Overview
Assets Under Management: $767 million
Headquarters: TAMPA, FL
High-Net-Worth Clients: 240
Average Client Assets: $2 million
Services Offered
Services: Financial Planning, Portfolio Management for Individuals
Fee Structure
Primary Fee Schedule (UNIQUE ADV 2A)
| Min | Max | Marginal Fee Rate |
|---|---|---|
| $0 | $100,000 | 1.65% |
| $100,001 | $500,000 | 1.25% |
| $500,001 | $800,000 | 1.00% |
| $800,001 | $1,000,000 | 0.85% |
| $1,000,001 | $3,500,000 | 0.75% |
| $3,500,001 | $5,000,000 | 0.72% |
| $5,000,001 | $10,000,000 | 0.60% |
| $10,000,001 | and above | 0.45% |
Illustrative Fee Rates
| Total Assets | Annual Fees | Average Fee Rate |
|---|---|---|
| $1 million | $11,350 | 1.14% |
| $5 million | $40,900 | 0.82% |
| $10 million | $70,900 | 0.71% |
| $50 million | $250,900 | 0.50% |
| $100 million | $475,900 | 0.48% |
Clients
Number of High-Net-Worth Clients: 240
Percentage of Firm Assets Belonging to High-Net-Worth Clients: 63.60
Average High-Net-Worth Client Assets: $2 million
Total Client Accounts: 2,470
Discretionary Accounts: 2,470
Regulatory Filings
CRD Number: 312462
Filing ID: 1996222
Last Filing Date: 2025-06-06 13:09:00
Website: https://uniquewealth.com
Form ADV Documents
Primary Brochure: UNIQUE ADV 2A (2025-06-06)
View Document Text
LOGO GOES HERE
Unique Wealth, LLC
4830 W Kennedy Blvd
Suite 100
Tampa, FL 33609
813-816-2030
June 6, 2025
FORM ADV PART 2A
BROCHURE
This brochure provides information about the qualifications and business practices of Unique Wealth,
LLC. If you have any questions about the contents of this brochure, contact us at 813-816-2030. 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.
Additional information about Unique Wealth, LLC is available on the SEC's website
at www.adviserinfo.sec.gov. The searchable CRD number for Unique Wealth, LLC is: 312462.
Unique Wealth, LLC is a registered investment adviser. Registration with the United States Securities
and Exchange Commission or any state securities authority does not imply a certain level of skill
or training.
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Item 2 Summary of Material Changes
Form ADV Part 2 requires registered investment advisers to amend their brochure when information
becomes materially inaccurate. If there are any material changes to an adviser's disclosure brochure,
the adviser is required to notify you and provide you with a description of the material changes.
Since our last annual filing there have been no material updates.
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Item 3 Table of Contents
Item 1 Cover Page
Item 2 Summary of Material Changes
Item 3 Table of Contents
Item 4 Advisory Business
Item 5 Fees and Compensation
Item 6 Performance-Based Fees and Side-By-Side Management
Item 7 Types of Clients
Item 8 Methods of Analysis, Investment Strategies and Risk of Loss
Item 9 Disciplinary Information
Item 10 Other Financial Industry Activities and Affiliations
Item 11 Code of Ethics, Participation or Interest in Client Transactions and Personal Trading
Item 12 Brokerage Practices
Item 13 Review of Accounts
Item 14 Client Referrals and Other Compensation
Item 15 Custody
Item 16 Investment Discretion
Item 17 Voting Client Securities
Item 18 Financial Information
Item 19 Requirements for State-Registered Advisers
Item 20 Additional Information
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Item 4 Advisory Business
Description of Firm
Unique Wealth, LLC is a registered investment adviser based in Tampa, FL. We are organized
as a limited liability company ("LLC") under the laws of the State of Delaware. We have been
providing investment advisory services since March 2021. We are primarily owned by Uniquely
Together Forever, LLC and JJLM 2021, LLC.
The following paragraphs describe our services and fees. Refer to the description of each
investment advisory service listed below for information on how we tailor our advisory services
to your individual needs. As used in this brochure, the words "we," "our," and "us" refer to
Unique Wealth, LLC and the words "you," "your," and "client" refer to you as either a client or
prospective client of our firm.
Portfolio Management Services
We offer discretionary portfolio management services. Our investment advice is tailored to
meet our clients' needs and investment objectives.
If you participate in our discretionary portfolio management services, we require you to grant
us discretionary authority to manage your account. Subject to a grant of discretionary
authorization, we have the authority and responsibility to formulate investment strategies on
your behalf. Discretionary authorization will allow us to determine the specific securities, and
the amount of securities, to be purchased or sold for your account without obtaining your
approval prior to each transaction.
Discretionary authority is typically granted by the investment advisory agreement you sign with
our firm and the appropriate trading authorization forms.
You may limit our discretionary authority (for example, limiting the types of securities that
can be purchased or sold for your account) by providing our firm with your restrictions
and guidelines in writing.
We may also offer non-discretionary portfolio management services where requested as an
accommodation to our clients. If you enter into non-discretionary arrangements with our firm,
we must obtain your approval prior to executing any transactions on behalf of your account.
You have an unrestricted right to decline to implement any advice provided by our firm on a
non- discretionary basis.
As part of our portfolio management services, we may use one or more sub-advisers to manage
a portion of your account on a discretionary basis. The sub-adviser(s) may use one or more of
their model portfolios to manage your account. We will regularly monitor the performance of
your accounts managed by sub-adviser(s) and may hire and fire any sub-adviser without your
prior approval. We may pay a portion of our advisory fee to the sub-adviser(s) we use; however,
you will not pay our firm a higher advisory fee as a result of any sub-advisory relationships.
Financial Planning & Consulting Services
We offer financial planning services which typically involve providing a variety of advisory
services to clients regarding the management of their financial resources based upon an
analysis of their individual needs. These services can range from broad-based financial
planning to consultative or single-subject planning. If you retain our firm for financial planning
services, we will meet with you to gather information about your financial circumstances and
objectives. We
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may also use financial planning software to determine your current financial position and to
define and quantify your long-term goals and objectives. Once we specify those long-term
objectives (both financial and non-financial), we will develop shorter-term, targeted objectives.
Once we review and analyze the information you provide to our firm and the data derived from
our financial planning software, we will deliver a written plan to you, designed to help you
achieve your stated financial goals and objectives.
Financial plans are based on your financial situation at the time we present the plan to you, and
on the financial information you provide to us. You must promptly notify our firm if your financial
situation, goals, objectives, or needs change.
You are under no obligation to act on our financial planning recommendations. Should you
choose to act on any of our recommendations, you are not obligated to implement the financial
plan through any of our other investment advisory services. Moreover, you may act on our
recommendations by placing securities transactions with any brokerage firm.
that we
Selection of Other Advisers
We may recommend that you use the services of a third-party money manager ("TPMM") to
manage all, or a portion of, your investment portfolio. After gathering information about your
financial situation and objectives, we may recommend that you engage a specific TPMM or
investment program. Factors
into consideration when making our
take
recommendation(s) include, but are not limited to, the following: the TPMM's performance,
methods of analysis, fees, your financial needs, investment goals, risk tolerance, and
investment objectives. We will monitor the TPMM(s)' performance to ensure its management
and investment style remains aligned with your investment goals and objectives.
The TPMM(s) will actively manage your portfolio and will assume discretionary investment
authority over your account. We will assume discretionary authority to hire and fire TPMM(s)
and/or reallocate your assets to other TPMM(s) where we deem such action appropriate.
Dynasty Network
We have entered into a contractual relationship with Dynasty Financial Partners, LLC
("Dynasty"), which provides us with operational and back office support including access to a
network of service providers. Through the Dynasty network of service providers, we may
receive preferred pricing on trading technology, reporting, custody, brokerage, compliance and
other related services. Dynasty charges a "Platform Fee," which is included as part of your
annual investment management fee, as described in Item 5 below. In addition, Dynasty's
subsidiary, Dynasty Wealth Management, LLC ("DWM") is an SEC registered investment
adviser, that provides access to a range of investment services including: separately managed
accounts ("SMA"), mutual fund and ETF asset allocation strategies, and unified managed
accounts ("UMA") managed by external third party managers (collectively, the "Investment
Programs"). We may separately engage the services of Dynasty and/or its subsidiaries to
access the Investment Programs. Under the SMA and UMA programs, we will maintain the
ability to select the specific, underlying third party managers that will, in turn, have day-to- day
discretionary trading authority over the requisite client assets.
