewal services will be agreed upon by the parties at the time of renewal. Once the fee calculation is
made each quarter, we will instruct your account custodian to deduct the trading fee from your account
and remit it to the firm.
Clients whose trading fees are directly debited will provide written authorization to debit fees from their
accounts held by a qualified custodian chosen by the client. The client will also receive a statement from
their account custodian showing all transactions in their account, including the fee. It is the responsibility
of the client to verify the accuracy of all fee calculations. The client may terminate the investment advisory
contract by notifying OneAscent in writing at its principal place of business.
Outsourced Chief Investment Officer
Fees for outsourced CIO services will be 10 to 20 basis points per annum, and will be calculated and paid
in the same cadence and with the same methods as the asset management fee. This fee is separate from,
and in addition to, any fees the client pays OneAscent (and indirectly their individual advisor) for asset
management.
C.
Other Fees
Mutual Funds
All fees paid to OneAscent for investment advisory services are separate and distinct from the fees and
expenses charged by underlying investments such as mutual funds. In the case of mutual funds, these fees
and expenses are described in each fund's prospectus. These fees will generally include a management fee,
other fund expenses, and a possible distribution fee. Expenses of a fund, including management fees
payable to the mutual fund manager, will not appear as transaction fees on a client’s statement, as they
are deducted from the value of the shares by the mutual fund manager. If the fund also imposes sales
charges, a client may pay an initial or deferred sales charge. A client could invest in a fund directly, without
the services of OneAscent. In that case, the client would not receive the services provided by OneAscent
which are designed, among other things, to assist the client in determining which fund or funds are most
appropriate to each client's financial condition and objectives. Accordingly, the client should review both
the fees charged by the funds and the fees charged by OneAscent to fully understand the total amount of
fees to be paid by the client and to thereby evaluate the advisory services being provided. OneAscent can
provide or direct you to a copy of the prospectus for any fund that we recommend to you.
Other Fees
There are a number of other fees that can be associated with holding and investing in securities. You will
be responsible for fees including transaction fees for the purchase or sale of other securities, including
commissions for the purchase or sale of a stock or exchange traded fund. Other fees you will be
responsible for may be associated with the custody of assets and platform fees.
When utilizing the services of a third party manager (as described more in Item 8), such managers will
charge fees for their services. These fees are separate from, and in addition to, OneAscent’s fees.
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Please make sure to read Item 12 of this informational brochure, where we discuss broker-dealer and
custodial issues.
Schwab Performance Technologies Institutional Intelligent Portfolios
As described in Item 4 Advisory Business, clients do not pay fees to SPT or brokerage commissions or
other fees to CS&Co. as part of the Program. Schwab does receive other revenues, including (i) the profit
earned by Charles Schwab Bank, SSB, a Schwab affiliate, on the allocation of the Schwab Intelligent
Portfolios Sweep Program described in the Schwab Intelligent Portfolios Sweep Program Disclosure
Statement; (ii) investment advisory and/or administrative service fees (or unitary fees) received by Charles
Schwab Investment Management, Inc., a Schwab affiliate, from Schwab ETFs™, Schwab Funds®, and
Laudus Funds® that we select to buy and hold in the client’s brokerage account; (iii) fees received by
Schwab from mutual funds in the Schwab Mutual Fund Marketplace® (including certain Schwab Funds
and Laudus Funds) in the client’s brokerage account for services Schwab provides; and (iv) remuneration
Schwab receives from the market centers where it routes ETF orders for execution. Brokerage
arrangements are further described below in Item 12 Brokerage Practices.
D.
Pro-rata Fees
If you become a client during a billing period, you will pay a management fee and platform fee for the
number of days left in that billing period. If you terminate our relationship during a billing period, you
will be entitled to a refund of any pre-paid and unearned management fees and platform fees for the
remainder of the billing period. Once your notice of termination is received, we will refund the unearned
fees to you in whatever way you direct (check, wire back to your account). Further, as discussed above,
any deposits or withdrawals greater than $25,000 will result in an adjusted fee calculation with respect to
the account related to the deposit or withdrawal. Deposits will incur a pro-rated fee for the remainder of
the billing period. Withdrawals will result in a pro-rata refund of the unearned fee with regard to the
withdrawn amount. OneAscent will cease to perform services, including processing trades and
distributions upon termination. Assets not transferred from terminated accounts within 30 (thirty) days
of termination may be “de-linked”, meaning they will no longer be visible to OneAscent and will become
a retail account with the custodian.
E. Compensation for the Sale of Securities
To permit OneAscent clients to have access to as many investment solutions as possible, certain
professionals of OneAscent are registered representatives of Purshe Kaplan Sterling Investments, Inc.
(“PKS”), a FINRA member broker-dealer. The relationship with PKS allows these professionals to
provide additional products to clients’ portfolios that would not otherwise be available. Because PKS
supervises the activities of these professionals as registered representatives of PKS, the relationship may
be deemed material. However, PKS is not affiliated with OneAscent or considered a related party. PKS
does not make investment decisions for client accounts. Registered representative status enables these
professionals to receive customary commissions for the sales of various securities, including those he
recommends to clients.
Item 6:
Performance-Based Fees
OneAscent will not charge performance based fees.
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Item 7:
Types of Clients
OneAscent generally provides advisory services to individuals, pension and profit sharing plans, trusts,
estates, charitable organizations, corporations, broker/dealers, and other business entities.
OneAscent does not have a specified minimum account size. Some clients who wish to access multiple
asset management styles, specifically third party managers, may be required to have an account minimum.
Item 8:
Methods of Analysis, Investment Strategies and Risk of Loss
Methods of Analysis and Investment Strategies
Each client portfolio is separately managed, and invested according to that client’s investment objective.
Once each account’s objectives are ascertained, OneAscent will develop a set of asset allocation
guidelines. An asset allocation guideline is a percentage-based allocation among different types of assets
like stocks, fixed income, or third party managers with specific expertise (asset classes), or specific types
of securities (large cap, mid-cap). For example, a client may have an asset allocation strategy that calls
for 80% of the portfolio to be invested in equity securities and fixed income and the rest invested with
third party managers. Within each main allocation may be sub-allocations. For example, a client with 80%
in direct securities may have a mix of large cap, mid cap and small cap equities combined with mutual
funds and fixed income, while another client’s direct securities might be all in ETFs and mutual funds.
Each client is managed individually.
