FIRM OVERVIEW
Fort Washington Investment Advisors, Inc. (“Fort Washington,” “us,” “our,” or “we”) is a wholly
owned subsidiary of Western & Southern Investment Holdings, LLC and the primary investment
arm of Western & Southern Financial Group, Inc. and its insurance affiliates. Fort Washington is
comprised of three business units arranged by investment and/or client type: Institutional, Private
Client Group, and Private Equity. We are registered with the SEC pursuant to Section 203 of the
Investment Advisers Act of 1940, as amended (the “Act”). We are registered as both a cross-
border investment advisory company (a “CM IAC”) and a discretionary investment management
company (a “CB DIMC”) with the Financial Services Commission under the Financial Investment
Services and Capital Markets Act of Korea. We were incorporated in 1990 under the laws of the
State of Ohio. Our principal place of business is located in Cincinnati, Ohio.
Listed below are our principal shareholders (i.e. those individuals and/or entities controlling
25% or more of Fort Washington):
Western & Southern Mutual Holding Company
Western & Southern Financial Group
The Western and Southern Life Insurance Company
Western & Southern Investment Holdings, LLC
INSTITUTIONAL ADVISORY SERVICES
Fort Washington offers a variety of strategies to the institutional market. The firm develops
new business by cultivating relationships with consulting firms and prospective clients directly.
Fort Washington is typically retained to provide one or more specific strategies within a stable
of investments for institutional clients. Prospective clients are able contact the firm directly for
these services or a consultant may invite Fort Washington to participate in a search. In some
cases, we respond to a formal Request for Proposal or Request for Information to participate in a
search. Fort Washington also supplies information about the firm and its primary strategies to
third party databases which serve as a repository for investment manager information. Our
primary investment strategies offered to clients are:
Public Equity: Focused Equity; Large Cap Focused Equity; Small Company Equity;
Dividend Equity
Fixed Income: High Yield Fixed Income; Core Plus Fixed Income; Intermediate Fixed
Income; Core Fixed Income; Structured Opportunities; Securitized Total Return;
Emerging Markets Debt; Active Corporate; Short Duration; Ultra Short Duration;
Municipal Fixed Income; Cash Management; Strategic Income; Bank Loans
Multi-Strategy for Institutions (Comprised of various asset classes)
Private Equity: Diversified Funds of Funds; Secondary Funds
Private Client Group: Tailored portfolio management to meet the unique investment
objectives of small institutions.
Other investment strategies offered to clients are:
Fixed Income: Cash Management;
Private Equity: Regional Programs
Many of the public equity, fixed income, and alternative asset strategies are available as a
separate account and/or through commingled and affiliated mutual funds and exchange traded
funds (“ETF’s”). Typically, Fort Washington affiliates act as general partner or managing member
of these funds, depending on whether they are organized as limited partnerships or limited liability
companies, and as sub-advisor for affiliated mutual funds and ETFs. Certain Fort Washington
employees have a direct or indirect investment interest in Fort Washington commingled and
affiliated Funds.
Fort Washington provides collateral management services to the Fort Washington CLO 2019-
1 (CLO) and Fort Washington CLO 2021-2 (“CLO”). Fort Washington will perform certain
investment management, advisory, and administrative functions with respect to the Assets within
the CLO in accordance with the terms and conditions of the applicable collateral management
agreement and other related documents.
Fort Washington serves as investment manager to a Collective Investment Trust (“CIT”),
sponsored by a trust company. We serve as the investment manager, pursuant to an investment
management agreement, and receive a fee for managing the investment portfolio. The CIT has
not been registered under federal or state securities laws, and is subject to an exemption provided
by Rule 3 (c) (11) of the Investment Company Act of 1940. The CIT is only available for investment
by qualified retirement plans and is not for sale to the general public.
A complete list of composites and corresponding fee schedules are available from Fort
Washington upon request. Please contact Joe Don Cole Vice President, Institutional Relationship
Management, at 513.361.7672 or
joedon.cole@fortwashington.com to obtain additional
information regarding Fort Washington’s institutional composites.