DWM sponsors an investment management platform (the "Platform" or the "TAMP") that is
available to the advisers in the Dynasty Network, such as us. Through the Platform, DWM and
Dynasty collectively provides certain technology, administrative, operations and advisory
support services that allow us to manage our own client portfolios and access independent
third-party managers that provide discretionary services in the form of traditional managed
accounts and investment models. We can allocate all or a portion of your assets among the
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different independent third-party managers via the Platform. We may also use the model
management feature of the TAMP by creating our own asset allocation model and underlying
investments that comprise the model. Through the model management feature, we may be
able to outsource the implementation of trade orders and periodic rebalancing of the model
when needed.
We will maintain the direct contractual relationship with you and obtain, through such
agreements, the authority to engage independent third-party managers, DWM and/or Dynasty,
as applicable, for services rendered through the Platform in service to you. We may delegate
discretionary trading authority to DWM and/or independent third-party managers to effect
investment and reinvestment of client assets with the ability to buy, sell or otherwise effect
investment transactions and allocate client assets. If you are participating in certain Investment
Programs, DWM or the designated manager, as applicable, is also authorized without prior
consultation with either us or you to buy, sell, trade or allocate your assets in accordance with
your designated portfolio and to deliver instructions to the designated broker- dealer and/or
custodian of your assets.
Types of Investments
We offer advice on equity securities, corporate debt securities (other than commercial paper),
commercial paper, certificates of deposit, municipal securities, mutual fund shares, United
States government securities, money market funds, REITs, ETFs, and digital assets.
Additionally, we may advise you on various types of investments based on your stated goals
and objectives. We may also provide advice on any type of investment held in your portfolio at
the inception of our advisory relationship.
Since our investment strategies and advice are based on each client's specific financial
situation, the investment advice we provide to you may be different or conflicting with the
advice we give to other clients regarding the same security or investment.
Assets Held Away From Our Firm
We may leverage an Order Management System through Pontera to implement investment
selection and rebalancing strategies on behalf of the client in held away accounts (i.e., accounts
not directly held with our recommended custodian). These are primarily 401(k) accounts,
HSAs, 403bs, 529 education savings plans, 457 plans, profit sharing plans, and other assets
not custodied with our recommended custodian. We regularly review the available investment
options in these accounts, monitor them, and rebalance and implement our strategies in the
same way we do other accounts, though using different tools as necessary. There may be a
difference in the performance of our strategies of an account using Pontera in comparison to
accounts held at our recommended custodian.
Retirement Plan Services:
Advisor may provide participant education and support to Plan participants enrolled in or
enrolling in the Plan.
In providing Retirement Plan Services, Unique Wealth, LLC and its IARs may establish a client
relationship with one or more Plan participants or beneficiaries. Such client relationships
develop in various ways, including, without limitation:
• as a result of a decision by the Plan participant or beneficiary to purchase services from
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Unique Wealth, LLC not involving the use of Plan assets;
• as part of an individual or family financial plan for which any specific
investment
the allocation of assets or
•
recommendations concerning
recommendations relating to assets held outside of the Plan; or
through a rollover of an Individual Retirement Account ("IRA Rollover").
If Unique Wealth, LLC is providing Retirement Plan Services to a plan, IARs may, when
requested by a Plan participant or beneficiary, arrange to provide services to that participant or
beneficiary through a separate agreement. If a Plan participant or beneficiary desires to affect
an IRA Rollover from the Plan to an account advised or managed by Unique Wealth, LLC, IAR
will have a conflict of interest if his/her fees are reasonably expected to be higher than those
paid to Unique Wealth, LLC in connection with the Retirement Plan Services. IAR will disclose
relevant information about the applicable fees charged by Unique Wealth, LLC prior to opening
an IRA account. Any decision to affect the rollover or about what to do with the rollover assets
remain that of the Plan participant or beneficiary alone. In providing these optional services, we
may offer employers' and employees' information on other financial and retirement products or
services offered by Unique Wealth, LLC and our IARs.
IRA Rollover Recommendations
Effective December 20, 2021 (or such later date as the US Department of Labor ("DOL") Field
Assistance Bulletin 2018-02 ceases to be in effect), for purposes of complying with the DOL's
Prohibited Transaction Exemption 2020-02 ("PTE 2020-02") where applicable, we are
providing the following acknowledgment to you. When we provide investment advice to you
regarding your retirement plan account or individual retirement account, we are fiduciaries
within the meaning of Title I of the Employee Retirement Income Security Act and/or the Internal
Revenue Code, as applicable, which are laws governing retirement accounts. The way we
make money creates some conflicts with your interests, so we operate under a special rule that
requires us to act in your best interest and not put our interest ahead of yours. Under this
special rule's provisions, we must:
• Meet a professional standard of care when making investment recommendations (give
prudent advice);
• Never put our financial interests ahead of yours when making recommendations
(give loyal advice);
• Avoid misleading statements about conflicts of interest, fees, and investments;
• Follow policies and procedures designed to ensure that we give advice that is in
your best interest;
• Charge no more than is reasonable for our services; and
• Give you basic information about conflicts of interest.
We benefit financially from the rollover of your assets from a retirement account to an account
that we manage or provide investment advice, because the assets increase our assets under
management and, in turn, our advisory fees. As a fiduciary, we only recommend a rollover
when we believe it is in your best interest.
Assets Under Management
As of December 31, 2024, we provide continuous management services for $766,513,740 in
client assets on a discretionary basis, and $0 in client assets on a non-discretionary basis.
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Item 5 Fees and Compensation
Portfolio Management Services
Our fee for portfolio management services is based on a percentage of the assets in
your account and is set forth in the following annual fee schedule:
Annual Fee Schedule
The fee schedule below represents a "blended" fee schedule and includes an
illustration for the investor's understanding.
Annual Fee
Assets Under Management
First $100,000
1.65%
(Up to $100,000)
Next $400,000
1.25%
($100,001 to $500,000)
Next $300,000
1.00%
($500,001 to $800,000)
Next $200,000
0.85%
($800,001 to $1,000,000)
Next $2,500,000
0.75%
($1,000,001 to $3,500,000)
Next $1,500,000
0.72%
($3,500,001 to $5,000,000)
Next $5,000,000
0.60%
($5,000,001 to $10,000,000)
Above $10,000,000
0.45%
($10,000,001 or greater)
The annual fee schedule above shall be applied to your account on a "blended" basis. A
blended fee structure provides rate breakpoints as the value of the account increases. For
example, a hypothetical client account containing a balance of $725,000 would pay 1.65% on
the first $100,000 of the client's account; 1.25% on the next $400,000 of the client's account;
and 1.00% on the remaining $225,000 of the client's account balance.
Assets in each of your account(s) are included in the fee assessment unless specifically
identified in writing for exclusion. Additionally, the following types of accounts will be assessed
advisory fees on a separate flat rate basis outside of the above referenced fee schedule:
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• Eaglebrook Digital Assets: 0.90%
• Fee Based Annuities: 1.00%
• Structured Notes, Treasuries, Cash Solutions, and CDs: 0.60%
• Custom Bond Portfolios: 0.75%
The annual fee is prorated and charged quarterly, in advance, based upon the market value of
the assets being managed by Unique Wealth, LLC on the last business day of the previous
quarter. There may be immaterial differences between the quarter end market value reflected
on your custodial statement and the valuation as of the last business day of the calendar quarter
used for billing purposes, given timing and account activity. If assets in excess of $50,000 are
deposited into or withdrawn from an account after the inception of a billing period, the fee
payable with respect to such assets is adjusted to reflect the interim change in portfolio value.
For the initial period of an engagement, the fee is calculated on a pro rata basis. In the event
the Advisory Agreement is terminated, the fee for the final billing period is prorated through the
effective date of the termination and the outstanding or unearned portion of the fee is charged
or refunded to the client, as appropriate.
If the portfolio management agreement is executed at any time other than the first day of a
calendar quarter, our fees will apply on a pro rata basis, which means that the advisory fee is
payable in proportion to the number of days in the quarter for which you are a client. Our
advisory fee is negotiable, depending on individual client circumstances and account type.
At our discretion, we may combine the account values of family members living in the same
household to determine the applicable advisory fee. For example, we may combine account
values for you and your minor children, joint accounts with your spouse, and other types of
related accounts. Combining account values may increase the asset total, which may result in
your paying a reduced advisory fee based on the available breakpoints in our fee schedule
stated above.
We will deduct our fee directly from your account through the qualified custodian holding your
funds and securities. We will deduct our advisory fee only when you have given our firm written
authorization permitting the fees to be paid directly from your account. Further, the qualified
custodian will deliver an account statement to you at least quarterly. These account statements
will show all disbursements from your account. You should review all statements for accuracy.
