A. Marquis Wealth Management Group (the “Registrant”) is a limited liability company
formed on January 25, 1999, in the State of Florida. The Registrant became registered as
an Investment Adviser Firm in April 1999. The Registrant is principally owned by Trevor
R. Whitley, Brian P. O’Connell, and Richard E. Krichbaum. Richard E. Krichbaum
remains as the Registrant’s Managing Member, President and Chief Compliance Officer.
B. As discussed below, the Registrant offers to its clients (individuals, business entities,
pension and profit-sharing plans, trusts, estates and charitable organizations, etc.)
investment advisory services, and, to the extent specifically requested by a client,
financial planning and related consulting services.
INVESTMENT ADVISORY SERVICES
The client can determine to engage the Registrant to provide discretionary and / or non-
discretionary investment advisory services and, to the extent specifically requested by the
client, financial planning and consulting services on a fee basis. The Registrant’s full-
service annual investment advisory fee is based upon a percentage (%) of the market value
of the assets, which may include accrued interest, placed under the Registrant’s
management. Prior to engaging the Registrant to provide investment advisory services,
clients are required to enter into an Investment Advisory Agreement with the Registrant
setting forth the terms and conditions of the engagement (including termination),
describing the scope of the services to be provided, and any fees that are due from the
client prior to Registrant commencing services.
The Registrant provides investment advisory services specific to the needs of each client.
Before Registrant provides investment advisory services, an investment adviser
representative will ascertain each client’s investment objectives. The Registrant will then
allocate and/or recommend that the client allocate investment assets consistent with the
designated investment objectives. The Registrant primarily recommends that clients
allocate investment assets among various individual equities (stocks), debt (bonds) and
fixed income securities, unaffiliated private investment funds, mutual funds and/or
exchange traded funds (“ETFs”) on a discretionary and / or non-discretionary basis in
accordance with the client’s designated investment objective(s). Once allocated, the
Registrant provides ongoing monitoring and review of account performance and asset
allocation as compared to client investment objectives.
FINANCIAL PLANNING AND CONSULTING SERVICES (STAND-ALONE)
To the extent specifically requested by a client, the Registrant may provide financial
planning and/or consulting services (including investment and non- investment related
matters, including estate planning, insurance planning, etc.) on a stand-alone separate fee
basis. Registrant’s planning and consulting fees are negotiable, depending upon the level
and scope of the service(s) required and the person(s) rendering the service(s).
Prior to engaging the Registrant to provide planning or consulting services, clients are
required to enter into a Financial Planning Agreement or a Limited Scope Service
Agreement with Registrant setting forth the terms and conditions of the engagement
(including termination), describing the scope of the services to be provided, and the
portion of the fee that is due as a deposit from the client prior to Registrant commencing
services. Please Note: The Registrant does not serve as an attorney or accountant, and no
portion of our services should be construed as legal or accounting services. Accordingly,
The Marquis Wealth Management Group does not prepare estate planning or any other
legal documents or tax returns. To the extent requested by a client, we may recommend
the services of other professionals for non-investment implementation purpose (i.e.,
attorneys, accountants, insurance, etc.).
If requested by the client, Registrant may recommend the services of other professionals
for implementation purposes; including certain of the Registrant’s representatives in their
individual capacities as licensed insurance agents. (See disclosure at Item 10(C).
The client is under no obligation to engage the services of any such recommended
professional. If, and when, the Registrant is involved in a specific matter (i.e., estate
planning, insurance, accounting-related engagement, etc.), it is the engaged licensed
professionals (i.e., attorney, accountant, insurance agent, etc.), and not the Registrant, that
is responsible for the quality and competency of the services provided.