PRIVATE CLIENT GROUP ADVISORY SERVICES
Our Private Client Group provides wealth management, financial planning and investment
advisory services, targeting high net worth individuals, family offices, and smaller institutional
clients.
Our Private Client Group's services include allocation of assets among different investment
categories, investment strategy development, portfolio risk management, financial planning, as
well as security and/or manager selection. Once engaged, our Private Client Group reviews the
client's financial position and whether or not the client’s current asset allocation plan and
investment portfolio is sufficient to accomplish the client’s needs. We will evaluate whether the
client's current allocation and investment portfolio are likely to meet the client's investment
objectives, risk tolerances, and other client-specified criteria.
Our Private Client Group bases its investment advice on many factors, including the client's
investment objectives, risk tolerances, asset class preferences, time horizons, liquidity needs,
anticipated returns, and overall financial position. In forming our advice, we consider the current
economic and market views of our investment professionals and analysts, the views of
independent investment firms, and other statistical measures. We generally seek to construct
highly diversified portfolios with low correlation among asset classes, with the goal of generating
maximum investment return or income, consistent with the client's investment objectives and risk
tolerance.
We often are asked to formulate an investment strategy, develop an investment policy
statement, and periodically review the implementation of the strategy. These services include,
but are not limited to:
Detailed comparisons of the client's portfolio against selected benchmarks
Analysis of the estimated annual income and current yield of the client's portfolio
Analysis of the client's realized and unrealized gains and losses
Evaluation of client’s tax position and liabilities
Analysis of financial and estate plans
While executing the client's investment plan, our Private Client Group will have access to our
full array of proprietary investment strategies, as well as access to outside, independent money
managers. In our discretion, among other things, we decide whether or not to employ proprietary
or outside investment products, active or passive strategies, and mutual funds or separate
accounts, including strategies and products offered by our affiliates. We make these decisions
solely on the basis of what is appropriate and in the client's best interest based on the facts as
we know them and on the information provided by the client.
Our Private Client Group relies upon many factors in recommending independent money
managers or mutual funds, including the following: absolute and relative performance, risk, cost
efficiency, consistency of objectives and management, fund size, and tax efficiency. To assist our
Private Client Group in serving our clients, we receive information from independent firms or
independent money managers, including access to a large database of historic investment
returns. The independent firm also provides us with information regarding managers’
performance track records, risk assessment, style fit and deviation, ownership, and firm statistics.
We also use information obtained from rating and tracking organizations, business publications,
fund prospectuses, and other sources to assist our management of clients’ portfolios.
When appropriate based on a client’s request or as it relates to a client’s unique situation, a
Portfolio Manager may recommend to a Private Client Group client the use of structured products
and/or derivatives, offered by Approved Vendors, within portfolios where their use is consistent
with the client’s investment return objective and risk profile of the client’s investment portfolio.
These offerings are distinct and separate from Fort Washington’s strategies, and, as such, could
incur fees separate than the Fort Washington advisory fee. Because of the nature of these
products, there are factors that will influence the price if sold before maturity, including receiving
less than the face amount. Furthermore, there may be little to no secondary market for these
investments. Even if a secondary market develops, it may not provide significant liquidity. Each
client will be provided with a description of the product and the necessary legal documents and
disclosures provided by the Approved Vendor.
When appropriate based on a client’s request or as it relates to a client’s unique situation,
select employees of Fort Washington who are also licensed insurance agents of an affiliated
company, will recommend suitable insurance products including those of affiliates, to Private
Client Group clients. This service is not part of the services performed by Fort Washington.
When appropriate based on a client’s request or as it relates to a client’s unique situation, a
dually employed employee may recommend to a Private Client Group client that an affiliated
insurance company will design a retirement plan to be funded in whole or in part with life insurance
products. In one type of retirement plan that may be recommended, the affiliated insurance
company’s product must be used to fund the plan. For other types of recommended retirement
plans, affiliated or unaffiliated insurance products can be used to fund the plan. Certain retirement
plans can also be funded with an advisory account that will be managed by Fort Washington. The
affiliated insurance company does not receive any compensation
for designing a retirement plan.
