A. SignatureFD, LLC, (the “Registrant”) is a limited liability company formed on June 18,
1997 in the State of Georgia. The Registrant became registered as an Investment Adviser
Firm in July 2001. The Registrant’s Board of Managers oversees and directs operations of
the firm as well as the Senior Leadership Team which is led by Heather Robertson Fortner,
the firm’s Chief Executive Officer.
B. As discussed below, the Registrant offers to its clients (individuals, business entities, 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
Wealth Management Services
The client can determine to engage the Registrant to provide discretionary wealth
management services (financial planning-to the extent requested by the client, and
investment management) on a fee basis. The Registrant remains available to address
planning issues with the wealth management client on an ongoing basis. The Registrant’s
fee will remain the same regardless of whether or not the client determines to address
planning issues with the Registrant.
Financial Planning and Consulting Services (Stand-Alone)
To the extent requested by a client, the Registrant may determine to 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, but generally range from
$3,000 to $15,000 on a fixed fee basis, and from $200 to $500 on an hourly rate basis,
depending upon the level and scope of the service(s) required and the professional(s)
rendering the service(s).
Prior to engaging the Registrant to provide planning or consulting services, clients are
generally required to enter into a Financial Planning and Consulting 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 from the client prior to Registrant commencing services.
If requested by the client, Registrant may recommend the services of other professionals
for implementation purposes, including the Registrant’s representatives and/or Registrant’s
affiliated entities in their separate licensed capacities. (See disclosure in Item 10). 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 the Registrant. 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 recommended professional(s) (i.e. attorney, accountant, insurance
agent, etc.), and not Registrant, shall be responsible for the quality and competency of the
services provided. It remains the client’s responsibility to promptly notify the Registrant if
there is ever any change in their financial situation or investment objectives so that the
Registrant can review, and if necessary, revise its previous recommendations and/or
services.
MISCELLANEOUS
Investment Management Services (Stand-Alone). In addition to its comprehensive
wealth management services, the Registrant, in its exclusive discretion, may determine to
provide investment management services on a stand-alone basis. Although there is no
difference in the advisory fee schedule between an investment management only
engagement and a wealth management engagement (i.e., an engagement inclusive of
ongoing financial planning and related consulting services), a client must generally place
a minimum of $2 million of assets under Registrant’s management for a wealth
management engagement. Should an investment management only client desire financial
planning and related consulting services, the Registrant generally remains available to
provide such services on a separate stand-alone fee basis.
Non-Investment Consulting/Implementation Services. To the extent requested by the
client, the Registrant may provide consulting services regarding non-investment related
matters, such as estate planning, tax planning, insurance, etc. To the extent requested by a
client, the Registrant may recommend the services of other professionals for certain non-
investment implementation purposes (i.e. attorneys, accountants, insurance, etc.),
including the Registrant’s representatives and/or Registrant’s affiliated entities as
discussed below. 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 the
Registrant. 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 recommended
professional(s) (i.e. attorney, accountant, insurance agent, etc.), and not Registrant, shall
be responsible for the quality and competency of the services provided. It remains the
client’s responsibility to promptly notify the Registrant if there is ever any change in their
financial situation or investment objectives so that the Registrant can review, and if
necessary revise, its previous recommendations and/or services.
Held Away Account Management. The Registrant also uses a third-party platform to
facilitate the discretionary management of held away accounts such as employer-sponsored
retirement plan participant accounts. We are not affiliated with the platform in any way
and receive no compensation from them for using their platform. A link will be provided
to the client or client can schedule meeting with Registrant allowing client to connect one
or more accounts to the platform. Once a client’s account is connected to the platform, the
Registrant will review the current account allocations. When deemed necessary, the
Registrant will rebalance the account considering client investment goals and risk
tolerance, and any change in allocations will consider current economic and market trends.
The goal is to improve account performance over time and manage internal fees that harm
account performance. The Registrant will review client accounts at least quarterly and
allocation changes will be made as deemed necessary. The Registrant has agreed to pay the
software provider an annualized asset-based fee that begins at 0.25% for assets managed
using the platform. The Registrant is currently responsible for this expense.
Data Aggregation Services using eMoney Advisor, Akoya, and ByAll Accounts.