The percentages in each asset type recommended by OneAscent are based on the typical behavior of that
security type, individual securities we follow current market conditions, the client’s current financial
situation, financial goals, and the timeline to achieve those goals. Because OneAscent develops an
investment strategy based on each client’s personal situation and financial goals, each client’s asset
allocation guidelines may be similar to or different from another client’s. It is important to remember that
because market conditions can vary greatly, asset allocation guidelines are not necessarily strict rules.
Rather, we review accounts individually, and may deviate from the guidelines as we believe necessary.
Assets may be managed through the use of a third party manager or directly managed by a OneAscent
professional, depending on the professional advisor with whom the client works as well as client needs.
When managing assets directly, the securities recommended may include stocks, index funds, exchange
traded funds, mutual funds, alternative investments, options and bonds. Clients whose assets are managed
through a UMA with OAIS will be given a separate disclosure statement for OAIS. Clients are encouraged
to carefully review the disclosure information provided by OAIS.
Specific equity and fixed income securities are chosen based on a variety of factors including dividends,
income, interest rates, company management, price to earnings ratios, and other factors. Specific mutual
funds are chosen based on where its investment objective fits into the asset allocation recommended by
OneAscent, its risk parameters, past performance, peer rankings, fees, expenses, and any other aspects of
the fund OneAscent deems relevant to that particular fund. Specific third party managers are chosen based
on their performance, investment style, investment consistency, experience, and expertise. OneAscent
bases its conclusions on publicly-available research, such as regulatory filings, press releases, purchased
research, and proprietary screens and analytics. We will also utilize technical analyses, which means that
we will review the past behaviors of the security and the markets in which it trades for signals as to what
might happen in the future.
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Transitioning Accounts
Upon engagement, each client will complete an Investor Profile Questionnaire, which may utilize client
information to give OneAscent a clearer picture of each client’s financial circumstances, and the results
of these questionnaires may be the basis for determining the client’s investment strategy. The firm will
also review a client’s portfolios, discuss the client’s investment objectives and risk tolerance as well as
any potential investment restrictions, and plan a transition for the client’s assets from their current
accounts to accounts managed by the firm. Transition plans will involve the placement of each client’s
assets in an asset allocation strategy deemed appropriate by OneAscent. In many instances, but not always,
the assets will be placed in the OAIS UMA platform. These are described in the respective Form ADV of
each manager, and clients whose assets are placed with OAIS should carefully review the Form ADV.
As assets are transitioned from a client’s prior advisers to OneAscent, there may be securities and other
investments that do not fit within the investment strategy selected for the client. Accordingly, these
investments will need to be sold in order to reposition the portfolio into the investment strategy selected
by OneAscent. However, this transition process may take some time to accomplish. Some investments
may not be unwound for a lengthy period of time for a variety of reasons that may include unwarranted
low share prices, restrictions on trading, contractual restrictions on liquidity, or market-related liquidity
concerns. In some cases, there may be securities or investments that are never able to be sold. In the event
an investment in a client account is unable to be unwound for a period of time, OneAscent will monitor
the investment as part of its services to the client. OneAscent may suggest that a given investment be
moved to a separate account.
Third Party Managers
We recommend that for some clients, certain portions of their portfolio are most appropriately managed
by a third-party (sometimes including a private placement), typically when those managers demonstrate
knowledge and expertise in a particular investment strategy. We do not consider a mutual fund to be a
separate account manager, as the mutual fund itself is a security.
We examine the experience, expertise, investment philosophies and past performance of independent
third-party investment managers in an attempt to determine if that manager has demonstrated an ability
to invest over a period of time and in different economic conditions. We monitor the manager’s underlying
holdings, strategies, concentration and leverage as part of our overall periodic assessment. Additionally,
as part of our due-diligence process, we survey the manager’s compliance and business enterprise risks.
Based on a client’s individual circumstances and needs, we will determine which selected money
manager's portfolio management style is appropriate for that client. Factors considered in making this
determination include account size, risk tolerance and the investment philosophy of the selected money
manager. We encourage clients to review each third-party manager’s disclosure document regarding the
particular characteristics of any program and managers selected by us.
We will regularly and continuously monitor the performance of the selected money managers. If we
determine that a particular selected money manager is not providing sufficient management services to
the client or are not managing the client's portfolio in a manner consistent with the client's investment
objectives, we will remove the client's assets from that selected money manager and place the client's
assets with another money manager at our discretion and without prior consent from the client, unless the
client non- discretionary. Permission for non-discretionary accounts will be obtained before placing the
client's assets with another money manager.
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OneAscent will obtain appropriate due diligence on all independent third-party managers, making
reasonable inquiries into their performance calculations, policies and procedures, code of ethics policies
and other operational and compliance matters to account for performance and risk management. We
examine the experience, expertise, investment philosophies and past performance of third-party
investment managers in an attempt to determine if that manager has demonstrated an ability to invest over
a period of time and in different economic conditions. We monitor the manager’s underlying holdings,
strategies, concentrations, and leverage as part of our overall periodic risk assessment. Additionally, as
part of our due-diligence process, we survey the manager’s compliance and business enterprise risks.
The use of a third party manager, including OAIS, SEI Investments Company, and Natixis does not
change the relationship between the OneAscent professional and the client, in that such professional will
still manage the overall client portfolio, adding, subtracting and modifying the allocations to different
strategies and managers.
Risk of Loss
There are always risks to investing. Clients should be aware that all investments carry various types of
risk, including the potential loss of principal that clients should be prepared to bear. It is impossible to
name all possible types of risks. Among the risks are the following:
• Political Risks. Most investments have a global component, even domestic stocks. Political events
anywhere in the world may have unforeseen consequences to markets around the world.
• General Market Risks. Markets can, as a whole, go up or down on various news releases or for no
understandable reason at all. This sometimes means that the price of specific securities could go up or
down without real reason, and may take some time to recover any lost value. Adding additional securities
does not help to minimize this risk since all securities may be affected by market fluctuations.
• Strategy Risk. When investments are made through a strategy, rather than individualized investment
considerations, there is always the possibility that individualized investment choices would have produced
a more positive result for a client than an approach where investments are made for a group of individuals
with common characteristics.
• Currency Risk. When investing in another country using another currency, the changes in the value
of the currency can change the value of your security value in your portfolio.
• Regulatory Risk. Changes in laws and regulations from any government can change the value of a
given company and its accompanying securities. Certain industries are more susceptible to government
regulation. Changes in zoning, tax structure or laws impact the return on these investments.
• Tax Risks Related to Short Term Trading: Clients should note that OneAscent may engage in
short-term trading transactions. These transactions may result in short term gains or losses for federal and
state tax purposes, which may be taxed at a higher rate than long term strategies. OneAscent endeavors
to invest client assets in a tax efficient manner, but all clients are advised to consult with their tax
professionals regarding the transactions in client accounts.