The affiliated insurance company offers recordkeeping services to the plans that it designs, but
does not require that these services be used in exchange for the plan design. If the affiliate does
provide recordkeeping services, it receives compensation for those services.
In the case of certain recommended retirement plans that are funded with a Fort Washington-
managed advisory account, mutual funds that are advised by an affiliate of Fort Washington and
in some cases are sub-advised by Fort Washington can be used in such account, where Fort
Washington considers the purchase of shares of such funds to be appropriate and the client
consents. The plan will not pay a sales commission in connection with such purchases and will
not pay a fee to Fort Washington with respect to the plan assets invested in shares of the affiliated
mutual funds for the entire period of the investment.
Fort Washington is not an insurance company. While Fort Washington and its employees do
not receive commissions or other compensation for the sales of any insurance products, this
service to its clients presents a conflict of interest which is discussed in more detail in the
Conflicts
of Interest section under Item 10.
Outside of insurance, when requested by the client, recommendations for professionals in
other industries will be made. Fort Washington does not receive any compensation of any kind
for making these recommendations. Implementation of financial plan recommendations is entirely
at the client's discretion.
Private Client Group clients can meet with their Fort Washington portfolio manager as often
as they agree. We generally provide client reports on a quarterly basis. The client reports present
aggregate information pertaining to individual client portfolio(s). Fort Washington has a complete
list of composites that is available upon request. Please contact Tracey Stofa, Managing Director,
Private Client Group, at 513.361.7694 or
tracey.stofa@fortwashington.com to obtain additional
information.
FINANCIAL PLANNING
Our Private Client Group also provides financial planning services, often as part of the wealth
management services provided to Private Client Group clients. Financial planning is a
comprehensive evaluation of a client’s current and future financial state and needs by modeling
and analyzing alternative future cash flows, asset values, and withdrawal plans. The financial
planning process seeks to consider the entire financial and life situation of the client in order to
devise a plan with the best prospects of enabling the client to achieve his or her financial goals.
In general, the financial plan can address any or all of the following areas:
PERSONAL: We review family records, budgeting, personal liability, estate information,
and financial goals.
TAX & CASH FLOW: We review client income tax returns, spending and planning for past,
current, and future years; then estimate the potential impact of various investments on the
client's current income tax and future tax liability (tax advice is not provided).
INVESTMENTS: We analyze investment alternatives and their effect on the client's future
financial plans.
INSURANCE: We review existing policies, including but not limited to life, disability, long-
term care, and liability.
RETIREMENT: We analyze current strategies and investment plans to help the client
towards achieving his or her retirement goals.
DEATH & DISABILITY: We review the client’s cash needs at death, income needs of
surviving dependents, estate planning, and disability income.
ESTATE: We assist the client in assessing and reviewing long-term strategies, including
as appropriate, living trusts, wills, estate tax, powers of attorney, and asset protection
plans (in conjunction with the client’s attorney).
We gather required information through in-depth personal interviews. Information gathered
includes the client's current financial status, tax status, insurance needs, future goals, investment
return objectives, and risk appetite. We also provide general non-securities advice on topics that
include budgetary planning, estate planning, and business planning. Should the client choose to
implement the recommendations contained in the plan, we suggest the client work closely with
their attorney, accountant, investment advisor, and/or insurance agent.
Our financial plans do not recommend any specific product or service offered by a broker-
dealer or insurance company be used to implement the plan. All product recommendations are
generic in nature. Insurance recommendations (which may or may not include retirement plan
recommendations) are not part of the services performed by Fort Washington.
When the financial planning services are not connected to the wealth management provided
our Private Client Group clients, Fort Washington typically collects its fee upon completion of the
Financial Planning Agreement.
PRIVATE EQUITY ADVISORY SERVICES
Through Fort Washington Capital Partners Group ("FWCPG"), our Private Equity Division, we
provide our clients with opportunities for direct purchases of private equity investments and
manage private equity funds. Through affiliates formed from time to time, we serve as the general
partner of partnerships organized to make primary fund, secondary fund, co-investments, and
direct company investments.
