Firm Description
Great Point Advisors LLC (the “Advisor” or “GPA”) is an Illinois Limited Liability
Company formed in January 2020. Great Point Trading, LLC is the principal
owner of the Advisor, owning 100% of the membership units of the Advisor.
The Advisor is an investment adviser registering with the U.S. Securities and
Exchange Commission (“SEC”) and is subject to state securities laws and the
Investment Advisers Act of 1940, as amended (the “Investment Advisers Act”).
The Advisor is an affiliate of Great Point Capital LLC - a securities broker dealer
registered with the SEC and is a member of the Financial Industry Regulatory
Authority (“FINRA”).
The primary types of investment advisory services offered by the Advisor are
financial planning, investment consulting, investment advisory services.
Financial Planning
The Advisor works to develop a comprehensive financial plan for clients. The
Advisor begins with a fact-finding session which helps the Advisor become
familiar with the client’s current financial situation including among other things,
personal goals, priorities, family circumstances, estate affairs, risk concerns,
cash flow management, income taxes, investments, and insurance. Working
from this comprehensive information, the Advisor prepares a financial plan
which documents the client’s situation, makes specific goal-oriented
recommendations, articulates strategies, priority action items, and identifies all
areas which will be impacted. The Advisor’s specific goal-oriented
recommendations are designed to educate and allow a client to coordinate and
manage his/her financial affairs more efficiently, protect assets, prudently
reduce income taxes, enhance investment returns, manage risk in support of
achieving personal goals and objectives. As elements of the plan are
developed, they are discussed with the client and recommendations that the
client feels comfortable with are scheduled for implementation with specific
deadlines to be met. The Advisor works closely with the client to assist in
implementation and execution of the plan, coordination of efforts involving other
advisors (attorneys, CPAs, insurance agents, brokers, etc.) and ongoing
oversight and management of the planning process and management of client
wealth.
Investment Advisory Services
Investment advisory services offered by the Advisor are specifically tailored to
meet the needs of each client. Prior to delivering investment advisory services,
the Advisor will ascertain each client’s specific investment objective. Then the
Advisor will allocate, or recommend that the client allocate, their investment
assets consistent with the designated investment objective. Clients may
impose reasonable restrictions on any of the Advisor’s investment advisory
services at any time, but restrictions must be delivered to the Advisor in writing
and must be signed by the client. All work related to defining investment goals,
objectives, risk tolerance, asset allocation, client restrictions, and any other
matter relating to the investment strategy(s) may be documented in a client
customized Investment Policy Statement (IPS).
Investment Consulting
The Advisor works to provide institutional retirement plans and the plan
sponsors with diversified investment options for plan participants to choose
from. In addition, as requested by the plan sponsor, the Advisor shall provide
plan participants with general information seminars and/or educational
materials that describe the various investment alternatives available under the
plan, information about investing generally, including information about
different types of investments, information about different investment allocation
strategies, including information about historical returns, and interactive
materials designed to help participants identify an appropriate investment
strategy.
Investment Management
We offer discretionary and non-discretionary investment management
services. Investment management services offered by the Adviser are
specifically tailored to meet the needs of each client. Prior to delivering
investment advisory services, the Adviser will ascertain each client’s specific
investment objective. The Adviser will allocate, or recommend that the client
allocate, their investment assets consistent with the designated investment
objective.
Please note: It is always the client’s responsibility to promptly notify the
Adviser if there is any change in their financial situation or investment
objective. This notification of change allows the Adviser an opportunity to
review, evaluate, or revise the previous recommendations or services.
Managed Discretionary Assets
If you engage our firm on a discretionary basis, we require you to grant us
discretionary authority to manage your account. Discretionary authorization
will allow our Investment Advisor Representatives (“IAR’s”) to weigh the
Client’s objectives with current market conditions and act on a client’s account
without further authorization.
Managed Non-Discretionary Assets
In addition to providing investment management of client assets on a
discretionary basis, the Adviser provides certain limited services to clients
with respect to “Managed Non-Discretionary Assets.” These services consist
solely of the following:
o The Adviser is available to consult with the client on a semi-annual basis
(or more often if requested by the client) regarding Managed Non-
Discretionary Assets. However, the client is solely responsible for all
decisions and consequences on the client’s Managed Non-discretionary
Assets, including decisions on whether to retain or sell all or a portion of
the Managed Non-Discretionary Assets. This responsibility remains solely
with the client regardless of whether any security
is reflected on account
reports prepared by the Adviser.
o The Adviser is available to service Managed Non-Discretionary Assets,
such as setting up and monitoring regular distributions and special one-
time distribution requests.
o The Adviser can process any trades on the Managed Non-Discretionary
Assets, but only when requested to do so by the client. Upon receipt of
any client’s request, The Adviser will endeavor, but cannot guarantee,
that any such transaction will be affected on the day received or at any
specific time or price.