The client retains absolute discretion over all such implementation decisions and is free
to accept or reject any recommendation from the Registrant. Please Note: If the client
engages any such recommended professional, and a dispute arises thereafter relative to
such engagement, the client agrees to seek recourse exclusively from and against the
engaged professional. At all times, the engaged licensed professional[s] (i.e., attorney,
accountant, insurance agent, etc.), and not the Registrant, shall be responsible for the
quality and competency of the services provided. Please Also Note: It remains the client’s
responsibility to promptly notify the Registrant if there is ever any change in his/her/its
financial situation or investment objectives for the purpose of
reviewing/evaluating/revising Registrant’s previous recommendations and/or services.
MISCELLANEOUS
Limitations of Financial Planning and Non-Investment Consulting/Implementation
Services.
As indicated above, to the extent requested by a client, Registrant may provide financial
planning and related consulting services regarding non-investment related matters, such
as estate planning, tax planning, insurance, business consulting, real estate transactions,
private investment offerings, etc., per the terms and conditions of a Financial Planning
and Consulting Agreement. Registrant does not serve as an attorney or accountant, and
no portion of its services should be construed as legal or accounting services.
Accordingly, Registrant does not prepare estate planning documents or tax returns. To
the extent requested by a client, Registrant may recommend the services of other
professionals for certain non-investment implementation purpose (i.e., attorneys,
accountants, insurance agents, etc.), including representatives of Registrant in their
separate individual capacities as licensed insurance agents. The client is under no
obligation to engage the services of any such recommended professional. The client
retains absolute discretion over all such implementation decisions and is free to accept or
reject any recommendation from Registrant and/or its representatives (See Item 10
below). Please Note: If the client engages any recommended unaffiliated professional,
and a dispute arises thereafter relative to such engagement, the client agrees to seek
recourse exclusively from and against the engaged professional. Please Also Note-
Conflict of Interest: The recommendation by Registrant’s representative that a client
purchase an insurance commission product through Registrant’s representative in his/her
separate and individual capacity as an insurance agent, presents a conflict of interest, as
the receipt of commissions may provide an incentive to recommend insurance products
based on commissions to be received, rather than on a particular client’s need. No client
is under any obligation to purchase any insurance commission products through such
representative. Clients are reminded that they may purchase insurance products
recommended by Registrant through other non- affiliated insurance agents.
INDEPENDENT MANAGERS
The Registrant may allocate (and/or recommend that the client allocate) a portion
of a client’s investment assets among unaffiliated independent investment managers in
accordance with the client’s designated investment objective(s). In such situations, the
Independent Manager(s), including independent managers sponsored by Charles Schwab
& Co., Inc. (“Schwab”), Fidelity Investments (“Fidelity”) or Envestnet Asset
Management (Envestnet) shall have day-to-day responsibility for the active discretionary
management of the allocated assets.
The Registrant shall continue to render investment advisory services to the client relative
to the ongoing monitoring and review of account performance, asset allocation and client
investment objectives. Factors which the Registrant shall consider in recommending
Independent Manager(s) include the client’s designated investment objective(s),
management style, performance, reputation, financial strength, reporting, pricing, and
research. Registrant shall receive an annual investment advisory fee which is based upon
a percentage of the market value of the assets being managed by the designated
Independent Manager(s) (generally between 0.50% and 1.50%). Please Note: The
investment management fee charged by the Independent Manager[s]is separate from, and
in addition to, Registrant’s advisory fee as set forth in the fee schedule at Item 5 below
and which will be disclosed to the client before entering into an engagement with the
Independent Manager and/or subject to the terms and conditions of a separate agreement
between the client and the Independent Manager(s).
Retirement Plan Rollovers-Potential for Conflict of Interest. A client or prospective
client leaving an employer typically has four options regarding an existing retirement plan
(and may engage in a combination of these options): (i) leave the money in the former
employer’s plan, if permitted, (ii) roll over the assets to the new employer’s plan, if one
is available and rollovers are permitted, (iii) roll over to an Individual Retirement Account
(“IRA”), or (iv) cash out the account value (which could, depending upon the client’s age,
result in adverse tax consequences). If Registrant recommends that a client roll over their
retirement plan assets into an account to be managed by Registrant, such a
recommendation potentially creates a conflict of interest if Registrant will earn new (or
increase its current) compensation as a result of the rollover. If Registrant provides a
recommendation as to whether a client should engage in a rollover or not (whether it is
from an employer’s plan or an existing IRA), Registrant is acting as a fiduciary 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. No
client is under any obligation to roll over retirement plan assets to an account
managed by Registrant, whether it is from an employer’s plan or an existing IRA.
