A. Firm Information
Advisors Financial, Inc. (“AFI” or the “Advisor”) is a registered investment advisor with the U.S.
Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”). The Advisor is organized as a Corporation under the
laws of the Commonwealth of Virginia. AFI is the successor corporation of Advisors Financial, Inc.
that was founded in 1985 and sold all its assets to AFI as of June 27, 2007. AFI’s registration became
effective on August 3, 2007. The Advisor is owned by Joseph M. Van Name (President, Chief
Executive Officer, and Chief Compliance Officer.)
B. Advisory Services Offered
AFI provides customized investment management services and financial planning to individuals, high
net worth individuals, trusts, estates, foundations, endowments, charitable organizations, and other
legal entities (each referred to as a “Client.”) AFI generally invests Client assets in domestic and
international stocks, bonds, mutual funds, and exchange-traded funds (“ETFs”).
The Advisor serves as a fiduciary to Clients, as defined under the applicable laws and regulations.
As a fiduciary, the Advisor upholds a duty of loyalty, fairness, and good faith towards each Client and
seeks to mitigate potential conflicts of interest. AFI’s fiduciary commitment is further described in the
Advisor’s Code of Ethics. For more information regarding our Code of Ethics, please see Item 11 –
Code of Ethics, Participation or Interest in Client Transactions and Personal Trading.
The two major areas of AFI’s advisory business are listed below:
1. Financial Planning Services
AFI believes that coordinated financial planning services are a valuable component of a Client’s
financial life. AFI will typically provide a variety of financial planning services to individuals and
families pursuant to a written financial planning agreement. Services are offered in several areas of
a Client’s financial situation, depending on their goals, objectives, needs, and individual
circumstances.
Generally, such financial planning services will involve preparing a financial plan based on the
Client’s financial goals and objectives. This planning or consulting may encompass one or more
areas of need, including but not limited to investment planning, retirement planning, personal
savings, education savings, and other areas of a Client’s financial situation.
Financial planning recommendations pose a conflict between the interests of the Advisor and the
interests of the Client. For example, the Advisor has an incentive to recommend that Clients engage
the Advisor for investment management services or to increase the level of investment assets with
the Advisor, as it would increase the amount of advisory fees paid to the Advisor. Clients are not
obligated to implement any recommendations made by the Advisor or maintain an ongoing
relationship with the Advisor. If the Client elects to act on any of the recommendations made by the
Advisor, the Client is under no obligation to implement the transaction through the Advisor.
Continuing Financial Planning Services. In addition to investment management, AFI also provides
services to Clients in areas of cash flow, tax impact, insurance needs, estate planning scenarios,
and other investment-related areas. These services are offered in conjunction with the Client’s
ongoing continuing advisory relationship.
General Financial Planning Services. General Financial Planning Services are similar to
Continuing Financial Planning Services but are provided on an as needed basis as opposed to an
ongoing basis. The same subject areas are reviewed and evaluated, but only at the request of the
Client.
Coordinated Financial Planning Services. Coordinated Financial Planning Services
are similar to
Continuing Financial Planning Services but are generally provided at the beginning of a relationship
for a limited time period.
2. Portfolio Management Services
AFI Managed Accounts. AFI Managed Accounts are a discretionary asset allocation system
utilizing AFI’s investment management services. AFI’s Investment Committee research determines
the asset allocation and investment products used in Managed Accounts. The accounts may be
composed of mutual funds, ETFs, stocks, and individual bonds depending on the specific needs of
individual Clients. The benefits of opening these types of accounts include:
● Individualized management of your account(s)
● Annual reviews of your account(s)
● Performance reporting
AFI Investment Supervisory Services (AFI ISS). Managed Accounts utilizing AFI Investment
Supervisory Services (AFI ISS) refer to the asset allocation system on the AssetMark, Inc.
(“AssetMark”) platform offering multiple institutional level strategies. AFI receives a portion of the
total fee paid by the Client on a quarterly basis. Further information is provided in the tri-party contract
(between AFI, AssetMark, and the Client) that is provided to the Client.
The minimum investment required in the AssetMark platform depends upon the investment solution
chosen for a Client’s account[s] and is generally $25,000-$50,000 for mutual fund and variable
annuity accounts, $100,000 for ETF accounts, $250,000 for distribution strategies, and from $50,000
to $500,000 for privately managed and Unified Managed Accounts (“UMA”). Accounts below the
stated minimums may be accepted on an individual basis at the discretion of the Platform Sponsor.
Retirement Accounts – When the Advisor provides investment advice to Clients regarding ERISA
retirement accounts or individual retirement accounts (“IRAs”), the Advisor is a fiduciary within the
meaning of Title I of the Employee Retirement Income Security Act (“ERISA”) and/or the Internal
Revenue Code (“IRC”), as applicable, which are laws governing retirement accounts. When
deemed to be in the Client’s best interest, the Advisor will provide investment advice to a Client
regarding a distribution from an ERISA retirement account or to roll over the assets to an IRA or
recommend a similar transaction including rollovers from one ERISA sponsored Plan to another,
one IRA to another IRA, or from one type of account to another account (e.g., commission-based
account to fee-based account). Such a recommendation creates a conflict of interest if the Advisor
earns a new (or increases its current) advisory fee as a result of the transaction. No client is under
any obligation to roll over a retirement account to an account managed by the Advisor.
At no time will AFI accept or maintain custody of a Client’s funds or securities, except for the limited
authority as outlined in Item 15 – Custody. All Client assets will be managed within their designated
account[s] at the Custodian, pursuant to the Client wealth management agreement. Please see
Item 12 – Brokerage Practices.
C. Client Account Management
AFI works with each Client to establish an appropriate investment profile. The specific investment
profile is tailored to each Client based on their situation and the information provided by the Client.
Clients may impose reasonable restrictions on AFI’s management of their accounts.
D. Wrap Fee Programs
AFI does not manage a wrap fee program but may recommend that the Clients establish accounts
through a wrap fee structure at AssetMark.
E. Assets Under Management
As of March 1, 2024, AFI manages $265,285,173 in discretionary assets. Clients may request
more current information at any time by contacting the Advisor.