• Purchasing Power Risk. Purchasing power risk is the risk that your investment’s value will decline
as the price of goods rises (inflation). The investment’s value itself does not decline, but its relative value
does, which is the same thing. Inflation can happen for a variety of complex reasons, including a growing
economy and a rising money supply.
• Business Risk. This can be thought of as certainty or uncertainty of income. Management comes
under business risk. Cyclical companies (like automobile companies) have more business risk because
of the less steady income stream. On the other hand, fast food chains tend to have steadier income streams
and therefore, less business risk.
• Financial Risk. The amount of debt or leverage determines the financial risk of a company.
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• Default Risk. This risk pertains to the ability of a company to service their debt. Ratings provided
by several rating services help to identify those companies with more risk. Obligations of the U.S.
government are said to be free of default risk.
•
Information Risk: All investment professionals rely on research in order to make conclusions about
investment options. This research is always a mix of both internal (proprietary) and external (provided
by third parties) data and analyses. Even an adviser who says they rely solely on proprietary research
must still collect data from third parties. This data, or outside research is chosen for its perceived
reliability, but there is no guarantee that the data or research will be completely accurate. Failure in data
accuracy or research will translate to a compromised ability by the adviser to reach satisfactory investment
conclusions.
• Short Sales. “Short sales” are a way to implement a trade in a security OneAscent feels is overvalued.
In a “long” trade, the investor is hoping the security increases in price. Thus in a long trade, the amount
of the investor’s loss (without margin) is the amount paid for the security. In a short sale, the investor is
hoping the security decreases in price. However, unlike a long trade where the price of the security can
only go from the purchase price to zero, in a short sale, the price of the security can go infinitely upwards.
Thus in a short sale, the potential for loss is unlimited and unknown, where the potential for loss in a long
trade is limited and knowable. OneAscent utilizes short sales only when the client’s risk tolerances permit.
• Options. The use of options transactions as an investment strategy involves a high level of inherent
risk. Although the intent of many of the options-related transactions implemented by OneAscent is to
hedge against principal risk, certain of the options-related strategies (i.e., straddles, short positions, etc.),
may in and of themselves, produce principal volatility and/or risk. Thus, a client must be willing to accept
these enhanced volatility and principal risks associated with such strategies. In light of these enhanced
risks, client may direct OneAscent, in writing, not to employ any or all such strategies for his/her/their/its
accounts. Clients participating in the Options Strategy should carefully consider all information regarding
the strategy and its risks prior to participating.
•
Information Risk. All investment professionals rely on research in order to make conclusions about
investment options. This research is always a mix of both internal (proprietary) and external (provided
by third parties) data and analyses. Even an adviser who says they rely solely on proprietary research
must still collect data from third parties. This data, or outside research is chosen for its perceived
reliability, but there is no guarantee that the data or research will be completely accurate. Failure in data
accuracy or research will translate to a compromised ability by the adviser to reach satisfactory investment
conclusions.
• Small Companies. Some investment opportunities in the marketplace involve smaller issuers. These
companies may be starting up, or are historically small. While these companies sometimes have potential
for outsized returns, they also have the potential for losses because the reasons the company is small are
also risks to the company’s future. For example, a company’s management may lack experience, or the
company’s capital for growth may be restricted. These small companies also tend to trade less frequently
that larger companies, which can add to the risks associated with their securities because the ability to sell
them at an appropriate price may be limited compared to the markets as a whole. Not only do these
companies have investment risk, if a client is invested in such small companies and requests immediate
or short term liquidity, these securities may require a significant discount to value in order to be sold in a
shorter time frame.
• Concentration Risk. While OneAscent selects individual equities and bonds for client portfolios
based on an individualized assessment of each security, this evaluation comes without an overlay of
general economic or sector specific issue analysis. This means that a client’s equity portfolio may be
concentrated in a specific sector, geography, or sub-sector (among other types of potential
concentrations), so that if an unexpected event occurs that affects that specific sector or geography, for
example, the client’s equity portfolio may be affected negatively, including significant losses.
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• Transition Risk. As assets are transitioned from a client’s prior advisers to OneAscent there may be
securities and other investments that do not fit within the asset allocation strategy selected for the client.
Accordingly, these investments will need to be sold in order to reposition the portfolio into the asset
allocation strategy selected by OneAscent. However, this transition process may take some time to
accomplish. Some investments may not be unwound for a lengthy period of time for a variety of reasons
that may include unwarranted low share prices, restrictions on trading, contractual restrictions on
liquidity, or market-related liquidity concerns. In some cases, there may be securities or investments that
are never able to be sold. The inability to transition a client's holdings into recommendations of
OneAscent may adversely affect the client's account values, as OneAscent’ recommendations may not be
able to be fully implemented.
• Restriction Risk. Clients may at all times place reasonable restrictions on the management of their
accounts. However, placing these restrictions may make managing the accounts more difficult, thus
lowering the potential for returns.
• Risks Related to Investment Term & Liquidity. Securities do not follow a straight line up in value.
All securities will have periods of time when the current price of the security is not an accurate measure
of its value. If you require us to liquidate your portfolio during one of these periods, you will not realize
as much value as you would have had the investment had the opportunity to regain its value. Further,
some investments are made with the intention of the investment appreciating over an extended period of
time. Liquidating these investments prior to their intended time horizon may result in losses.
• Algorithms and Models. When an investment manager develops a mathematical algorithm that
identifies trigger points for the purpose of indicating a “buy” or “sell” signal, these trigger points are
limited in that they are based on solely the data input into the algorithm. There is an unlimited amount of
data that can be considered in making any given decision as to whether to buy or sell any given security.
An algorithm, by design, ignores some data in favor of others. There is a risk that the data selected for
the algorithm will not create a positive result, whereas other data, had it been considered, may do so.
• REITs: OneAscent may recommend that portions of client portfolios be allocated to real estate
investment trusts, otherwise known as “REITs”. A REIT is an entity, typically a trust or corporation, that
accepts investments from a number of investors, pools the money, and then uses that money to invest in
real estate through either actual property purchases or mortgage loans. While there are some benefits to
owning REITs, which include potential tax benefits, income and the relatively low barrier to invest in real
estate as compared to directly investing in real estate, REITs also have some increased risks as compared
to more traditional investments such as stocks, bonds, and mutual funds. First, real estate investing can
be highly volatile. Second, the specific REIT chosen may have a focus such as commercial real estate or
real estate in a given location. Such investment focus can be beneficial if the properties are successful,
but lose significant principal if the properties are not successful. REITs may also employ significant
leverage for the purpose of purchasing more investments with fewer investment dollars, which can
enhance returns but also enhances the risk of loss. The success of a REIT is highly dependent upon the
manager of the REIT. Clients should ensure they understand the role of the REIT in their portfolio.
