Strategic Wealth Partners, LLC was established in 2008 in Deerfield, IL., by David J. Copeland and
Neal H. Price. SWP, a Focus partner firm, succeeded to the advisory business of Strategic Wealth
Partners, LLC, in 2015. On January 1, 2018, SWP acquired the advisory business of Park Place
Capital Management and established the Firm's office in Milwaukee, WI.
FOCUS FINANCIAL PARTNERS:
Strategic Wealth Partners is part of the Focus Financial Partners, LLC (“Focus LLC”) partnership.
Specifically, SWP is a wholly-owned indirect subsidiary of Focus LLC. Ferdinand FFP Acquisition,
LLC is the sole managing member of Focus LLC. Ultimate governance of Focus LLC is conducted
through the board of directors at Ferdinand FFP Ultimate Holdings, LP. Focus LLC is majority-
owned, indirectly and collectively, by investment vehicles affiliated with Clayton, Dubilier & Rice,
LLC (“CD&R”). Investment vehicles affiliated with Stone Point Capital LLC (“Stone Point”) are
indirect owners of Focus LLC. Because SWP is an indirect, wholly-owned subsidiary of Focus LLC,
CD&R and Stone Point investment vehicles are indirect owners of SWP.
Focus LLC also owns other registered investment advisers, broker-dealers, pension consultants,
insurance firms, business managers and other firms (the “Focus Partners”), most of which
provide wealth management, benefit consulting and investment consulting services to
individuals, families, employers, and institutions. Some Focus Partners also manage or advise
limited partnerships, private funds, or investment companies as disclosed on their respective
Form ADVs.
We offer clients the option of obtaining certain financial solutions from unaffiliated third-party
financial institutions through UPTIQ Treasury & Credit Solutions, LLC (together with UPTIQ, Inc.
and its affiliates, “UPTIQ”) and Flourish Financial, LLC (“Flourish”). Please see Items 5 and 10 for
a fuller discussion of these services and other important information.
We help our clients obtain certain insurance solutions from unaffiliated, third-party insurance
brokers by introducing clients to our affiliate, Focus Risk Solutions, LLC (“FRS”), a wholly owned
subsidiary of our parent company, Focus Financial Partners, LLC. Please see Items 5 and 10 for a
fuller discussion of this service and other important information.
We work with clients with the goal to preserve and grow wealth through insightful planning and
objectively and thoughtfully selected investments. We tailor our strategies to fit the individual
needs of each client's short and long-term goals. SWP aims to help clients with a variety of
investment, goals including securing their retirement, preserving their capital, providing for heirs
or favorite charities, and funding college education for children and/or grandchildren. We
provide financial planning and investment management services to our clients, which include
individuals, high net-worth individuals, families, retirement accounts, ERISA plans, charitable
organizations, corporations, and other businesses.
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Financial Planning and Consulting Services: SWP offers its clients a broad range of financial
planning and consulting services. For clients that meet an annual minimum wealth management
fee, financial planning services are provided as part of the Firm's annual management fee. We
also offer financial planning and consulting services to clients who seek more complex or specific
services on a standalone basis.
In performing financial planning and consulting services, SWP is not required to verify any
information received from the client or their other professionals (e.g., attorney, accountant, etc.)
and is expressly authorized to rely on such information. SWP may recommend the services of
itself and/or other professionals to implement its recommendations. Clients are advised that a
conflict of interest exists if they pay us on a standalone basis for a financial plan, and we, SWP,
recommend our services. The client is under no obligation to act upon any of the
recommendations made by SWP under a financial planning or consulting engagement or to
engage the services of any recommended professional.
Investment Management Services: We provide personalized and holistic wealth and investment
management services to clients on a discretionary and non-discretionary basis. As detailed in
Item 8, we typically allocate clients' investment management assets among professionally
managed investments such as Mutual Funds, Exchange- Traded Funds ("ETFs"), Structured Notes,
Interval Funds, External Managers, Private Collective Investment Vehicles, Treasuries Notes and
other securities we believe are appropriate. Additionally, we may recommend that clients who
are accredited investors or qualified purchasers as defined under Rule 501 of the Securities Act
of 1933, as amended, invest in private placement securities, which may include debt, equity,
and/or pooled investment vehicles when consistent with the client’s investment objectives.
The Firm renders services to certain clients relative to variable life/annuity products that they
may own, their individual employer-sponsored retirement plans, and/or 529 plans or other
products that the client's primary Custodian may not hold. In so doing, SWP either directs or
recommends the allocation of client assets among the various investment options that are
available with the product. Client assets are maintained at the specific insurance company or
Custodian designated by the product.