Registrant’s Chief Compliance Officer, Richard E. Krichbaum , remains available
to address any questions that a client or prospective client may have regarding the
potential for conflict of interest presented by such rollover recommendation.
Unaffiliated Private Investment Funds. Registrant also provides investment advice
regarding private investment funds. Registrant, on a non-discretionary basis, may
recommend that certain qualified clients consider an investment in private investment
funds, the description of which (the terms, conditions, risks, conflicts and fees, including
incentive compensation) is set forth in the fund’s offering documents. Registrant’s role
relative to unaffiliated private investment funds shall be limited to its initial and ongoing
due diligence and investment monitoring services. If a client determines to become an
unaffiliated private fund investor, the amount of assets invested in the fund(s) shall be
included as part of “assets under management” for purposes of Registrant calculating its
investment advisory fee. Registrant’s fee shall be in addition to the fund’s fees.
Registrant’s clients are under absolutely no obligation to consider or make an investment
in any private investment fund(s).
Please Note: Private investment funds generally involve various risk factors,
including, but not limited to, potential for complete loss of principal, liquidity
constraints and lack of transparency, a complete discussion of which is set forth in
each fund’s offering documents, which will be provided to each client for review and
consideration. Unlike liquid investments that a client may own, private investment
funds do not provide daily liquidity or pricing. Each prospective client investor will
be required to complete a Subscription Agreement, pursuant to which the client shall
establish that the client is qualified for investment in the fund, and acknowledges and
accepts the various risk factors that are associated with such an investment.
Please Also Note: Valuation. In the event that Registrant references private
investment funds owned by the client on any supplemental account reports prepared
by Registrant, the value(s) for all private investment funds owned by the client shall
reflect the most recent valuation provided by the fund sponsor. However, if
subsequent to purchase, the fund has not provided an updated valuation, the valuation
shall reflect the initial purchase price. If subsequent to purchase, the fund provides
an updated valuation, then the statement will reflect that updated value. The updated
value will continue to be reflected on the report until the fund provides a further
updated value. Please Also Note: As result of the valuation process, if the valuation
reflects initial purchase price or an updated value subsequent to purchase price, the
current value(s) of an investor’s fund holding(s) could be significantly more or less
than the value reflected on the report. Unless otherwise indicated, Registrant shall
calculate its fee based upon the latest value provided by the fund sponsor.
Use of Mutual Funds and Exchange Traded Funds. Registrant utilizes mutual funds
and exchange traded funds for its client portfolios. In addition to Registrant’s investment
advisory fee described below, and transaction and/or custodial fees discussed below,
clients will also incur, relative to all mutual fund and exchange traded fund purchases,
charges imposed at the fund level (e.g., management fees and other fund expenses). The
mutual funds and exchange traded funds utilized by the Registrant are generally available
directly to the public. Thus, a client can generally obtain the funds recommended and/or
utilized by Registrant independent of engaging Registrant as an investment advisor.
However, if a prospective client does so, then they will not receive Registrant's initial and
ongoing investment advisory services.