• MLPs: OneAscent may recommend that portions of client portfolios be allocated to master limited
partnerships, otherwise known as “MLPs”. An MLP is a publicly traded entity that is designed to provide
tax benefits for the investor. In order to preserve these benefits, the MLP must derive most, if not all, of
its income from real estate, natural resources and commodities. While MLPs may add diversification and
tax favored treatment to a client’s portfolio, they also carry significant risks beyond more traditional
investments such as stocks, bonds and mutual funds. One such risk is management risk-the success of
the MLP is dependent upon the manager’s experience and judgment in selecting investments for the MLP.
Another risk is the governance structure, which means the rules under which the entity is run. The
investors are the limited partners of the MLP, with an affiliate of the manager typically the general partner.
This means the manager has all of the control in running the entity, as opposed to an equity investment
where shareholders vote on such matters as board composition. There is also a significant amount of risk
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with the underlying real estate, resources or commodities investments. Clients should ask OneAscent any
questions regarding the role of MLPs in their portfolio.
• Funds Available Risk: Clients who have check-writing authority for their accounts are responsible
for losses related to trades not occurring due to a lack of cash within their account.
• Excess Cash Balance Risk: Client accounts may have cash balances in excess of $250,000, which
is the insurance limit of the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation. For cash balances in excess of that
amount, there is an enhanced risk that operation related counterparty risk related to the account custodian
could cause losses in the account. We mitigate this risk by carrying cash balances in amounts either
subject to protection or as limited as you, the client, directs. You may elect to participate in a “cash
sweep” program through your account custodian which automatically moves excess cash from your
investment account into a cash account and then invests that cash into cash based investments, such as
money market funds. We do not receive compensation of any kinds for facilitating your participation in
such cash sweep accounts.
• Risks specific to sub-advisors, other managers and private placements. If we invest some of
your assets with another advisor, including a private placement, there are additional risks. These include
risks that the other manager is not as qualified as we believe them to be, that the investments they use are
not as liquid as we would normally use in your portfolio, or their risk management guidelines are more
liberal than we would normally employ. The third-party manager who has been successful in the past
may not be able to replicate that success in the future. Private funds are pooled investment vehicles, and
each pooled investment vehicle is managed according to the stated investment program in the respective
private fund’s private placement memorandum. This means that individual investors in a fund will not
receive individual asset management within the fund. In addition, as we do not control the underlying
investments in a third-party manager’s portfolio (even if the portfolio is managed by an affiliate), there is
also a risk that a manager may deviate from the stated investment mandate or strategy of the portfolio,
making it a less suitable investment for a particular client. Moreover, when we do not control the
manager’s daily business and compliance operations, it is possible for us to miss the absence of internal
controls necessary to prevent business, regulatory or reputational deficiencies. Accordingly, clients
investing in private funds should carefully read that fund’s private placement memorandum, and clients
investing through a third party manager should carefully read that manager’s Form ADV.
Item 9:
Disciplinary Information
We have not been the subject of any legal or disciplinary events that would be material to your evaluation
of our business or the integrity of our management.
Item 10:
Other Financial Industry Activities and Affiliations
A. Broker-dealer
Please see the response to Item 5E with regard to individuals registered in their individual capacities
with broker-dealers.
Flourish Cash
As stated above, OAFS has made available Flourish Cash, an online cash management solution that seeks
to provide clients with competitive APY and elevated FDIC coverage for their deposits placed at program
banks. Flourish Cash is offered by Flourish Financial LLC, a registered broker-dealer and FINRA
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member. OAFS is not affiliated with Flourish Financial LLC or any of the program’s banks. OAFS clients
utilize Flourish Cash only with client consent.
B. Futures Commission Merchant/Commodity Trading Advisor
Neither the principal of OneAscent, nor any related persons are registered, or have an application pending
to register, as a futures commission merchant, commodity pool operator, a commodity trading advisor, or
an associated person of the foregoing entities.
C. Relationship with Related Persons
OneAscent Investment Solutions LLC
Harry Pearson and Rob Grubb, owners of OneAscent, are also owners of OneAscent Investment Solutions
LLC (“OAIS). When a OneAscent advisor allocates client assets to a separate manager, including an
affiliated manager such as OAIS, fees payable to such managers are separate from, and in addition to,
fees payable to OneAscent. This means that the overall fees to OneAscent and these managers may be
significantly higher than if OneAscent had managed the assets directly. OneAscent will consider these
fees in its decision to recommend the use of any third party manager, including OAIS. OneAscent has a
conflict of interest because OneAscent has the incentive to refer clients to OAIS, because of common
ownership, and therefore are likely to receive greater overall compensation if assets are allocated to their
respective affiliated firms as opposed to a different third party manager or in-house management.
Individual investment adviser representatives may also receive greater compensation for allocating assets
to affiliated managers than to other non-affiliated managers. OneAscent also consults on the Collective
Investment Trusts that OAIS manages. This may present a conflict of interest for OneAscent to
recommend the Collective Investment Trusts if OAIS is serving as the investment manager. These
conflicts of interest are disclosed to clients verbally and in this brochure. OneAscent also attempts to
mitigate the conflict of interest by requiring employees to acknowledge the firm’s Code of Ethics, their
individual fiduciary duty to the clients of OneAscent, which requires that employees put the interests of
clients ahead of their own.