The Firm tailors its advisory services to the individual needs of clients. SWP consults with clients
initially and on an ongoing basis to determine risk tolerance, time horizon, and other factors that
may impact their investment needs.
SWP ensures that clients' investments are suitable for their
investment needs, goals, objectives, and risk tolerance.
Clients are advised to promptly notify the Firm if there are changes in their financial situation or
investment objectives or if they wish to impose any reasonable restrictions upon the Firm's
management services. Clients may impose reasonable restrictions or mandates on the
management of their account if, in SWP's sole discretion, the conditions will not materially impact
the performance of a portfolio strategy or prove overly burdensome to its management efforts.
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For Participant Directed plans, SWP, in its fiduciary capacity, will provide the client non-
discretionary investment advice about asset classes and investment options for the Plan. SWP
may also provide non-fiduciary services to the plan, including client education, group enrollment,
and participant education. For Pooled Plans, in its fiduciary capacity under Section 3(38) of ERISA,
investment decisions are made by SWP in its discretionary capacity. In addition, SWP may assist
in the development of an investment policy statement.
SWP is a fiduciary under the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974, as amended
(“ERISA”) with respect to investment management services and investment advice provided to
ERISA plans and ERISA plan participants. SWP is also a fiduciary under section 4975 of the Internal
Revenue Code of 1986, as amended (the “IRC”) with respect to investment management services
and investment advice provided to individual retirement accounts (“IRAs”), ERISA plans, and
ERISA plan participants. As such, SWP is subject to specific duties and obligations under ERISA
and the IRC, as applicable, that include, among other things, prohibited transaction rules which
are intended to prohibit fiduciaries from acting on conflicts of interest. When a fiduciary gives
advice, the fiduciary must either avoid certain conflicts of interest or rely upon an applicable
prohibited transaction exemption (a “PTE”).
As a fiduciary, we have duties of care and of loyalty to you and are subject to obligations imposed
on us by the federal and state securities laws. As a result, you have certain rights that you cannot
waive or limit by contract. Nothing in our agreement with you should be interpreted as a
limitation of our obligations under the federal and state securities laws or as a waiver of any
unwaivable rights you possess.
Use of My Personal Bookkeeper: SWP has implemented a line of business called My Personal
Bookkeeper (“MPB”) which provides bill payment, tax organization, insurance claim
management and household budgeting. Although MPB is not part of SWP’s investment advisory
services, SWP may recommend use of MPB for its clients when deemed appropriate. Clients are
advised that a conflict of interest exists when they pay us on a standalone basis for MPB services.
The client is under no obligation to act upon the recommendation to use MPB. The IARs of SWP
do not receive compensation for these recommendations. Additional information is provided in
Item 5, 10 and 15.
Use of External Managers: The Firm recommends that certain clients authorize the active
discretionary management of a portion of their assets by and/or among certain External
Managers, based upon the client’s stated investment objectives. In some instances, the terms
and conditions under which the client engages the External Managers are set forth in a separate
written agreement between the Firm or the client and the designated External Managers. In
other instances, the terms and conditions are set forth in a separate written agreement between
the firm and the External Manager. In both instances, SWP renders services to the client relative
to the discretionary and/or non-discretionary selection or recommendation of External
Managers. The Firm also monitors and reviews the account performance and the client’s
investment objectives.
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In addition to SWP’s disclosure Brochure, the client also receives the disclosure Brochure of the
designated External Managers. Certain External Managers may impose more restrictive account
requirements and varying trading and billing practices than the Firm. In such instances, SWP may
alter its corresponding account requirements and/or billing practices to accommodate those of
the External Managers. It is important for clients to read the disclosure Brochures of External
Managers.
When we allocate client assets to External Managers or Private Investment Vehicles Managers
(“managers”), we, the client-facing adviser, are responsible for assessing the client’s needs,
communicating with the client, allocating (or recommending the allocation of) the client’s assets
and conducting due diligence and monitoring of the client’s investments, while the Managers are
responsible for managing certain of the client’s assets that we allocate to them in a manner
consistent with the manager’s stated investment strategies and in accordance with the guidelines
we provide. In some cases, we recommend the allocation of client assets to a Manager who, like
us, is an indirect, wholly-owned subsidiary of Focus LLC and Focus Inc. Please see Items 5, 10, 11
and 15 of this Brochure for further details.
As of December 31, 2023, SWP has $4,479,388,575 of Assets Under Advisement (“AUA”), of
which $3,437,392,207 are advised on a discretionary basis and $1,041,996,368 are advised on a
non-discretionary basis. In the calculation of AUA, SWP includes Regulatory Assets Under
Management along with client assets that may be managed under an investment consulting
agreement, a non-discretionary agreement managed by an external manager ("External
Managers"), and or participant-directed plans.