A. Introduction. Blend Financial Inc. dba Origin Financial (the “Firm” or “Origin”) was formed in January 2018 and became registered as an investment adviser with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission in January 2021. Origin’s principal owner is Matthew Watson, Chief Executive Officer.
Origin offers services on both a direct-to-consumer basis (the “DTC Model”), whereby Clients pay fees directly to Origin, and on an employer basis (the “Employer Model”), whereby a third-party entity(ies) pay (i) all of the fees on behalf of a Client, or (ii) some of the fees on behalf of a Client, and the Client also has the option to purchase additional services directly from Origin.
B. Types of Advisory Services. Financial Planning The Firm provides nondiscretionary investment recommendations based on the Client’s financial situation and investment objectives.These recommendations may involve recommending investments in model portfolios established by the Firm (each, a “Model Portfolio”) as well as other types of investments, as described in the materials related to the program on the Firm’s website, any written materials on the Model Portfolios or other investments provided directly to the Client by the Firm, and in this brochure.
Clients complete a financial questionnaire prior to services being rendered, and the assigned Firm financial planner will also gather additional information from the Client where needed to provide financial advice in a fiduciary capacity to the Client, and the Client may be required to update information if it becomes outdated. The purpose of Origin’s platform is to provide financial planning services to Clients on every aspect of their financial well-being. Not only does Origin provide advisory services on portfolio investments, but Origin also provides advisory services on affairs related to the Client’s current financial situation and financial goals.
Origin also makes recommendations about benefits, insurance coverages, budgeting, debt management, investment allocations, retirement planning, and compensation.
Origin only recommends investments or other products that it believes would be in the Client’s best interest based on information provided by the Client. The Client always has the right to decide whether to act on any recommendations made by an Origin financial planner. If a Client does decide to act, they always have the right to do so through the professional of their choosing.
Clients may also invest in the Firm’s “Origin Invest” product (the “Managed Account Services”).
For this service, Origin separately manages each Client’s account based on a series of Model Portfolios.
The Firm recommends investments in one or more Model Portfolios based on the Client’s financial situation and investment objectives and, based on these recommendations, invests and trades Client assets held in an account that the Client has opened with DriveWealth LLC (“DriveWealth” or the “Custodian”) for these purposes (the “Account”), as described below. The Firm reviews Client Accounts on a daily basis and typically rebalances Client Accounts when an asset class is in excess of 7% from the recommended allocation of the Model Portfolio(s). All Managed Account Services are provided on a discretionary basis, meaning that the Firm can direct transactions in the Client’s Account assets without further consent from the Client. If a Client chooses to participate in the

Managed Account Services, the Firm is solely responsible for implementing the investment strategy of the applicable Model Portfolio for the Account, provided that the Client may notify the Firm of restrictions to the investments purchased for the Account, subject to the Firm’s determination that the restrictions are reasonable, which determination the Firm may make in its sole discretion.
The Custodian will provide Account statements directly to each Client on a monthly basis.
In an effort to maintain diligence regarding the monitoring and review of the Managed Account Services, Origin has established an Investment Committee. The committee is composed of executive team members and members of the planning team. Meetings occur each calendar quarter. The purpose of the committee is to review the performance of assets managed by the Firm as compared to relative benchmarks, review portfolio strategy, and adjust allocations when required.The minutes of this meeting are recorded along with any actions taken by the committee.
C. Client InvestmentObjectivesand Restrictions. Origin tailors its advisory services to the individual needs of its Clients. First, Clients are instructed to answer a series of questions on Origin’s website during the onboarding process. The questions provide the financial advisor with the Client’s risk tolerance, investment objectives, current financial condition, investment time horizon, and relative prioritization of each financial goal to create the Client’s Investment Profile.
Next, a financial advisor schedules a call or video meeting to speak to the new Client. During the call, the financial advisor confirms the information the Client provided in the Investment Profile.
Based on the Client’s unique situation and financial background, the financial advisor discusses the Client’s investment objectives to create a Client Plan and make investment recommendations.
Since Origin does not have discretionary authority over Client Financial Planning accounts, nor does it execute or arrange transactions on behalf of Clients, there is no process through which Clients may impose restrictions on investing in certain securities or types of securities. Clients have the choice to accept or reject advice from Origin’s software and/or financial advisors.
The Firm invests on behalf of Clients’ accounts according to the investment strategy of each model portfolio. To determine which of the Model Portfolios a Client receives, Origin uses a risk assessment. The risk assessment allows Origin to determine if a Client is aggressive, moderately aggressive, moderate, moderately conservative, or conservative. Origin, therefore, does not generally tailor its advisory services to the individual needs of Clients. Origin’s Clients should understand that their account holdings will closely reflect those of other Clients. Origin may accept reasonable restrictions from Clients related to their account D. Wrap Fee Program Origin does not participate in wrap fee programs.
E. Discretionary assets under management. For its financial planning service, Origin provides non-discretionary investment advice to its Client. As of November 28, 2023, the Firm has no assets under management on a non-discretionary basis.
For the Managed Accounts Services, Origin provides discretionary advice to Clients. As of November 28, 2023, the Firm has $510,704 on a discretionary basis.