OneAscent Wealth Management, LLC
Harry Pearson and Robert Grubb, owners of OAFS, are also indirect owners of OneAscent Wealth
Management, LLC (“OAWM”). OAWM is registered with the United States Securities and Exchange
Commission. OAWM’s purpose is to provide financial planning and wealth management services to
clients. OAWM will recommend that all or a portion of client assets are invested through OAIS. When a
OAWM advisor allocates client assets to a separate manager, including an affiliated manager such as
OAIS, fees payable to such managers are separate from, and in addition to, fees payable to OAWM. This
means that the overall fees to OAWM and these managers may be significantly higher than if OAWM
had managed the assets directly. OAWM will consider these fees in its decision to recommend the use of
any third party manager, including OAIS. OAWM has a conflict of interest because OAWM has the
incentive to refer clients to OAIS, because the owners of those firms are also owners of OAWM, and
therefore are likely to receive greater overall compensation if assets are allocated to their respective
affiliated firms as opposed to a different third party manager or in-house management. Individual
investment adviser representatives may also receive greater compensation for allocating assets to
affiliated managers than to other non-affiliated managers. OAIS is also the investment manager to
Collective Investment Trusts. OAFS may be consulting the individual plans of the Collective Investment
Trusts, and therefore it may be a conflict of interest for OAFS to recommend the Collective Investment
Trusts if OAIS is serving as the investment manager. This conflict of interest is disclosed to clients
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verbally and in this brochure. OAWM also attempts to mitigate the conflict of interest by requiring
employees to acknowledge the firm’s Code of Ethics, their individual fiduciary duty to the clients of
OAWM, which requires that employees put the interests of clients ahead of their own. In addition to the
conflict of interest in recommending our affiliate, OAIS for the management of model strategies or
investment in a registered investment company managed by OAIS, OAFS has additional conflicts related
to OAWM. One such conflict is that OAFS executes the billing processed for OAWM. OAWM has a
conflict in arranging for the billing to be done in this manner by an affiliate as opposed to a third party
because there is the potential for greater income to the indirect owners as described above. However,
OAFS and OAWM believe this billing approach is more beneficial to clients because of streamlined
services and potentially lower costs. In addition, OAFS may also provide certain administrative and
consulting services to individual investment adviser representatives related to the sales or other transfers
of their business. OAFS has a conflict of interest in recommending the sale of an investment adviser
representative’s business to another OneAscent investment adviser representative, because if the clients
of one investment adviser representative stay with another OneAscent entity, the overall compensation to
OneAscent will be higher than if those clients left as a result of a sale to an outside investment adviser
representative or firm. Further, if OAFS receives a fee for providing consulting services to the investment
adviser representative, there is a conflict of interest for OAFS with regard to that investment adviser
representative. OAFS mitigates these conflicts of interest by disclosing them in this Part 2A and providing
additional ethics training to our investment adviser representatives on an annual basis.
Insurance
Certain professionals of OneAscent are separately licensed as independent insurance agents. As such,
these professionals may conduct insurance product transactions for OneAscent clients, in their capacity
as licensed insurance agents, and will receive customary commissions for these transactions in addition
to any compensation received in his capacity as employees of OneAscent. Commissions from the sale of
insurance products will not be used to offset or as a credit against advisory fees. These professionals
therefore have incentive to recommend insurance products based on the compensation to be received,
rather than on a client’s needs. The receipt of additional fees for insurance commissions is therefore a
conflict of interest, and clients should be aware of this conflict when considering whether to engage
OneAscent or utilize these professionals to implement any insurance recommendations. OneAscent
attempts to mitigate this conflict of interest by disclosing the conflict to clients, and informing the clients
that they are always free to purchase insurance products through other agents that are not affiliated with
OneAscent, or to determine not to purchase the insurance product at all. OneAscent also attempts to
mitigate the conflict of interest by requiring employees to acknowledge in the firm’s Code of Ethics, their
individual fiduciary duty to the clients of OneAscent, which requires that employees put the interests of
clients ahead of their own.
Vendor Sponsorships
In limited circumstances, certain vendors including investment managers, mutual fund managers, TAMP
partners, and custodians to which we allocate (or may allocate) client assets will assist in payment of costs
associated with travel to and from diligence site visits and advertising and conference costs associated
with recruiting new advisors. This creates a conflict of interest because OneAscent could be incentivized
to use these vendors because of the relationship and not because it is best for clients. OneAscent attempts
to mitigate this conflict of interest by disclosing these relationships to clients and requiring all personnel
to certify they will follow the firm’s Code of Ethics.
OneGive
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OneGive is a platform for access to CharityVest, which is a platform through which clients and investors
for donor advised funds can manage assets on the donor advised fund. OneAscent Financial Services
LLC, on behalf of itself and its affiliates, has agreed with CharityVest to allow for OneAscent clients to
access CharityVest through a custom portal facilitated by OneAscent Financial Services LLC.
CharityVest is a 501(c)3 non-profit entity and therefore has no owners or profit stakeholders. CharityVest
utilizes Foundation Source (“Foundation Source”) for certain technological and operations assistance.
OneAscent Capital Impact Fund I, L.P. (“Impact Fund”) owns a portion of an entity that in turn owns a
portion of Foundation Source. Because the Impact Fund indirectly owns a portion of Foundation Source,
when an associated person of any OneAscent adviser recommends OneGive there is a conflict of interest
because there is an incentive to recommend that clients use a platform that, due to the indirect ownership,
financially benefits the owners of OneAscent Holdings LLC, the parent company of all of the OneAscent
registered investment advisers.
Additionally, OneGive works by clients investing in models through CharityVest. Some of these models
are created by OAIS. CharityVest retains the full discretion whether to offer or not offer any model
produced by OAIS to its customers. OAIS does not receive any compensation from CharityVest.
However, the models prepared by OAIS for CharityVest will likely include mutual funds and/or ETFs
managed by OneAscent Investment Solutions. Accordingly, an additional conflict arises from any
OneAscent advisor (from any of the OneAscent entities) recommending that a client work with OneGive
for their donor advised fund, because to the extent that advisor recommends OneGive, and in turn a model
within the OneGive system prepared by OneAscent Investment Solutions, OneAscent Investment
Solutions will indirectly receive compensation in the form of additional assets in the managed ETFs or
mutual funds within the models. In turn, the owners of OneAscent Holdings LLC, the parent company of
all OneAscent entities, benefit financially from more clients using the models provided by OAIS through
CharityVest. OneAscent attempts to mitigate this conflict of interest by disclosing the conflict to clients,
emphasizing the fiduciary duty to clients within the Code of Ethics, and researching other similar DAF
providers and presenting findings to clients, ensuring that CharityVest is the best option for the client
under the circumstance.
OneAscent’s agreement with CharityVest states that CharityVest is responsible for billing clients with
OneGive accounts. When advisors recommend OneGive to clients and the clients sign on, the OneAscent
advisor can then choose whether to charge an advisor fee. The fee is fixed at 55 bps, but the advisor can
choose whether to waive it or not. After the OneAscent advisor determines whether to waive the
CharityVest fee, CharityVest is responsible for performing the calculations for the fee. For the determined
billing periods, CharityVest sends checks to the OneAscent billing department with a breakdown of the
advisors and corresponding revenue. Revenue is then allocated to corresponding advisors. This creates a
conflict of interest due to OneAscent advisors recommending OneGive/CharityVest because the advisor
determines the amount of their fee and then receive compensation from CharityVest. OneAscent attempts
to mitigate this conflict by disclosing the conflict to the client and informing clients that they are free to
engage with other providers that are not affiliated with OneAscent. This conflict is further mitigated by
the fact that CharityVest allows all advisors to recommend its platform, not just OneAscent, to charge a
fee for the services related to management of the assets in the donor advised fund.