You may terminate the portfolio management agreement upon written notice. You will incur a
pro rata charge for services rendered prior to the termination of the portfolio management
agreement, which means you will incur advisory fees only in proportion to the number of days
in the quarter for which you are a client. If you have pre-paid advisory fees that we have not
yet earned, you will receive a prorated refund of those fees.
Financial Planning & Consulting Services
We charge flat fees ranging from $2,500 to $25,000 for financial planning and consulting
services, which are negotiable depending on the scope and complexity of the plan, your
situation, and your financial objectives. An estimate of the total time/cost will be determined at
the start of the advisory relationship. In limited circumstances, the cost/time could potentially
exceed the initial estimate. In such cases, we will notify you and request that you approve the
additional fee.
Our financial planning and consulting fees are due and payable as described in the advisory
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agreement you entered into with us. Typically, our planning and consulting fees are either
payable in equal parts with 50% payable at inception of the engagement and the remaining
balance due on completion of the contracted services; payable in quarterly installments, as
invoiced; or due upon completion of the services rendered.
We will not require prepayment of a fee more than six months in advance and in excess of
$1,200. Should the engagement last longer than six months between acceptance of the
engagement and delivery of the consulting services to be rendered, any prepaid unearned fees
will be promptly returned to you less a pro rata charge for bona fide services rendered to date.
At our discretion, we may offset our financial planning fees to the extent you implement the
financial plan through our Portfolio Management Service.
You may terminate the financial planning agreement upon written notice to our firm. If you
have pre- paid financial planning fees that we have not yet earned, you will receive a prorated
refund of those fees. If financial planning fees are payable in arrears, you will be responsible
for a prorated fee based on services performed prior to termination of the financial planning
agreement.
Fees for retirement plan services:
Fees for the Retirement Plan Services ("Fees") are negotiated with the plan sponsor or named
fiduciary on a case-by-case basis. Currently, the following fee structures are in place for the
following retirement accounts:
• 401k Retirement Accounts: 0.50%
• American Funds SIMPLE IRAs: 0.50%
• American Funds 529s: 0.50%
Depending upon the capabilities and requirements of the Plan's recordkeeper or custodian, we
may collect our Fees in arrears or in advance. We will charge a flat annual fee for Retirement
Plan Services. Typically, Sponsors instruct the Plan's recordkeeper or custodian to
automatically deduct our Fees from the Plan account; however, in some cases a Sponsor may
request that we send invoices directly to the Sponsor or recordkeeper/custodian.
For Pontera accounts, please refer to your client agreement for the specified percentage of
your Pontera fee. If there is no specific mention on how Pontera accounts are being billed in
your client agreement, the Pontera accounts will follow our Firm’s blended fee schedule.
Sponsors receiving Retirement Plan Services may pay more than or less than a client might
otherwise pay if purchasing the Retirement Plan Services separately or through another
service provider. There are several factors that determine whether the costs would be more or
less, including, but not limited to, the size of the Plan, the specific investments made by the
Plan, the number of Plan participants or locations of Plan participants, the Retirement Plan
Services offered by another service provider, and the actual costs of Retirement Plan Services
purchased elsewhere. In light of the specific Retirement Plan Services offered by Unique
Wealth, LLC, the Fees charged may be more or less than those of other similar service
providers.
All Fees paid to Unique Wealth, LLC for Retirement Plan Services are separate and distinct
from the fees and expenses charged by mutual funds, variable annuities and exchange-traded
funds to their shareholders. These fees and expenses are described in each investment's
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prospectus. These fees will generally include a management fee, other expenses, and
possible distribution fees. The Retirement Plan Services provided by Unique Wealth, LLC
may, among other things, assist the client in determining which investments are most
appropriate to each client's financial condition and objectives and to provide other
administrative assistance as selected by the client.
Accordingly, the client should review both the fees charged by the funds, the fund manager, the
Plan's other service providers and the fees charged by Unique Wealth, LLC to fully understand
the total amount of fees to be paid by the client and to evaluate the Retirement Plan Services
being provided.
Selection of Other Advisers - Use of Independent Third-Party Managers
Advisory fees charged by TPMMs are separate and apart from our advisory fees. Assets
managed by TPMMs will be included in calculating our advisory fee, which is based on the fee
schedule set forth in the Portfolio Management Services section in this brochure. Advisory fees
that you pay to the TPMM are established and payable in accordance with the brochure
provided by each TPMM to whom you are referred. These fees may or may not be negotiable.
You should review the recommended TPMM's brochure and take into consideration the
TPMM's fees along with our fees to determine the total amount of fees associated with this
program.
Our recommendations to use third party money managers are included in our portfolio
management fee. We do not charge you a separate fee for the selection of other advisers nor
will we share in the advisory fee you pay directly to the TPMM. Advisory fees that you pay to
the TPMM are established and payable in accordance with the Form ADV Part 2 or other
equivalent disclosure document provided by each TPMM to whom you are referred. These
fees may or may not be negotiable. You should review the recommended TPMM's brochure
for information on its fees and services.
You may be required to sign an agreement directly with the recommended TPMM(s). You may
terminate your advisory relationship with the TPMM according to the terms of your agreement
with the TPMM. You should review each TPMM's brochure for specific information on how you
may terminate your advisory relationship with the TPMM and how you may receive a refund,
if applicable. You should contact the TPMM directly for questions regarding your advisory
agreement with the TPMM.
As discussed above, we use Dynasty's TAMP services. Under the Dynasty TAMP, the Firm
can use mutual fund and ETF asset allocation strategies. The Platform Fee is included in the
annual investment management fee. The Client should be aware that the underlying securities
have internal expenses and/or management fees associated with it, however, the Firm does
not participate in any of Dynasty’s or other third-party fees. While the Dynasty Platform fee is
included in your annual investment management fee, Independent Manager related charges
are not included in the investment management fee you pay to us. You will be charged,
separate from and in addition to your investment management fee, any applicable independent
manager fees. We do not receive any portion of the fees paid directly to Dynasty or the service
providers made available through its platform, including the independent managers.
The independent manager fees are determined by the particular program(s) and manager(s)
with which your assets are invested and are calculated based upon a percentage of your
assets under management, as applicable. Independent fixed income manager fees generally
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range from 0 - 0.90% annually, and independent equity manager fees generally range from
0.00% - 1.50% annually.
You will note the total fee reflected on your custodial statement will represent the sum of our
investment management fee, Platform Fee(s) and independent manager fee(s), accordingly.
You should review such statements to determine the total amount of fees associated with your
requisite investments, and you should review your investment management agreement with us
to determine the investment management fee you pay to us.
Additional Fees and Expenses
As part of our investment advisory services to you, we may invest, or recommend that you
invest, in mutual funds and exchange traded funds. The fees that you pay to our firm for
investment advisory services are separate and distinct from the fees and expenses charged by
mutual funds or exchange traded funds (described in each fund's prospectus) to their
shareholders. These fees will generally include a management fee and other fund expenses.
You may also incur transaction charges and/or brokerage fees when purchasing or selling
securities. These charges and fees are typically imposed by the broker-dealer or custodian
through whom your account transactions are executed. We do not share in any portion of the
brokerage fees/transaction charges imposed by the broker-dealer or custodian. To fully
understand the total cost you will incur, you should review all the fees charged by mutual funds,
exchange traded funds, our firm, and others. Charles Schwab & Co., Inc. (“Schwab”) does not
charge transaction fees for U.S. listed equities and exchange traded funds. For information on
our brokerage practices, refer to the Brokerage Practices section of this brochure.
Assets Held Away From Our Firm
For assets held at a custodian that is not directly accessible by our firm ("Held Away
Accounts"), we may, but are not required to, manage these Held Away Accounts using the
Pontera Order Management System ("Pontera") that allows our firm to view and manage
assets. Our annual fee for investment management services for held away accounts will follow
our portfolio management fee schedule and termination instructions as noted in the Investment
Management Agreement.
Our advisory fees will not be deducted directly from the accounts managed through the Pontera
Order Management System. Clients will give written authorization to deduct the fee from
another non- qualified account managed by our firm, in which case, the advisory fee would be
deducted from this account each quarter. Fees will be based upon your negotiated fee in
accordance to our portfolio management fee schedule and your Agreement. The client does
not pay an additional fee for Pontera. Further, the qualified custodian will deliver an account
statement to you at least quarterly. These account statements will show all disbursements from
your account. You should review all statements and invoices for accuracy.
We pay 0.25% from our advisory fee to Pontera. Due to the use of Pontera, you will not pay
our firm a higher advisory fee other than what is listed in the Agreement.