Limitations for Non-Discretionary Assets
Clients that engage the Adviser on a non-discretionary investment advisory
basis must be willing to accept that the Adviser cannot affect any account
transactions without obtaining prior consent to any such transaction(s) from
the client. Thus, in the event of a market correction during which the client is
unavailable, GPA will be unable to affect any account transactions without
first obtaining the client’s consent.
Third-party Money Managers
Clients may access unaffiliated third-party money managers who offer
specialized asset management expertise or services that the Advisor utilizes to
manage all or a portion of the client assets in appropriate cases. Such third-
party money manager’s expertise ranges from research and selection of
investment options, to monitoring the assets and deciding when to sell them.
Once selected, these third-party money managers have the fiduciary discretion
for the portion of assets placed with them, to choose and manage investments
prudently for the client, including the development of an appropriate investment
strategy, and buying and selling securities to meet those goals (subject to
restrictions imposed by the client). These programs allow clients to obtain
portfolio management services that typically have higher minimum account
sizes if the client sought to engage the manager off platform or outside of the
program. GPA has no ability to affect the trading decisions of the third-party
money managers once a client decides to participate in these programs and
can only choose whether to engage or terminate a third-party money manager.
The Advisor retains the right to replace (i.e., "hire or fire") third-party money
managers on behalf of clients that have given discretionary authority to the
Advisor. Discretionary authority allows GPA to choose or change any third-
party money manager approved for a given platform, without additional
approvals from the client. The Advisor will evaluate the third-party money
managers and investment vehicles to determine whether the third-party money
manager is suitable for the client, given the appropriate style and allocation. In
addition, the Advisor performs ongoing due diligence of the individual third-
party money managers’ performance and management, continuously reviews
the client’s account for adherence to objectives outlined with the manager and
will reallocate assets among managers if necessary. Each third-party money
manager maintains a separate disclosure document provided to clients,
outlining their investment vehicle. Clients should carefully read this disclosure
document for important and specific details including, among other things, fees,
experience, investment objectives and risk guidelines, and disclosure of the
third-party money manager's potential conflicts of interest.
Please note: For all clients (Financial Planning, Investment Advisory Services,
Investment Management, and Investment Consulting), it is always the client’s
responsibility to promptly notify the Advisor if there is any change in their
financial situation or investment objectives. This notification of change allows
the Advisor an opportunity to review, evaluate, or revise previous
recommendations or services.
Additional Services
The Advisor may furnish advice on matters not involving securities, such as:
Retirement Income Planning Personal Financial Planning
Withdrawal Rate Analysis Education Planning
Cash Flow & Budgeting Employee Benefits & 401(k) Guidance
Insurance Review & Planning Corporate Retirement Plan Guidance
Estate & Charitable Gift Planning Tax Planning (Related to investments)
Business Succession Investment Risk Management
Tailored Relationships
The GPA advisory services are tailored to the specific needs of each client.
Prior to providing advisory services, the Advisor will ascertain each client’s
investment goals and objectives. The Advisor then allocates and/or
recommends that the client allocate investment assets consistent with the
designated investment objective. The client may, at any time, impose
reasonable restrictions on the Advisor’s services, but restrictions must be
delivered to the Advisor in writing, and must be signed by the client. All work
related to defining client investment goals, objectives, risk tolerance, asset
allocation, client restrictions, and any other matter relating to the investment
strategy(s) may be documented in a client customized Investment Policy
Statement (IPS).
In performing services for the client, the Advisor is not required to verify any
information it received from the client or from the client’s other professionals
and the Advisor is expressly authorized by the client to rely on this information.
Each client is advised that it remains the client’s responsibility to promptly notify
the Advisor if there is ever any change in the client’s financial situation or
investment objectives for the purpose of reviewing, evaluating or revising the
Advisor’s previous recommendations or services to the client.
Managed Assets
Assets Under Management (Discretionary)- $0
Assets Under Management (Non-Discretionary)- $14,580,323
Calculated as of 12/31/2023