OneAscent Summit Club
The Summit Club recognizes top performing investment adviser representatives by providing an expense
paid trip. OneAscent considers the following metrics when considering which investment adviser
representatives qualify for the trip: investment adviser representative AUM, investment adviser
representative revenue, OAIS adoption, OneGive accounts, and OneGive contributions. This creates a
conflict of interest because the investment adviser representative is incentivized to place client assets in
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OAIS funds and OneGive accounts in order to qualify for a trip. OneAscent attempts to mitigate this
conflict by disclosing the conflict to the client in this Form ADV, and is further mitigated by requiring
investment adviser representatives to acknowledge their individual fiduciary duty to the clients of
OneAscent, found in the firm’s Code of Ethics, which requires that investment adviser representatives to
put the interests of clients ahead of their own.
Excellence in Giving
OneAscent Holdings, LLC owns Excellence in Giving (“EIG”), a faith-based firm that assists high-net
worth families in building a giving plan. EIG meets with clients, performs due diligence, and manages
giving portfolios. Because OneAscent advisors have the option to recommend clients use the services that
EIG provides, and OneAscent Holdings has an interest in EIG, there is a material conflict of interest. We
attempt to mitigate this conflict by disclosing it to our clients in this Form ADV. Further, all supervised
persons of OneAscent are required to read and follow the firm’s Code of Ethics, which reminds our
advisors of their fiduciary duty to place client interests ahead of their own.
Accounting Services
Certain OneAscent advisors may utilize certain individuals to provide accounting services to clients. Fees
for accounting services will not be used to offset or as a credit against advisory fees. OneAscent may have
an incentive to recommend accounting services based on the compensation to be received, rather than on
a client’s needs. The receipt of additional fees for accounting services is therefore a conflict of interest,
and clients should be aware of this conflict when considering whether to engage OneAscent to implement
any accounting recommendations. OneAscent attempts to mitigate this conflict of interest by disclosing
the conflict to clients, and informing the clients that they are always free to engage other companies that
are not affiliated with OneAscent. OneAscent also attempts to mitigate the conflict of interest by requiring
employees to acknowledge their individual fiduciary duty to the clients of OneAscent, found in the firm’s
Code of Ethics, which requires that employees put the interests of clients ahead of their own.
Investment Adviser Representatives
As discussed in Item 4 above, our firm offers services through our network of investment adviser
representatives ("Adviser Representatives" or "IARs"). IARs may have their own legal business entities
whose trade names and logos are used for marketing purposes and may appear on marketing materials or
client statements. The client should understand that the businesses are legal entities of the IAR and not
our firm, OneAscent. The IARs are under the supervision of our firm, OneAscent, and the advisory
services of the IAR are provided through our firm, OneAscent. Please refer to the ADV Part 1 for more
information regarding these advisors.
OneAscent Capital
OneAscent Holdings, LLC the owner of OneAscent Financial Services LLC, is also the owner of
OneAscent Capital, which is the manager of the OneAscent Capital Fund I, L.P., OAC Pathway LLC,
OAC Evergreen Fund, and OneAscent Capital Opportunities Fund (the “Funds”). OneAscent Capital
Impact Fund I, LP is a Delaware limited partnership, and OAC Pathway LLC is a Delaware limited
liability company the purpose of which is to facilitate investors’ ability to invest in private equity, both
through private equity managers and direct investments. Investors in the Fund pay management fees and
incentive fees (fees based upon a portion of the capital appreciation of the investor). These fees are
separate from and in addition to the fees charged by OAFS. Assets invested in the Funds will be counted
in assets under management for the purpose of calculating management fees due to OAFS. OAFS will
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continue to provide ongoing diligence on the Funds (as we would for any other third party manager or
private placement) and will evaluate the holdings in the Funds for the purpose of incorporating them into
the client’s overall asset allocation. OAFS will consider the additional fees to the Funds as part of its
diligence and evaluation process in determining whether to recommend that a client invest in the
Funds. Because an affiliate (in this case, OneAscent Holdings) will receive indirect compensation because
of investments in the Funds, OAFS has a material conflict of interest when evaluating the Funds as
potential investments for a client. We attempt to mitigate this conflict by disclosing it to our clients both
in this Form ADV and in a separate written disclosure to all investors that are clients of OAFS. Further,
all supervised persons of OAFS are required to read and follow the firm’s Code of Ethics, which reminds
our advisors of their fiduciary duty to place client interests ahead of their own. In addition, OAFS is also
expected to refer clients to OneAscent Capital for OneAscent Capital to act as a consultant for private and
alternative investments.
D. Recommendations of Other Advisers
See Item 4 with regard to discussion of OneAscent Investment Solutions LLC.
Please see Item 8 regarding Third Party Managers in general.
OneAscent will also be set up as a Turnkey Asset Management Platform (TAMP) on Schwab’s platform.
This TAMP will primarily service OneAscent Wealth Management, which therefore presents a conflict
of interest due to both being under common control. OneAscent does not receive compensation from the
third party managers on the platform. Rather, OneAscent debits client fees and remits the portion of the
fees due to the third party manager to them. OneAscent attempts to mitigate this conflict by disclosing it
to clients in this Form ADV and by requiring all representatives to follow the firm’s policies and
procedures, which specifically note the fiduciary obligation to place client interests ahead of the individual
representative’s or OneAscent’s. Fees for such programs may be higher or lower than if client directly
obtained services of the third party manager or if client obtained advisory services separately. When
selecting the third party managers, adequate due diligence will be performed. The due diligence proves
will include a minimum of a completed due diligence assessment report, a review of assets under
management, and expense ratios associated with the managers offerings. Additional due diligence factors
may also be considered and requested. Please refer to the OneAscent Wealth Management section above
for more information regarding this relationship.
E. Financial Institution Consulting Services
OneAscent has an agreement with a broker/dealer to provide investment consulting services to brokerage
customers. Broker/dealers pay compensation to OneAscent for providing investment consulting services
to customers. This consulting arrangement does not include assuming discretionary authority over
brokerage customers’ brokerage accounts or the monitoring of securities. These consulting services
offered to brokerage customers may include a general review of brokerage customers’ investment
holdings, which may or may not result in OneAscent’s investment adviser representative making specific
securities recommendations or offering general investment advice. Brokerage customers will execute a
written consulting agreement directly with OneAscent.