Compensation for the Sale of Other Investment Products
Certain Associated Persons providing investment advice on behalf of our firm may be licensed
as insurance agents. These persons will earn either fee or commission-based compensation
for selling insurance products, including insurance products they sell to you. Insurance fees
and/or commissions earned by these persons are separate from our advisory fees. Additional
12
benefits including, but not limited to, retirement plan contributions, discounted health and
welfare plans, discretionary bonuses, and higher payout rates on insurance business are made
available to these agents by the insurance company as an incentive to direct business to them.
This practice creates a conflict of interest as because these individual insurance agents may
be motivated by these additional benefits rather than solely based on your needs. Please see
the Fees and Compensation section in this brochure for more information on the compensation
received by insurance agents who are affiliated with our firm.
Item 6 Performance-Based Fees and Side-By-Side Management
We do not accept performance-based fees or participate in side-by-side management.
Performance- based fees are fees that are based on a share of a capital gains or capital
appreciation of a client's account. Side-by-side management refers to the practice of managing
accounts that are charged performance-based fees while at the same time managing accounts
that are not charged performance- based fees. Our fees are calculated as described in the
Fees and Compensation section above, and are not charged on the basis of a share of capital
gains upon, or capital appreciation of, the funds in your advisory account.
Item 7 Types of Clients
We offer investment advisory services to individuals, high net worth individuals, small
businesses, retirement plans and non-profit organizations.
In general, we do not require a minimum dollar amount to open and maintain an advisory
account; however, we have the right to terminate your account if it falls below a minimum size
which, in our sole opinion, is too small to manage effectively.
We may also combine account values for you and your minor children, joint accounts with
your spouse, and other types of related accounts to meet the stated minimum.
Item 8 Methods of Analysis, Investment Strategies and Risk of Loss
Our Methods of Analysis and Investment Strategies
We may use one or more of the following methods of analysis or investment strategies when
providing investment advice to you:
Charting Analysis - involves the gathering and processing of price and volume pattern
information for a particular security, sector, broad index or commodity. This price and volume
pattern information is analyzed. The resulting pattern and correlation data is used to detect
departures from expected performance and diversification and predict future price movements
and trends.
Risk: Our charting analysis may not accurately detect anomalies or predict future price
movements. Current prices of securities may reflect all information known about the security
and day-to-day changes in market prices of securities may follow random patterns and may
not be predictable with any reliable degree of accuracy.
Technical Analysis - involves studying past price patterns, trends and interrelationships in
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the financial markets to assess risk-adjusted performance and predict the direction of both
the overall market and specific securities.
Risk: The risk of market timing based on technical analysis is that our analysis may not
accurately detect anomalies or predict future price movements. Current prices of securities may
reflect all information known about the security and day-to-day changes in market prices of
securities may follow random patterns and may not be predictable with any reliable degree of
accuracy.
Fundamental Analysis - involves analyzing individual companies and their industry groups,
such as a company's financial statements, details regarding the company's product line, the
experience and expertise of the company's management, and the outlook for the company and
its industry. The resulting data is used to measure the true value of the company's stock
compared to the current market value.
Risk: The risk of fundamental analysis is that information obtained may be incorrect and the
analysis may not provide an accurate estimate of earnings, which may be the basis for a
stock's value. If securities prices adjust rapidly to new information, utilizing fundamental
analysis may not result in favorable performance.
Cyclical Analysis - a type of technical analysis that involves evaluating recurring price
patterns and trends. Economic/business cycles may not be predictable and may have many
fluctuations between long-term expansions and contractions.
Risk: The lengths of economic cycles may be difficult to predict with accuracy and therefore
the risk of cyclical analysis is the difficulty in predicting economic trends and consequently the
changing value of securities that would be affected by these changing trends.
Modern Portfolio Theory - a theory of investment which attempts to maximize portfolio
expected return for a given amount of portfolio risk, or equivalently minimize risk for a given
level of expected return, by carefully diversifying the proportions of various assets.
Risk: Market risk is that part of a security's risk that is common to all securities of the same
general class (stocks and bonds) and thus cannot be eliminated by diversification.
Long-Term Purchases - securities purchased with the expectation that the value of those
securities will grow over a relatively long period of time, generally greater than one year.
Risk: Using a long-term purchase strategy generally assumes the financial markets will go up
in the long-term which may not be the case. There is also the risk that the segment of the market
that you are invested in or perhaps just your particular investment will go down over time even
if the overall financial markets advance. Purchasing investments long-term may create an
opportunity cost - "locking-up" assets that may be better utilized in the short-term in other
investments.
Margin Transactions - a securities transaction in which an investor borrows money to
purchase a security, in which case the security serves as collateral on the loan.
Risk: If the value of the shares drops sufficiently, the investor will be required to either deposit
more cash into the account or sell a portion of the stock in order to maintain the margin
requirements of the account. This is known as a "margin call." An investor's overall risk
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includes the amount of money invested plus the amount that was loaned to them.
Our investment strategies and advice may vary depending upon each client's specific financial
situation. As such, we determine investments and allocations based upon your predefined
objectives, risk tolerance, time horizon, financial information, liquidity needs and other various
suitability factors. Your restrictions and guidelines may affect the composition of your portfolio.
It is important that you notify us immediately with respect to any material changes to
your financial circumstances, including for example, a change in your current or
expected income level, tax circumstances, or employment status.
We will also perform quantitative or qualitative analysis of individual securities by assessing the
financial performance of the securities as well as an analysis of the characteristics of the
company, including, but not limited to, quality of management, corporate governance practices,
ethics, reputation and brand value. In addition, we will advise you on how to allocate your assets
among various classes of securities or third-party money managers. We primarily rely on
investment model portfolios and strategies developed by the third-party money managers and
their portfolio managers. We may replace/recommend replacing a third-party money manager
if there is a significant deviation in characteristics or performance from the stated strategy
and/or benchmark.
Tax Considerations
Our strategies and investments may have unique and significant tax implications. It is
important to note that while tax efficiency is a factor in the management of your assets, it may
not be our primary consideration. Should you require tax efficiency to be the focus of our
management of your assets, you should provide written notice to our firm. Regardless of your
account size or any other factors, we strongly recommend that you consult with a tax
professional regarding the investing of your assets.
Custodians and broker-dealers must report the cost basis of equities acquired in client
accounts. Your custodian will default to the First-In First-Out ("FIFO") accounting method for
calculating the cost basis of your investments. If you believe another accounting method is
more advantageous, provide written notice to our firm immediately and we will alert your
account custodian of your individually selected accounting method. Should you have
questions about which accounting method is right for you, you should contact your tax advisor.
Decisions about cost basis accounting methods will need to be made before trades settle, as
the cost basis method cannot be changed after settlement.
Risk of Loss
Investing in securities involves risk of loss that you should be prepared to bear. We do not
represent or guarantee that our services or methods of analysis can or will predict future
results, successfully identify market tops or bottoms, or insulate clients from losses due to
market corrections or declines. We cannot offer any guarantees or promises that your financial
goals and objectives will be met. Past performance is in no way an indication of future
performance.
Other Risk Considerations
When evaluating risk, financial loss may be viewed differently by each client and may depend
on many different risks, each of which may affect the probability and magnitude of any potential
losses. The following risks may not be all-inclusive, but should be considered carefully by a
prospective client before retaining our services.
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Liquidity Risk: The risk of being unable to sell your investment at a fair price at a given time due
to high volatility or lack of active liquid markets. You may receive a lower price or it may not be
possible to sell the investment at all.
Credit Risk: Credit risk typically applies to debt investments such as corporate, municipal, and
sovereign fixed income or bonds. A bond issuing entity can experience a credit event that could
impair or erase the value of an issuer's securities held by a client.
Inflation and Interest Rate Risk: Security prices and portfolio returns will likely vary in response
to changes in inflation and interest rates. Inflation causes the value of future dollars to be worth
less and may reduce the purchasing power of a client's future interest payments and principal.
Inflation also generally leads to higher interest rates which may cause the value of many types
of fixed income investments to decline.
Horizon and Longevity Risk: The risk that your investment horizon is shortened because of an
unforeseen event, for example, the loss of your job. This may force you to sell investments
that you were expecting to hold for the long term. If you must sell at a time that the markets
are down, you may lose money. Longevity Risk is the risk of outliving your savings. This risk
is particularly relevant for people who are retired or are nearing retirement.
Recommendation of Particular Types of Securities
We recommend various types of securities and we do not primarily recommend one particular
type of security over another since each client has different needs and different tolerance for
risk. Each type of security has its own unique set of risks associated with it and it would not be
possible to list here all of the specific risks of every type of investment. Even within the same
type of investment, risks can vary widely. However, in very general terms, the higher the
anticipated return of an investment, the higher the risk of loss associated with the investment.