Custodian Charges-Additional Fees. As discussed at Item 12 below, when requested to
recommend a broker-dealer/custodian for client accounts, Registrant generally
recommends that Schwab or Fidelity serve as the broker-dealer/custodian for client
investment management assets. Broker-dealers such as Schwab and Fidelity charge
brokerage commissions, transaction, and/or other type fees for effecting certain types of
securities transactions
(i.e., including transaction fees for certain mutual funds, and mark-
ups and mark-downs charged for fixed income transactions, etc.). The types of securities
for which transaction fees, commissions, and/or other type fees (as well as the amount of
those fees) shall differ depending upon the broker-dealer/custodian. While certain
custodians, including Schwab and Fidelity, generally (with the potential exception for
large orders) do not currently charge fees on individual equity transactions (including
ETFs), others do. Please Note: there can be no assurance that Schwab and/or Fidelity will
not change their transaction fee pricing in the future. Please Also Note: Fidelity and
Schwab may also assess fees to clients who elect to receive trade confirmations and
account statements by regular mail rather than electronically. Tradeaways: When
beneficial to the client, individual fixed‐income and/or equity transactions may be
effected through broker‐dealers with whom Registrant and/or the client have entered into
arrangements for prime brokerage clearing services, including effecting certain client
transactions through other SEC registered and FINRA member broker‐dealers (in which
event, the client generally will incur both the transaction fee charged by the executing
broker‐dealer and a “trade-away” fee charged by Schwab and/or Fidelity). The above
fees/charges are in addition to Registrant’s investment advisory fee at Item 5 below.
Registrant does not receive any portion of these fees/charges. ANY QUESTIONS:
Registrant’s Chief Compliance Officer, Richard E. Krichbaum, remains available
to address any questions that a client or prospective client may have regarding the
above.
Cash Positions. Registrant continues to treat cash as an asset class. As such, unless
determined to the contrary by Registrant, all cash positions (money markets, etc.) shall
continue to be included as part of assets under management for purposes of calculating
Registrant’s advisory fee. At any specific point in time, depending upon perceived or
anticipated market conditions/events (there being no guarantee that such anticipated
market conditions/events will occur), Registrant may maintain cash positions for
defensive purposes. In addition, while assets are maintained in cash, such amounts could
miss market advances. Depending upon current yields, at any point in time, Registrant’s
advisory fee could exceed the interest paid by the client’s money market fund. ANY
QUESTIONS: The Registrant’s Chief Compliance Officer, Richard E. Krichbaum,
remains available to address any questions that a client or prospective may have
regarding the above fee billing practice.
Cash Sweep Accounts. Certain account custodians can require that cash proceeds from
account transactions or new deposits, be swept to and/or initially maintained in a specific
custodian designated sweep account. The yield on the sweep account will generally be
lower than those available for other money market accounts. When this occurs, to help
mitigate the corresponding yield dispersion, Registrant shall (usually within 30 days
thereafter) generally (with exceptions) purchase a higher yielding money market fund (or
other type security) available on the custodian’s platform, unless Registrant reasonably
anticipates that it will utilize the cash proceeds during the subsequent 30-day period to
purchase additional investments for the client’s account. Exceptions and/or modifications
can and will occur with respect to all or a portion of the cash balances for various reasons,
including, but not limited to the amount of dispersion between the sweep account and a
money market fund, the size of the cash balance, an indication from the client of an
imminent need for such cash, or the client has a demonstrated history of writing checks
from the account. Please Note: The above does not apply to the cash component
maintained within a Registrant actively managed investment strategy (the cash balances
for which shall generally remain in the custodian designated cash sweep account), an
indication from the client of a need for access to such cash, assets allocated to an
unaffiliated investment manager, and cash balances maintained for fee billing purposes.
Please Also Note: The client shall remain exclusively responsible for yield
dispersion/cash balance decisions and corresponding transactions for cash balances
maintained in any Registrant unmanaged accounts. ANY QUESTIONS: Registrant’s
Chief Compliance Officer, Richard E. Krichbaum, remains available to address any
questions that a client or prospective client may have regarding the above.