FWCPG has investment discretion over partnerships for which our affiliates serve as the
general partner. FWCPG exercises its discretion in accordance with the strategy and constraints
stated in each partnership’s limited partnership agreement and private placement memorandum.
We have an investment committee that must consent to each partnership investment decision.
An advisory committee comprised of key limited partners is also created for each private equity
partnership to advise on matters concerning conflicts of interest and asset valuation.
Occasionally, we enter into side letter arrangements with one or more limited partners of a
private equity partnership to address additional terms specific only to that limited partner.
SUB-ADVISORY SERVICES
Fort Washington provides discretionary portfolio management services as a sub-adviser to
other advisers, third-party accounts, certain open-end mutual funds registered under the
Investment Company Act of 1940 (collectively, the "Mutual Funds"), Exchange Traded Funds
(“ETFs”), and model portfolios. Our affiliate, Touchstone Advisors, Inc., is the adviser to some of
these Mutual Funds and ETFs, but the advisers to other Mutual Funds are not our affiliates. As
sub-adviser, we are responsible for developing, constructing, and monitoring the portfolios in
compliance with mandates established by the client’s investment policy statement or the mutual
fund’s prospectus and Statement of Additional Information.
ADVISORY AGREEMENTS
In establishing client accounts and on an ongoing basis, we discuss with our clients how to
tailor those services to their particular investment objectives, financial needs, and risk tolerance.
Clients generally have the ability to impose reasonable restrictions on investing in certain types
of securities, or industry sectors. The restrictions generally are set forth in the advisory
agreement, the client’s investment policy statement, or written instructions. The advisory
agreement or investment policy statement also typically describes the process for changing
investment policies or restrictions applicable to the client account.
WRAP FEE PROGRAMS AND SEPARATELY MANAGED ACCOUNTS (“SMA”)
Fort Washington provides advisory services to wrap fee programs as well as advisory services
to individual clients in connection with third-party SMA programs. Fort Washington provides the
same advisory services under both wrap and third-party SMA programs as we provide to our other
separate account clients, except that Fort Washington generally does not communicate directly
with an advisory client without the participation of the wrap or SMA-sponsoring firm. Rather,
clients choose our services with the assistance of the program sponsor. The client's selection
generally is based on the compatibility of our investment services and strategies with the client's
investment objectives and risk tolerance. Wrap and third-party SMA program clients generally
incur higher costs than they would otherwise pay under Fort Washington’s standard fee schedule,
including for reasons related to Fort Washington’s inability to negotiate separate arrangements
for trade execution and other unbundled investment management services.
Fort Washington currently serves as an investment advisor for a separately managed account
program sponsored by Lincoln Investment Planning. The portion of the fee payable to Fort
Washington under the Lincoln Investment Planning CAAMS Select Program accrues at an annual
rate, determined by a percentage of assets under management.
Fort Washington also participates in a wrap fee program sponsored by UBS Financial
Services Inc. (“UBS”). The portion of the fee payable to Fort Washington under the UBS Managed
Accounts Consulting (“MAC”) Account Services Agreement accrues at an annual rate, determined
by a percentage of assets under management.
Fort Washington currently serves as a sub-advisor for a fee-based asset allocation wrap
program sponsored by an affiliated advisor (WS&S Brokerage Services/W&S Wealth Solutions).
The fee payable to Fort Washington under the W&S Wealth Solutions wrap program accrues at
an annual rate.
Fort Washington serves as the investment adviser for non-discretionary wrap model portfolios
(the “UGMA Wrap Fee Program”) through its affiliate and solicitor, Fabric Technologies, Inc. dba
Fabric by Gerber Life (“Fabric”). Fabric operates a website (https://meetfabric.com) and mobile
application that provides access to, among other products and services, child investment
accounts (each, an “Account”) under the Uniform Gifts to Minors Act (“UGMA”) (also known as
the Uniform Transfers to Minors Act) as adopted in each state. For additional information see the
UGMA Wrap Fee Program Brochure.
ASSETS UNDER MANAGEMENT
As of December 31, 2023, Fort Washington was actively managing $79,594,821,759 of
clients' assets on a discretionary basis, plus $250,480,080 of clients' assets on a non-
discretionary basis.