A description of the types of securities we may recommend to you and some of their inherent
risks are provided below.
Money Market Funds: A money market fund is technically a security. The fund managers
attempt to keep the share price constant at $1/share. However, there is no guarantee that the
share price will stay at $1/share. If the share price goes down, you can lose some or all of your
principal. The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission ("SEC") notes that "While investor
losses in money market funds have been rare, they are possible." In return for this risk, you
should earn a greater return on your cash than you would expect from a Federal Deposit
Insurance Corporation ("FDIC") insured savings account (money market funds are not FDIC
insured). Next, money market fund rates are variable. In other words, you do not know how
much you will earn on your investment next month. The rate could go up or go down. If it goes
up, that may result in a positive outcome. However, if it goes down and you earn less than you
expected to earn, you may end up needing more cash. A final risk you are taking with money
market funds has to do with inflation. Because money market funds are considered to be safer
than other investments like stocks, long-term average returns on money market funds tends to
be less than long term average returns on riskier investments. Over long periods of time,
inflation can eat away at your returns.
Certificates of Deposit: Certificates of deposit ("CD") are generally a safe type of investment
since they are insured by the Federal Deposit Insurance Company ("FDIC") up to a certain
amount. However, because the returns are generally low, there is risk that inflation outpaces
the return of the CD. Certain CDs are traded in the marketplace and not purchased directly
from a banking institution. In addition to trading risk, when CDs are purchased at a premium,
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the premium is not covered by the FDIC.
Municipal Securities: Municipal securities, while generally thought of as safe, can have
significant risks associated with them including, but not limited to: the credit worthiness of the
governmental entity that issues the bond; the stability of the revenue stream that is used to pay
the interest to the bondholders; when the bond is due to mature; and, whether or not the bond
can be "called" prior to maturity. When a bond is called, it may not be possible to replace it with
a bond of equal character paying the same amount of interest or yield to maturity.
Bonds: Corporate debt securities (or "bonds") are typically safer investments than equity
securities, but their risk can also vary widely based on: the financial health of the issuer; the
risk that the issuer might default; when the bond is set to mature; and, whether or not the bond
can be "called" prior to maturity. When a bond is called, it may not be possible to replace it
with a bond of equal character paying the same rate of return.
Stocks: There are numerous ways of measuring the risk of equity securities (also known
simply as "equities" or "stock"). In very broad terms, the value of a stock depends on the
financial health of the company issuing it. However, stock prices can be affected by many
other factors including, but not limited to the class of stock (for example, preferred or common);
the health of the market sector of the issuing company; and, the overall health of the economy.
In general, larger, better established companies ("large cap") tend to be safer than smaller
start-up companies ("small cap") are but the mere size of an issuer is not, by itself, an indicator
of the safety of the investment.
Mutual Funds and Exchange Traded Funds: Mutual funds and exchange traded funds
("ETF") are professionally managed collective investment systems that pool money from many
investors and invest in stocks, bonds, short-term money market instruments, other mutual
funds, other securities, or any combination thereof. The fund will have a manager that trades
the fund's investments in accordance with the fund's investment objective.
While mutual funds and ETFs generally provide diversification, risks can be significantly
increased if the fund is concentrated in a particular sector of the market, primarily invests in
small cap or speculative companies, uses leverage (i.e., borrows money) to a significant
degree, or concentrates in a particular type of security (i.e., equities) rather than balancing the
fund with different types of securities. ETFs differ from mutual funds since they can be bought
and sold throughout the day like stock and their price can fluctuate throughout the day. The
returns on mutual funds and ETFs can be reduced by the costs to manage the funds. Also,
while some mutual funds are "no load" and charge no fee to buy into, or sell out of, the fund,
other types of mutual funds do charge such fees which can also reduce returns. Mutual funds
can also be "closed end" or "open end". So-called "open end" mutual funds continue to allow
in new investors indefinitely whereas "closed end" funds have a fixed number of shares to sell
which can limit their availability to new investors.
ETFs may have tracking error risks. For example, the ETF investment adviser may not be able
to cause the ETF's performance to match that of its Underlying Index or other benchmark,
which may negatively affect the ETF's performance. In addition, for leveraged and inverse
ETFs that seek to track the performance of their Underlying Indices or benchmarks on a daily
basis, mathematical compounding may prevent the ETF from correlating with performance of
its benchmark. In addition, an ETF may not have investment exposure to all of the securities
included in its Underlying Index, or its weighting of investment exposure to such securities may
vary from that of the Underlying Index. Some ETFs may invest in securities or financial
instruments that are not included in the Underlying Index, but which are expected to yield
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similar performance.
Commercial Paper: Commercial paper ("CP") is, in most cases, an unsecured promissory
note that is issued with a maturity of 270 days or less. Being unsecured the risk to the investor
is that the issuer may default. There is a less risk in asset based commercial paper (ABCP).
The difference between ABCP and CP is that instead of being an unsecured promissory note
representing an obligation of the issuing company, ABCP is backed by securities. Therefore,
the perceived quality of the ABCP depends on the underlying securities.
Real Estate Investment Trust: A real estate investment trust ("REIT") is a corporate entity
which invests in real estate and/or engages in real estate financing. A REIT reduces or
eliminates corporate income taxes. REITs can be publicly or privately held. Public REITs may
be listed on public stock exchanges. REITs are required to declare 90% of their taxable income
as dividends, but they actually pay dividends out of funds from operations, so cash flow has to
be strong or the REIT must either dip into reserves, borrow to pay dividends, or distribute them
in stock (which causes dilution). After 2012, the IRS stopped permitting stock dividends. Most
REITs must refinance or erase large balloon debts periodically. The credit markets are no
longer frozen, but banks are demanding, and getting, harsher terms to re-extend REIT debt.
Some REITs may be forced to make secondary stock offerings to repay debt, which will lead
to additional dilution of the stockholders. Fluctuations in the real estate market can affect the
REIT's value and dividends.
Limited Partnerships: A limited partnership is a financial affiliation that includes at least one
general partner and a number of limited partners. The partnership invests in a venture, such
as real estate development or oil exploration, for financial gain. The general partner has
management authority and unlimited liability. The general partner runs the business and, in the
event of bankruptcy, is responsible for all debts not paid or discharged. The limited partners
have no management authority and their liability is limited to the amount of their capital
commitment. Profits are divided between general and limited partners according to an
arrangement formed at the creation of the partnership. The range of risks are dependent on
the nature of the partnership and disclosed in the offering documents if privately placed.
Publicly traded limited partnership have similar risk attributes to equities. However, like
privately placed limited partnerships their tax treatment is under a different tax regime from
equities. You should speak to your tax adviser in regard to their tax treatment.
Private Placements: A private placement (non-public offering) is an illiquid security sold to
qualified investors and are not publicly traded nor registered with the Securities and Exchange
Commission.
Risk: Private placements generally carry a higher degree of risk due to illiquidity. Most
securities that are acquired in a private placement will be restricted securities and must be
held for an extended amount of time and therefore cannot be sold easily. The range of risks
are dependent on the nature of the partnership and are disclosed in the offering documents.
Digital Assets: Digital Assets generally refers to an asset that is issued and/or transferred
using distributed ledger or blockchain technology, including, "virtual currencies" (also known
as crypto- currencies), "coins", and "tokens". We may invest client accounts in and/or advise
clients on the purchase or sale of digital assets. This advice or investment may be in actual
digital coins/tokens/currencies or via investment vehicles such as exchange traded funds
(ETFs) or separately managed accounts (SMAs). The investment characteristics of Digital
Assets generally differ from those of traditional securities and currencies. Digital Assets are
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not backed by a central bank or a national, international organization, any hard assets, human
capital, or other form of credit and are relatively new to the market place. Rather, Digital Assets
are market-based: a Digital Asset's value is determined by (and fluctuates often, according to)
supply and demand factors, its adoption in the traditional commerce channels, and/or the value
that various market participants place on it through their mutual agreement or transactions.
The lack of history to these types of investments entail certain unknown risks, are very
speculative and are not appropriate for all investors.
Price Volatility of Digital Assets Risk: A principal risk in trading Digital Assets is the rapid
fluctuation of market price. The value of client portfolios relates in part to the value of the Digital
Assets held in the client portfolio, and fluctuations in the price of Digital Assets could adversely
affect the value of a client's portfolio. There is no guarantee that a client will be able to achieve
a better than average market price for Digital Assets or will purchase Digital Assets at the most
favorable price available. The price of Digital Assets achieved by a client may be affected
generally by a wide variety of complex factors such as supply and demand; availability and
access to Digital Asset service providers (such as payment processors), exchanges, miners or
other Digital Asset users and market participants; perceived or actual security vulnerability; and
traditional risk factors including inflation levels; fiscal policy; interest rates; and political, natural
and economic events.