Other Assets. A client may:
• hold securities that were purchased at the request of the client or acquired prior to
the client’s engagement of the Registrant. Generally, with potential exceptions,
the Registrant does not/would not recommend nor follow such securities, and
absent mitigating tax consequences or client direction to the contrary, would
prefer to liquidate such securities. Please Note: If/when liquidated, it should not
be assumed that the replacement securities purchased by the Registrant will
outperform the liquidated positions. To the contrary, different types of
investments involve varying degrees of risk, and there can be no assurance that
future performance of any specific investment or investment strategy (including
the investments and/or investment strategies recommended or undertaken by the
Registrant) will be profitable or equal any specific performance level(s). In
addition, there may be other securities and/or accounts owned by the client for
which the Registrant does not maintain custodian access and/or trading authority;
and,
• hold other securities and/or own accounts for which the Registrant does not
maintain custodian access and/or trading authority.
Corresponding Services/Fees. When agreed to by the Registrant, the Registrant
shall: (1) remain available to discuss these securities/accounts on an ongoing basis at
the request of the client; (2) monitor these securities/accounts on a regular basis,
including, where applicable, rebalancing with client consent; (3) shall generally
consider these securities as part of the client’s overall asset allocation; (4) report on
such securities/accounts as part of regular reports that may be provided by the
Registrant; and, (5) include the market value of all such securities for purposes of
calculating advisory fee.
ANY QUESTIONS: The Registrant’s Chief Compliance Officer, Richard E. Krichbaum,
remains available to address any questions regarding the above.
Portfolio Activity. Registrant has a fiduciary duty to provide services consistent with the
client’s best interest. Registrant will review client portfolios on an ongoing basis to
determine if any changes are necessary based upon various factors, including, but not
limited to, investment performance, market conditions, fund manager tenure, style drift,
account additions/withdrawals, and/or a change in the client’s investment objective.
Based upon these factors, there may be extended periods of time when Registrant
determines that changes to a client’s portfolio are unnecessary. Clients remain subject to
the fees described in Item 5 below during periods of portfolio inactivity. Of course, as
indicated below, there can be no assurance that investment decisions made by the
Registrant will be profitable or equal any specific performance level(s).
Please Note: Non-Discretionary Service Limitations. Clients that determine to engage
the Registrant on a non-discretionary investment advisory basis must be willing to
accept that the Registrant cannot effect any account transactions without obtaining prior
consent to any such transaction(s) from the client. Thus, in the event Registrant would
like to make a transaction for a client’s account (including in the event of an individual
holding or general market correction), and client is unavailable, the Registrant will be
unable to effect any account transactions (as it would for its discretionary clients) without
first obtaining the client’s consent.
Cybersecurity Risk. The information technology systems and networks that Registrant
and its third-party service providers use to provide services to Registrant’s clients employ
various controls, which are designed to prevent cybersecurity incidents stemming from
intentional or unintentional actions that could cause significant interruptions in
Registrant’s operations and result in the unauthorized acquisition or use of clients’
confidential or non-public personal information. Clients and Registrant are nonetheless
subject to the risk of cybersecurity incidents that could ultimately cause them to incur
losses, including for example: financial losses, cost and reputational damage to respond
to regulatory obligations, other costs associated with corrective measures, and loss from
damage or interruption to systems. Although Registrant has established processes to
reduce the risk of cybersecurity incidents, there is no guarantee that these efforts will
always be successful, especially considering that Registrant does not directly control the
cybersecurity measures and policies employed by third-party service providers. Clients
could incur similar adverse consequences resulting from cybersecurity incidents that
more directly affect issuers of securities in which those clients invest, broker-dealers,
qualified custodians, governmental and other regulatory authorities, exchange and other
financial market operators, or other financial institutions.
Investment Risk. Different types of investments involve varying degrees of risk, and it
should not be assumed that future performance of any specific investment or investment
strategy (including the investments and/or investment strategies recommended or
undertaken by Registrant) will be profitable or equal any specific performance level(s).
Client Obligations. In performing its services, Registrant shall not be required to verify
any information received from the client or from the client’s other professionals and is
expressly authorized to rely thereon. Moreover, each client is advised that it remains their
responsibility to promptly notify the Registrant if there is ever any change in their
financial situation or investment objectives for the purpose of reviewing, evaluating or
revising Registrant’s previous recommendations and/or services.