This relationship presents a conflict of interest. Potential conflicts are mitigated by brokerage customers
consenting to receive investment consulting services from OneAscent; by OneAscent not accepting or
billing for additional compensation on broker/dealers’ assets under management beyond the consulting
fees disclosed in Item 5 in connection with the investment consulting services; and by OneAscent not
engaging as, or holding itself out to the public as, a securities broker/dealer. OneAscent is not affiliated
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with any broker/dealer.
Item 11:
Code of Ethics, Participation or Interest in Client Transactions and
Personal Trading
A copy of our Code of Ethics is available upon request. Our Code of Ethics includes discussions
A.
of our fiduciary duty to clients, political contributions, gifts, entertainment, and trading guidelines.
B.
On occasion, OneAscent may recommend to clients that they invest in any security in which
OneAscent, or any principal thereof has any financial interest. Cole Pearson has an equity interest in
Eventide Asset Management. Mr. Pearson does not have an active role with the company; however, he
does receive profit sharing distributions based on his equity ownership giving him an incentive to
recommend investment products based on the compensation received, rather than on the client’s needs.
In the case of discretionary accounts, it may not always be feasible for clients to direct OneAscent to
invest in non-Eventide mutual funds unless clients provide specific investment restrictions in their
investment policy statements. Finally, Clients are not always in a position to select non-Eventide mutual
funds since they are relying on OneAscent for investment management unless OneAscent provides
alternate mutual funds for clients to select. OneAscent attempts to mitigate this conflict of interest by
disclosing the conflict to clients and allowing them to (a) decline the use of Eventide funds in their entirety
or (b) allowing the use of Eventide funds so long as other options were considered and the Eventide fund
is determined to be in the best interests of the client.
Registered Funds Managed by OneAscent
OneAscent Investment Solutions (“OAIS”), an affiliate of OneAscent Financial Services LLC is the
manager to a number of funds registered under the Investment Company Act of 1940 (the “Registered
Funds”). It is expected that OneAscent Financial Services LLC will recommend that clients whose
investment objectives are appropriate for one or more Registered Funds to invest in such Registered
Funds. This creates a conflict of interest, which may be material. Because OAIS receives a fee from the
Registered Funds for managing each Registered Fund, and a fee from the clients whose assets are managed
in the strategies that include each Registered Fund (or, as the case may be, the client’s portfolio that
contains the Registered Funds directly), OneAscent Financial Services LLC has an incentive to
recommend one or more Registered Funds to clients because of the potential for an increased fee, as
opposed to simply the client’s objectives. OneAscent Financial Services LLC attempts to mitigate this
conflict by disclosing the conflict to clients. Further, OneAscent Financial Services LLC includes in its
Code of Ethics a requirement that each professional acknowledge their responsibility to place client
interests ahead of their own.
Outsourced Chief Investment Officer
When any investment adviser representative of OneAscent (or any affiliated entity, such as OneAscent
Wealth Management LLC or OneAscent Family Office LLC) recommends that a client’s account utilize
OneAscent’s outsourced CIO services, this is done for a separate and additional fee. Because of that
separate and additional fee, this recommendation presents a conflict of interest because the owners of
OneAscent will benefit financially from that recommendation. We attempt to mitigate this conflict by
disclosing it here in this Form ADV Part 2A.
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C.
On occasion, an employee of OneAscent may purchase for his or her own account securities
which are also recommended for clients. Our Code of Ethics details rules for employees regarding
personal trading and avoiding conflicts of interest related to trading in one’s own account. To avoid
placing a trade before a client (in the case of a purchase) or after a client (in the case of a sale), all employee
trades must be reviewed by the Compliance Officer. All employee trades must either take place in the
same block as a client trade or sufficiently apart in time from the client trade so the employee receives no
added benefit. Employee statements are reviewed to confirm compliance with the trading procedures.
D.
On occasion, an employee of OneAscent may purchase for his or her own account securities
which are also recommended for clients at the same time the clients purchase the securities. Our Code of
Ethics details rules for employees regarding personal trading and avoiding conflicts of interest related to
trading in one’s own account. To avoid placing a trade before a client (in the case of a purchase) or after
a client (in the case of a sale), all employee trades must be reviewed by the Compliance Officer. All
employee trades must either take place in the same block as a client trade or sufficiently apart in time
from the client trade, so the employee receives no added benefit. Employee statements are reviewed to
confirm compliance with the trading procedures.
Item 12:
Brokerage Practices
A.
Recommendation of Broker-Dealer
OneAscent recommends that investment accounts be held in custody by Schwab Advisor Services
(“Schwab”), SEI Investments Company (SEI), National Financial Services (“Fidelity”), or Axos Advisor
Services (“Axos”). These custodians offer enhanced services to independent investment advisors. These
services include custody of securities, trade execution platforms, and access to research not available to
the general public. These custodians are wholly independent from OneAscent. It is expected that most, if
not all, transactions in a given client account will be cleared through the custodian of that account in its
capacity as a broker-dealer.
OneAscent has chosen to recommend Schwab, Fidelity, SEI, and Axos to its clients based on a variety of
factors. These include, but are not limited to, commission costs. These custodians have what can be
considered, discounted commission rates. However, in choosing a broker-dealer or custodian to
recommend, we are most concerned with the value the client receives for the cost paid, not just the cost.
These custodians add value beyond commission cost. Other factors that may be considered in determining
overall value include speed and accuracy of execution, financial strength, knowledge and experience of
staff, research and service. They also have arrangements with many mutual funds that enable us to
purchase these mutual funds for client accounts at reduced transaction charges (as opposed to other
broker-dealers). Schwab, Fidelity, and SEI have very high market shares of the investment adviser
business which makes them the most experienced in matters likely to arise for our clients. OneAscent re-
evaluates the use of these custodians at least annually to determine if they are still the best value for our
clients.
We do not consider whether Schwab, Fidelity, Axos, or SEI, or any other broker-dealer/custodian, refers
clients to OneAscent as part of our evaluation of these broker-dealers.
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Overlay Manager
OneAscent has entered into an agreement with Adhesion Wealth Advisor Solutions and GeoWealth to
provide Overlay Portfolio Management services to Unified Managed Accounts managed by OneAscent
or its Investment Adviser Representatives.