Digital Asset Service Providers Risk: Service providers that support Digital Assets and the
Digital Asset marketplace(s) may not be subject to the same regulatory and professional
oversight as traditional securities service providers. Further, there is no assurance that the
availability of and access to virtual currency service providers will not be negatively affected by
government regulation or supply and demand of Digital Assets. Accordingly, companies or
financial institutions that currently support virtual currency may not do so in the future.
Custody of Digital Assets Risk: Under the Advisers Act, SEC registered investment advisers
are required to hold securities with "qualified custodians," among other requirements. Certain
Digital Assets may be deemed to be securities. Many Digital Assets do not currently fall under
the SEC definition of security and therefore many of the companies providing Digital Assets
custodial services fall outside of the SEC's definition of "qualified custodian". Accordingly,
clients seeking to purchase actual digital coins/tokens/currencies may need to use nonqualified
custodians to hold all or a portion of their Digital Assets.
Government Oversight of Digital Assets Risk: Regulatory agencies and/or the constructs
responsible for oversight of Digital Assets or a Digital Asset network may not be fully developed
and subject to change. Regulators may adopt laws, regulations, policies, or rules directly or
indirectly affecting Digital Assets their treatment, transacting, custody, and valuation.
Item 9 Disciplinary Information
We are required to disclose the facts of any legal or disciplinary events that are material to a
client's evaluation of our advisory business or the integrity of our management. We do not
have any required disclosures under this item.
Item 10 Other Financial Industry Activities and Affiliations
Arrangements with Affiliated Insurance Company
We are affiliated with Together We Are Unique, LLC through common control and ownership.
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Therefore, persons providing investment advice on behalf of our firm may be licensed as
insurance agents. These persons will earn commission-based compensation for selling
insurance products, including insurance products they sell to you. Insurance commissions
earned by these persons are separate from our advisory fees. See the Fees and
Compensation section in this brochure for more information on the compensation received by
insurance agents who are affiliated with our firm.
This affiliated firm is otherwise regulated by the professional organizations to which it belongs
and must comply with the rules of those organizations. These rules may prohibit paying or
receiving referral fees to or from investment advisers that are not members of the same
organization.
Referral arrangements with an affiliated entity present a conflict of interest for us because we
may have a direct or indirect financial incentive to recommend an affiliated firm's services.
While we believe that compensation charged by an affiliated firm is competitive, such
compensation may be higher than fees charged by other firms providing the same or similar
services. You are under no obligation to use the services of any firm we recommend, whether
affiliated or otherwise, and may obtain comparable services and/or lower fees through other
firms.
Recommendation of Other Advisers
We may recommend that you use a third-party money manager ("TPMM") based on your
needs and suitability. We will not receive separate compensation, directly or indirectly, from
the TPMM for recommending that you use their services. Moreover, we do not have any other
business relationships with the recommended TPMM(s). Refer to the Advisory Business
section above for additional disclosures on this topic.
Relationship with Dynasty Financial Partners, LLC
We maintain a business relationship with Dynasty Financial Partners, LLC
("Dynasty"). Dynasty offers operational and back office core service support including access
to a network of service providers.
Through the Dynasty network of service providers, we may receive preferred pricing on trading
technology, transition support, reporting, custody, brokerage, compliance, and other related
consulting services.
While we believe this open architecture structure for operational services best serves the
interests of our clients, this relationship presents certain conflicts of interest due to the fact
that Dynasty is paid by us or our clients for the services referenced above. In light of the
foregoing, we seek at all times to ensure that any material conflicts are addressed on a fully
disclosed basis and handled in a manner that is aligned with your best interests. We do not
receive any portion of the fees paid directly to Dynasty, its affiliates or the service
providers made available through Dynasty's platform. In addition, we review such
relationships, including the service providers engaged through Dynasty, on a periodic basis in
an effort to ensure you are receiving competitive rates in relation to the quality and scope of
the services provided.
Item 11 Code of Ethics, Participation or Interest in Client
Transactions and Personal Trading
Description of Our Code of Ethics
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We strive to comply with applicable laws and regulations governing our practices. Therefore,
our Code of Ethics includes guidelines for professional standards of conduct for persons
associated with our firm. Our goal is to protect your interests at all times and to demonstrate
our commitment to our fiduciary duties of honesty, good faith, and fair dealing with you. All
persons associated with our firm are expected to adhere strictly to these guidelines. Persons
associated with our firm are also required to report any violations of our Code of Ethics.
Additionally, we maintain and enforce written policies reasonably designed to prevent the
misuse or dissemination of material, non-public information about you or your account holdings
by persons associated with our firm.
Clients or prospective clients may obtain a copy of our Code of Ethics by contacting us at the
telephone number on the cover page of this brochure.
Participation or Interest in Client Transactions
Neither our firm nor any persons associated with our firm has any material financial interest in
client transactions beyond the provision of investment advisory services as disclosed in this
brochure.
Personal Trading Practices
Our firm or persons associated with our firm may buy or sell the same securities that we
recommend to you or securities in which you are already invested. A conflict of interest exists
in such cases because we have the ability to trade ahead of you and potentially receive more
favorable prices than you will receive. To mitigate this conflict of interest, it is our policy that
neither our firm nor persons associated with our firm shall have priority over your account in
the purchase or sale of securities.
Aggregated Trading
Our firm or persons associated with our firm may buy or sell securities for you at the same time
we or persons associated with our firm buy or sell such securities for our own account. We may
also combine our orders to purchase securities with your orders to purchase securities
("aggregated trading"). Refer to the Brokerage Practices section in this brochure for information
on our aggregated trading practices.
A conflict of interest exists in such cases because we have the ability to trade ahead of you
and potentially receive more favorable prices than you will receive. To eliminate this conflict of
interest, it is our policy that neither our firm nor persons associated with our firm shall have
priority over your account in the purchase or sale of securities.
Item 12 Brokerage Practices
Recommendation of Broker-Dealers for Client Transactions
Unique Wealth recommends that clients utilize the custody, brokerage and clearing services of
Pershing, LLC ("Pershing") and/or Charles Schwab & Co., Inc. (Schwab) (hereinafter referred
to as "Custodians") for investment management accounts. The final decision to custody assets
with Custodians is at the discretion of the client, including those accounts under ERISA or IRA
rules and regulations, in which case the client is acting as either the plan sponsor or IRA
account holder. The custodian will hold client assets in a brokerage account and buy and sell
securities when instructed. Even though the account is maintained at the custodian, our firm
can still use other brokers to execute trades. Unique Wealth is independently owned and
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operated and not affiliated with Custodians. Custodians provide Unique Wealth with access to
institutional trading and custody services, which are typically not available to retail investors.
Factors which Unique Wealth considers in recommending Pershing, Schwab or any other
broker- dealer to clients include their respective financial strength, reputation, execution,
pricing, research and service. Pershing and Schwab enable the Firm to obtain many mutual
funds without transaction charges and other securities at nominal transaction charges.
Pershing has also agreed to reimburse clients for exit fees associated with moving accounts
to Pershing. The reimbursement is only available up to a certain amount for all of the Firm's
clients over a twelve-month period. Fees are reimbursed on a first-come- first-served basis
so that no clients are favored. The commissions and/or transaction fees charged by Pershing
or Schwab may be higher or lower than those charged by other Financial Institutions.
The commissions paid by the Firm's clients to Custodians comply with the Firm's duty to obtain
"best execution." Clients may pay commissions that are higher than another qualified Financial
Institution might charge to affect the same transaction where Unique Wealth determines that
the commissions are reasonable in relation to the value of the brokerage and research services
received. In seeking best execution, the determinative factor is not the lowest possible cost, but
whether the transaction represents the best qualitative execution, taking into consideration the
full range of a Financial Institution's services, including among others, the value of research
provided, execution capability, commission rates and responsiveness. Unique Wealth seeks
competitive rates but may not necessarily obtain the lowest possible commission rates for
client transactions.
Consistent with obtaining best execution, brokerage transactions are directed to certain broker-
dealers in return for investment research products and/or services which assist Unique Wealth
in its investment decision-making process. Such research will be used to service all of the
Firm's clients, but brokerage commissions paid by one client may be used to pay for research
that is not used in managing that client's portfolio. The receipt of investment research products
and/or services as well as the allocation of the benefit of such investment research products
and/or services poses a conflict of interest because Unique Wealth does not have to produce
or pay for the products or services. Unique Wealth periodically and systematically reviews its
policies and procedures regarding its recommendation of Financial Institutions in light of its
duty to obtain best execution.