Disclosure Brochure. A copy of the Registrant’s written Privacy Notice, Disclosure
Brochure as set forth on Part 2 of Form ADV and Form CRS (Client Relationship
Summary) shall be provided to each client prior to, or contemporaneously with, the
execution of the Investment Advisory Agreement or Financial Planning Agreement. Any
client who has not received a copy of Registrant’s written Brochure at least 48 hours prior
to executing the Investment Advisory Agreement and/or Financial Planning and
Consulting Agreement shall have five business days subsequent to executing the
agreement to terminate the Registrant’s services without penalty.
C. The Registrant shall provide investment advisory services specific to the needs of each
client. Prior to providing investment advisory services, an investment adviser
representative will ascertain each client’s investment objective(s). Thereafter, the
Registrant shall allocate and/or recommend that the client allocate investment assets
consistent with the designated investment objective(s). The client may, at any time,
impose reasonable restrictions, in writing, on the Registrant’s services.
D. Registrant does not sponsor a wrap fee program. Registrant participates in unaffiliated
programs sponsored by Schwab, Fidelity and Envestnet, which may include wrap
program pricing. Through these programs, Registrant will engage independent portfolio
managers including the following managers: Goldman Sachs, GW&K, Polen Capital,
Lazard, Nuance, Blackrock, Kayne, Anderson Rudnick (KAR) Dana, Jensen, Clark
Capital, Pimco, Miller Tabak and Eaton Vance in which the sponsor arranges for the
investor to receive investment advisory services, the execution of securities brokerage
transactions, custody and reporting services for a single specified fee. In each instance,
the custodian/broker-dealer is the wrap program sponsor. Registrant will generally not
be able to negotiate commissions, transaction costs, and/or seek better execution. As a
result, investors through the wrap program may pay higher commissions, other
transaction costs, greater spreads, or receive less favorable net prices on transactions for
the account than would otherwise be the case through alternative clearing arrangements
recommended by Registrant. Higher transaction costs adversely impact account
performance. In addition, participation in a wrap program may cost the participant more
or less than purchasing such services separately.
Asset Based Pricing Limitations. Relative to Independent Manager engagements,
Registrant, depending upon anticipated trading activity of the recommended Independent
Manager, may recommend that its clients consider entering into an asset-based pricing
agreement with the account custodian. Under an asset-based pricing arrangement, the
amount that a client will pay the custodian for account commission/transaction fees is
based upon a percentage (%) of the market value of your account, generally expressed in
basis points. One basis point is equal to one one-hundredth of one percent (1/100th of
1%, or 0.01% (0.0001). This differs from transaction-based pricing, which assesses a
separate commission/transaction fee against the account for each account transaction.
Account investment decisions are driven by security selection and anticipated market
conditions and not the amount of transaction fees payable by you to the account custodian.
Under either the asset-based or transaction-based pricing scenario, the fees charged by
the respective broker-dealer/custodian are separate from, and in addition to, the advisory
fee payable by the client to Registrant per Item 5 below. Registrant does not receive any
portion of the asset based transaction fees payable by you to the account custodian. You
are under no obligation to enter into an asset-based arrangement, and, if you do, you can
request at any time to switch from asset based pricing to transactions based pricing,
However, there can be no assurance that the volume of transactions will be consistent
from year-to-year given changes in market events and security selection. Thus, given the
variances in trading volume, any decision by you to switch to transaction-based pricing
could prove to be economically disadvantageous. ANY QUESTIONS Registrant’s
Chief Compliance Officer, Richard E. Krichbaum, remains available to address any
questions that a client or prospective client may have regarding the above.
E. As of December 31, 2023, the Registrant had total assets under management of
$361,075,603. The total was made up of $51,381,298 in assets under management on a
discretionary basis and $309,694,305 in assets under management on a non- discretionary
basis.