Adhesion and GeoWealth’s overlay portfolio management services are only available to accounts held at
Schwab Advisor Services (“Schwab”), or Pershing Advisor Solutions (“Pershing”), although they may in
the future accept other custodian brokers. Adhesion and GeoWealth have arranged with these custodians
the capability to electronically place trades in your accounts on your behalf. This electronic trading
capability is generally required for effective provision of our OPM services.
Typically, trading and transaction clearing services will be provided by the client’s custodian, at fee rates
previously agreed to by the custodian and OneAscent. Transactions for accounts at one supported
custodian may be effected either before or after transactions affected by another supported custodian.
Consequently, an account held at one supported custodian may experience performance results different
from an account held at another supported custodian due to differing brokerage fees, commissions and
trade executions.
B.
Aggregating Trades
Commission costs per client may be lower on a particular trade if all clients in whose accounts the trade
is to be made are executed at the same time. This is called aggregating trades. Instead of placing a number
of trades for the same security for each account, we will, when appropriate, execute one trade for all
accounts and then allocate the trades to each account after execution. If an aggregate trade is not fully
executed, the securities will be allocated to client accounts on a pro rata basis, except where doing so
would create an unintended adverse consequence (for example, if a pro rata division would result in a
client receiving a fraction of a share, or a position in the account of less than 1%).
Directed Brokerage
OneAscent allows clients to direct brokerage. “Directing” brokerage means choosing to maintain all or
some of their assets with a broker-dealer that is not recommended by OneAscent. OneAscent may be
unable to achieve most favorable execution of client transactions if clients choose to direct brokerage.
This may cost clients money because without the ability to direct brokerage, OneAscent may not be able
to aggregate orders to reduce transactions costs resulting in higher brokerage commissions and less
favorable prices. Not all investment advisers allow their clients to direct brokerage.
Item 13:
Review of Accounts
All accounts will be reviewed by a senior professional on at least an annual basis. However, it is expected
that market conditions, changes in a particular client’s account, or changes to a client’s circumstances will
trigger a review of accounts.
The annual report in writing provided by OneAscent is intended to review asset allocation. All clients will
receive statements and confirmations of trades directly from their account custodian. Please refer to Item
15 regarding Custody.
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Item 14:
Client Referrals and Other Compensation
A. Economic Benefit Provided by Third Parties for Advice Rendered to Client.
Please refer to Item 12, where we discuss recommendations of Broker-Dealers.
OneAscent may receive economic benefits in the form of research and educational services and analytical
software tools from Callan that it uses to manage its clients’ accounts at reduced or wholly waived fees
based upon fees received by Callan that are attributable to OneAscent’s clients’ assets in the Callan UMA
program.
We receive an economic benefit from Schwab in the form of the support products and services it makes
available to us. You do not pay more for assets maintained at Schwab as a result of these arrangements.
However, we benefit from the arrangements because the costs of these services would otherwise be borne
directly by us. You should consider these conflicts of interest when selecting a custodian. The products
and services provided by Schwab, how they benefit us, and the related conflicts of interest are described
above under Item 12 Brokerage Practices. The availability to us of Schwab’s products and services is not
based on us giving particular investment advice, such as buying particular securities for our clients.
B. Compensation to Non-Advisory Personnel for Client Referrals.
Clients may be introduced to OneAscent via other third parties. In the event that OneAscent compensates
any party for the referral of a client to OneAscent, any such compensation will be paid by OneAscent,
and not the client. If the client is introduced to OneAscent by an unaffiliated third party, that third party
will disclose to the client the referral arrangement with OneAscent, including the compensation for the
referral, and provide the client a copy of OneAscent’s ADV Part 2A and 2B. The referral source will also
provide a written disclosure to the client regarding the relationship between OneAscent and the referral
source, including the fact that referral fees will be paid.
Certain individuals who are salaried employees of the IARs of OneAscent may receive bonuses based on
clients they bring to their respective IAR.
Item 15:
Custody
There are two avenues through which OneAscent has custody of client funds; by directly debiting its fees
from client accounts pursuant to applicable agreements granting such right, and potentially by permitting
clients to issue standing letters of authorization (“SLOAs”). SLOAs permit a client to issue one document
that directs OneAscent to make distributions out of the client’s account(s).
Clients whose fees are directly debited will provide written authorization to debit advisory fees from their
accounts held by a qualified custodian chosen by the client. The client will also receive a statement from
their account custodian showing all transactions in their account, including the fee.
We encourage clients to carefully review the statements and confirmations sent to them by their custodian,
and to compare the information on your quarterly report prepared by OneAscent against the information
in the statements provided directly from their account custodian. Please alert us of any discrepancies.
In addition to the account custodian’s custody procedures, clients issuing SLOAs will be requested to
confirm, in writing, that the accounts to which funds are distributed are parties unrelated to OneAscent.
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Item 16:
Investment Discretion
Asset management services are provided on a “discretionary” or “non-discretionary” basis. When
OneAscent is engaged to provide asset management services on a discretionary basis, OneAscent will
monitor the accounts to ensure that they are meeting the client’s agreed upon guidelines. If any changes
are needed, OneAscent will make the changes. These changes may involve selling a security or group of
investments and buying others or keeping the proceeds in cash. Clients may at any time place restrictions
on the way their account is managed. For example, a client may restrict the types of investments
OneAscent may use in the client’s account, or the allocations to a security type. Clients engaging
OneAscent on a discretionary basis will be asked to execute a Limited Power of Attorney (granting us the
discretionary authority over the client accounts) as well as an Investment Advisory Agreement that
outlines the responsibilities of both the client and OneAscent.
In the event that you are invested in an account that utilizes an Overlay Manager, such as an UMA, you
will grant the Overlay Manager complete and unlimited discretionary trading authority with respect to
your account. The Overlay Manager will be solely responsible for the day-to-day investment management
decisions for your account, and neither OneAscent nor any third party manager will be responsible for
implementing the investment trading decisions.
Item 17:
Voting Client Securities
OneAscent will only vote proxies on Client’s behalf to the extent that the account Custodian is able to be
serviced through our proxy voting service, and such may change from time to time.
From time to time, shareholders of stocks, mutual funds, exchange traded funds or other securities may
be permitted to vote on various types of corporate actions. Examples of these actions include mergers,
tender offers, or board elections. At our discretion, OneAscent will vote proxies on behalf of its clients.
Copies of our Proxy Voting Policies are available upon request.
Item 18:
Financial Information
Under no circumstances do we require or solicit payment of fees in excess of $1,200 per account and more
than six months in advance of services rendered. Therefore, we are not required to include a financial
statement.
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