Research and Other Soft Dollar Benefits
Unique Wealth, LLC does not have any soft dollar arrangements.
Economic Benefits
As a registered investment adviser, we have access to the institutional platform of your
account custodian. As such, we will also have access to research products and services from
your account custodian and/or other brokerage firm. These products may include financial
publications, information about particular companies and industries, research software, and
other products or services that provide lawful and appropriate assistance to our firm in the
performance of our investment decision- making responsibilities. Such research products and
services are provided to all investment advisers that utilize the institutional services platforms
of these firms, and are not considered to be paid for with soft dollars. However, you should be
aware that the commissions charged by a particular broker for a particular transaction or set
of transactions may be greater than the amounts another broker who did not provide research
services or products might charge.
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Software, Support and Economic Benefits Provided by Financial Institutions
Unique Wealth receives without cost from Pershing and Schwab administrative support,
computer software, related systems support, as well as other third-party support as further
described below (together "Support") which allow Unique Wealth to better monitor client
accounts maintained at Pershing and Schwab and otherwise conduct its business. Unique
Wealth receives the Support without cost because the Firm renders investment management
services to clients that maintain assets at Pershing as well as Schwab. The Support is not
provided in connection with securities transactions of clients (i.e., not "soft dollars"). The
Support benefits Unique Wealth, but not its clients directly. Clients should be aware that
Unique Wealth's receipt of economic benefits such as the Support from a broker-dealer creates
a conflict of interest since these benefits may influence the Firm's choice of broker-dealer over
another that does not furnish similar software, systems support or services. In fulfilling its duties
to its clients, Unique Wealth endeavors at all times to put the interests of its clients first and
has determined that the recommendation of Pershing and Schwab is in the best interest of
clients and satisfies the Firm's duty to seek best execution.
Specifically, Unique Wealth receives the following benefits from Pershing and Schwab: i)
receipt of duplicate client confirmations and bundled duplicate statements; ii) access to a
trading desk that exclusively services its institutional traders; iii) access to block trading which
provides the ability to aggregate securities transactions and then allocate the appropriate
shares to client accounts; and iv) access to an electronic communication network for client
order entry and account information.
Pershing and Schwab also make available to the Firm, at no additional charge, certain
research and brokerage services, including research services obtained by Pershing and
Schwab directly from independent research companies, as selected by Unique Wealth (within
specified parameters). These research and brokerage services are used by the Firm to
manage accounts for which it has investment discretion. Without this arrangement, the Firm
might be compelled to purchase the same or similar services at its own expense.
Dynasty has assisted Unique Wealth in negotiating or facilitating payments from Pershing in
the form of credits to be applied toward qualifying third-party service provider expenses
incurred in relation to transition costs or the provision of core services. This may include, but
is not limited to, support of Unique Wealth's research, marketing, technology or software
platforms. In some instances, Dynasty may serve in an administrative capacity to support the
disbursement of these funds furnished by Pershing.
Trade Away Transactions
The Firm may execute trades with a broker-dealer other than the client's primary custodian that
nonetheless settle at and are held at the client's primary custodian ("trade away transactions").
Trade away transactions can be entered into on behalf of clients that have entered into
agreements for prime brokerage clearing services with their custodian. Because clients are not
required to execute a separate agreement with the other broker-dealer to enter into trade away
transactions, the Firm and its Supervised Persons have discretion in selecting the broker-
dealer to use to effect client transactions.
Schwab generally does not charge a separate fee for custody services, but is compensated
by charging commissions or other fees to clients on trades that are executed or that settle into
the Schwab account. In addition to commissions, Schwab charges a flat dollar amount as a
“prime broker” or “trade away” fee for each trade that our firm has executed by a different
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broker-dealer but where the securities bought or the funds from the securities sold are
deposited (settled) into a Schwab account. These fees are in addition to the commissions or
other compensation paid to the executing broker-dealer.
Brokerage for Client Referrals
We do not receive client referrals from broker-dealers in exchange for cash or other
compensation, such as brokerage services or research.
Directed Brokerage
You may utilize the broker-dealer of your choice and have no obligation to purchase or sell
securities through such brokers as we recommend. However, if you do not use the
recommended brokers, we may not be able to accept your account. See the Fees and
Compensation section in this brochure for more information on the compensation received by
registered representatives who are affiliated with our firm.
In limited circumstances, and at our discretion, some clients may instruct our firm to use one or
more particular brokers for the transactions in their accounts. If you choose to direct our firm to
use a particular broker, you should understand that this might prevent our firm from aggregating
trades with other client accounts or from effectively negotiating brokerage commissions on your
behalf. This practice may also prevent our firm from obtaining favorable net price and execution.
Thus, when directing brokerage business, you should consider whether the commission
expenses, execution, clearance, and settlement capabilities that you will obtain through your
broker are adequately favorable in comparison to those that we would otherwise obtain for you.
Aggregated Trades
We combine multiple orders for shares of the same securities purchased for discretionary
advisory accounts we manage (this practice is commonly referred to as "aggregated trading").
We will then distribute a portion of the shares to participating accounts in a fair and equitable
manner. Generally, participating accounts will pay a fixed transaction cost regardless of the
number of shares transacted. In certain cases, each participating account pays an average
price per share for all transactions and pays a proportionate share of all transaction costs on
any given day. In the event an order is only partially filled, the shares will be allocated to
participating accounts in a fair and equitable manner, typically in proportion to the size of each
client's order. Accounts owned by our firm or persons associated with our firm may participate
in aggregated trading with your accounts; however, they will not be given preferential
treatment.
We do not aggregate trades for non-discretionary accounts. Accordingly, non-discretionary
accounts may pay different costs than discretionary accounts pay. If you enter into non-
discretionary arrangements with our firm, we may not be able to buy and sell the same
quantities of securities for you and you may pay higher commissions, fees, and/or transaction
costs than clients who enter into discretionary arrangements with our firm.
Mutual Fund Share Classes
Mutual funds are sold with different share classes, which carry different cost structures. Each
available share class is described in the mutual fund's prospectus. When we purchase, or
recommend the purchase of, mutual funds for a client, we select the share class that is deemed
to be in the client's best interest, taking into consideration cost, tax implications, and other
factors. When the fund is available for purchase at net asset value, we will purchase, or
recommend the purchase of, the fund at net asset value. We also review the mutual funds held
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in accounts that come under our management to determine whether a more beneficial share
class is available, considering cost, tax implications, and the impact of contingent deferred
sales charges.
Item 13 Review of Accounts
Jessica Thayer, Chief Compliance Officer, will monitor your accounts on an ongoing basis and
will conduct account reviews at least annually, to ensure the advisory services provided to you
are consistent with your investment needs and objectives. Additional reviews may be
conducted based on various circumstances, including, but not limited to:
• contributions and withdrawals;
• year-end tax planning;
• market moving events;
• security specific events; and/or
• changes in your risk/return objectives.
The individuals conducting reviews may vary from time to time, as personnel join or leave
our firm.
We will not provide you with regular written reports. You will receive trade confirmations and
monthly or quarterly statements from your account custodian(s).
Jessica Thayer, Chief Compliance Officer, will review financial plans as needed. These
reviews are provided as part of the contracted services. We do not assess additional fees for
financial plan reviews. Generally, we will contact you periodically to determine whether any
updates may be needed based on changes in your circumstances. Changed circumstances
may include, but are not limited to marriage, divorce, birth, death, inheritance, lawsuit,
retirement, job loss and/or disability, among others. We recommend meeting with you at least
annually to review and update your plan if needed.
Additional reviews will be conducted upon your request. Written updates to the financial plan
may be provided in conjunction with the review. Updates to your financial plan may be subject
to our then current hourly rate, which you must approve in writing and in advance of the update.
If you implement financial planning advice, you will receive trade confirmations and monthly or
quarterly statements from relevant custodians.
Item 14 Client Referrals and Other Compensation
Dynasty has assisted us in negotiating or facilitating payments from Pershing and Schwab in
the form of credits to be applied toward qualifying third-party service provider expenses
incurred in relation to transition costs or the provision of core services. This may include, but
is not limited to, support of our research, marketing, technology or software platforms. In some
instances, Dynasty may serve in an administrative capacity to support the disbursement of
these funds furnished by the custodian.
As disclosed under the Fees and Compensation section in this brochure, persons providing
investment advice on behalf of our firm are licensed as insurance agents. For information on
the conflicts of interest this presents, and how we address these conflicts, refer to the Fees
and Compensation section.
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We do not receive any compensation from any third party in connection with providing
investment advice.
Refer to the Brokerage Practices section above for disclosures on research and other benefits
we may receive resulting from our relationship with your account custodian.
Schwab
Our firm receives economic benefit from Schwab in the form of the support products and
services made available to our firm and other independent investment advisors that have their
clients maintain accounts at Schwab. These products and services, how they benefit our firm,
and the related conflicts of interest are described above (see Item 12 – Brokerage Practices).
The availability of Schwab’s products and services is not based on our firm giving particular
investment advice, such as buying particular securities for our clients.
Dynasty Securities, LLC (“Dynasty Securities”), which is a wholly owned subsidiary of Dynasty
Financial Partners, LLC, and an affiliate of Dynasty Wealth Management, LLC (“Dynasty
Wealth Management”) (collectively “Dynasty”) has entered into a Marketing and Business
Development Agreement (“Agreement”) with Charles Schwab & Co., Inc. (“Schwab”) whereby
Dynasty Securities and Schwab collaborate to identify financial advisor candidates that
establish a custodial relationship with Schwab and to use Dynasty’s integrated platform
services. Dynasty Securities receives payment from Schwab each quarter in connection with
the Agreement. The Agreement creates an incentive for Dynasty to encourage its network
advisors to custody clients’ assets with Schwab due to the economic benefit it may receive
which is a conflict of interest. There may be other entities available to supply similar custody
services at a lower fee. Financial advisors joining the Dynasty network of registered investment
advisers are not required to select Schwab as their custodian in order to receive services from
Dynasty.
Item 15 Custody
Your independent custodian will directly debit your account(s) for the payment of our advisory
fees. This ability to deduct our advisory fees from your accounts causes our firm to exercise
limited custody over your funds or securities. We do not have physical custody of any of your
funds and/or securities. Your funds and securities will be held with a bank, broker-dealer, or
other qualified custodian. You will receive account statements from the qualified custodian(s)
holding your funds and securities at least quarterly. The account statements from your
custodian(s) will indicate the amount of our advisory fees deducted from your account(s) each
billing period. You should carefully review account statements for accuracy.
Wire Transfer and/or Standing Letter of Authorization
Our firm, or persons associated with our firm, may effect wire transfers from client accounts to
one or more third parties designated, in writing, by the client without obtaining written client
consent for each separate, individual transaction, as long as the client has provided us with
written authorization to do so. Such written authorization is known as a Standing Letter of
Authorization. An adviser with authority to conduct such third-party wire transfers has access
to the client's assets and therefore has custody of the client's assets in any related accounts.
However, we do not have to obtain a surprise annual audit, as we otherwise would be required
to by reason of having custody, as long as we meet the following criteria:
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1. You provide a written, signed instruction to the qualified custodian that includes the third
party's name and address or account number at a custodian;
2. You authorize us in writing to direct transfers to the third party either on a specified
schedule or from time to time;
3. Your qualified custodian verifies your authorization (e.g., signature review) and provides
a transfer of funds notice to you promptly after each transfer;
4. You can terminate or change the instruction;
5. We have no authority or ability to designate or change the identity of the third party, the
address, or any other information about the third party;
6. We maintain records showing that the third party is not a related party to us nor located
at the same address as us; and
7. Your qualified custodian sends you, in writing, an initial notice confirming the instruction
and an annual notice reconfirming the instruction.
We hereby confirm that we meet the above criteria.
Item 16 Investment Discretion
Before we can buy or sell securities on your behalf, you must first sign our discretionary
management agreement and the appropriate trading authorization forms.
You may grant our firm discretion over the selection and amount of securities to be purchased
or sold for your account(s) without obtaining your consent or approval prior to each transaction.
We do not permit clients to impose any restrictions on a grant of discretionary authority. Refer
to the Advisory Business section in this brochure for more information on our discretionary
management services.
Item 17 Voting Client Securities
We will not vote proxies on behalf of your advisory accounts. At your request, we may offer
you advice regarding corporate actions and the exercise of your proxy voting rights. If you own
shares of applicable securities, you are responsible for exercising your right to vote as a
shareholder.
In most cases, you will receive proxy materials directly from the account custodian. However,
in the event we were to receive any written or electronic proxy materials, we would forward
them directly to you by mail, unless you have authorized our firm to contact you by electronic
mail, in which case, we would forward any electronic solicitations to vote proxies.
Item 18 Financial Information
Our firm does not have any financial condition or impairment that would prevent us from
meeting our contractual commitments to you. We do not take physical custody of client funds
or securities, or serve as trustee or signatory for client accounts, and, we do not require the
prepayment of more than $1,200 in fees six or more months in advance. Therefore, we are
not required to include a financial statement with this brochure.
We have not filed a bankruptcy petition at any time in the past ten years.
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Item 19 Requirements for State-Registered Advisers
We are a federally registered investment adviser; therefore, we are not required to respond to
this item.
Item 20 Additional Information
Trade Errors
In the event a trading error occurs in your account, our policy is to restore your account to the
position it should have been in had the trading error not occurred. Depending on the
circumstances, corrective actions may include canceling the trade, adjusting an allocation,
and/or reimbursing the account.
Class Action Lawsuits
We do not determine if securities held by you are the subject of a class action lawsuit or
whether you are eligible to participate in class action settlements or litigation nor do we initiate
or participate in litigation to recover damages on your behalf for injuries as a result of actions,
misconduct, or negligence by issuers of securities held by you.
IRA Rollover Considerations
As part of our investment advisory services to you, we may recommend that you withdraw the
assets from your employer's retirement plan and roll the assets over to an individual retirement
account ("IRA") that we will manage on your behalf. If you elect to roll the assets to an IRA
that is subject to our management, we will charge you an asset-based fee as set forth in the
agreement you executed with our firm. This practice presents a conflict of interest because
persons providing investment advice on our behalf have an incentive to recommend a rollover
to you for the purpose of generating fee-based compensation rather than solely based on your
needs. You are under no obligation, contractually or otherwise, to complete the rollover.
Moreover, if you do complete the rollover, you are under no obligation to have the assets in
an IRA managed by our firm.
If you enter into non-discretionary arrangements with our firm, we will obtain your approval
prior to the execution of any transactions for your account(s). You have an unrestricted right
to decline to implement any advice provided by our firm on a non-discretionary basis.
Many employers permit former employees to keep their retirement assets in their company
plan. Also, current employees can sometimes move assets out of their company plan before
they retire or change jobs. In determining whether to complete the rollover to an IRA, and to
the extent the following options are available, you should consider the costs and benefits of:
1. Leaving the funds in your employer's (former employer's) plan.
2. Moving the funds to a new employer's retirement plan.
3. Cashing out and taking a taxable distribution from the plan.
4. Rolling the funds into an IRA rollover account.
Each of these options has advantages and disadvantages and before making a change we
encourage you to speak with your CPA and/or tax attorney.
If you are considering rolling over your retirement funds to an IRA for us to manage here are a
few points to consider before you do so:
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1. Determine whether the investment options in your employer's retirement plan address
your needs or whether you might want to consider other types of investments.
a. Employer retirement plans generally have a more limited investment menu than
IRAs.
b. Employer retirement plans may have unique investment options not
available to the public such as employer securities, or previously closed
funds.
2. Your current plan may have lower fees than our fees.
a. If you are interested in investing only in mutual funds, you should understand
the cost structure of the share classes available in your employer's retirement
plan and how the costs of those share classes compare with those available in
an IRA.
b. You should understand the various products and services you might take
advantage of at an IRA provider and the potential costs of those products and
services.
3. Our strategy may have higher risk than the option(s) provided to you in your plan.
4. Your current plan may also offer financial advice.
5. If you keep your assets titled in a 401k or retirement account, you could potentially
delay your required minimum distribution beyond age 72.
6. Your 401k may offer more liability protection than a rollover IRA; each state may vary.
a. Generally, federal law protects assets in qualified plans from creditors. Since
2005, IRA assets have been generally protected from creditors in bankruptcies.
However, there can be some exceptions to the general rules so you should
consult with an attorney if you are concerned about protecting your retirement
plan assets from creditors.
b. You may be able to take out a loan on your 401k, but not from an IRA.
c. IRA assets can be accessed any time; however, distributions are subject to
ordinary income tax and may also be subject to a 10% early distribution penalty
unless they qualify for an exception such as disability, higher education
expenses or the purchase of a home.
d. If you own company stock in your plan, you may be able to liquidate those
shares at a lower capital gains tax rate.
e. Your plan may allow you to hire us as the manager and keep the assets titled
in the plan name.
It is important that you understand the differences between these types of accounts and to
decide whether a rollover is best for you. Prior to proceeding, if you have questions contact
your investment adviser representative, or call our main number as listed on the cover page of
this brochure.
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