Registrant may use or provide its clients with access to an online platform hosted by
“eMoney Advisor”, Akoya, or ByAll Accounts, Inc. (the “aggregators”). Among other
things, the aggregators allow a client to view their complete asset allocation, including
those assets that Registrant does not manage (the “Excluded Assets”). Registrant does not
provide investment management, monitoring, or implementation services for the Excluded
Assets. Therefore, Registrant will not be responsible for the investment performance of the
Excluded Assets. Rather, the client will be responsible for monitoring and managing the
Excluded Assets. The client, however, may choose to engage Registrant to manage some
or all of the Excluded Assets. The aggregators also provide access to other types of
information, including financial planning concepts, which are not reviewed by, or approved
of by Registrant, and clients are solely responsible for any financial planning decision made
based on their use of the aggregators without Registrant’s assistance or oversight.
Insurance Products and Services. Registrant is a licensed accident, sickness, casualty,
life, and property insurance agency and provides insurance-related services to its clients.
In addition, certain of Registrant’s members and representatives, in their individual
capacities, are licensed insurance agents. No investment advisory client is required to
engage Registrant, its Principals, and/or representatives for insurance-related services.
Registrant or it’s representatives maintain various relationships with brokerage general
agencies and these relationships create conflicts of interests. In addition, certain products
recommended through Axcelus Financial may result in the Registrant receiving fees that
differ from those included in the fee schedules above. See Item 10 below for more
information about these services and the conflicts of interest these arrangements create.
Private Investment Funds.
SignatureFD serves as the investment adviser or subadviser to one or more private
investment funds (each, an “affiliated private fund” and collectively, the “affiliated private
funds”.) Information about each affiliated private fund is below and is qualified. Complete
information about each affiliated private fund is available in its offering documents.
SignatureFD Private Equity Fund, L.P.
SignatureFD, LLC is the 100% owner of SignatureFD Fund Management, LLC, which is
the 100% owner of SignatureFD Private Equity Fund GP, LLC (“PEF”). PEF is the
General Partner of SignatureFD Private Equity Fund, LP (the “Private Equity Fund”), a
private investment fund whose objective is to invest in the private equity asset class by
allocating Private Equity Fund assets among multiple private equity strategies. The
Registrant may recommend, on a non-discretionary basis, that qualified clients allocate a
portion of their investment assets to the Private Equity Fund. To the extent that Registrant’s
individual advisory clients qualify, and determine that an investment is appropriate given
their investment objective(s) and financial situation, they may participate as limited
partners of the Private Equity Fund. The terms and conditions for participation in the
Private Equity Fund, including management and/or incentive fees, conflicts of interest, risk
factors, and liquidity constraints, are set forth in the Private Equity Fund offering
documents, which each prospective investor client shall receive and shall be required to
complete. The client shall be required to submit the corresponding Subscription Agreement
to the General Partner in order to demonstrate qualification for investment in the Private
Equity Fund.
SignatureFD Private Asset Fund, L.P.
SignatureFD, LLC is the 100% owner of SignatureFD Fund Management, LLC, which
is
the 100% owner of SignatureFD Private Asset GP, LLC (“Private”). Private is the General
Partner of SignatureFD Private Asset Fund, LP (the “Private Fund”), a private investment
fund whose objective is to allow investors to take advantage of long-term strategic
investment opportunities in the private asset space in a way that maintains flexibility and
ample diversification by allocating Private Fund assets among multiple investment
managers, and other private equity, debt, and real estate investments. The Registrant may
recommend, on a non-discretionary basis, that qualified clients allocate a portion of their
investment assets to the Private Fund. To the extent that Registrant’s individual advisory
clients qualify, and determine that an investment is appropriate given their investment
objective(s) and financial situation, they may participate as limited partners of the Private
Fund. The terms and conditions for participation in the Private Fund, including
management and/or incentive fees, conflicts of interest, risk factors, and liquidity
constraints, are set forth in the Private Fund offering documents, which each prospective
investor client shall receive and shall be required to complete. The client shall be required
to submit the corresponding Subscription Agreement to the General Partner in order to
demonstrate qualification for investment in the Private Fund.
Fairway Real Asset Fund I, L.P.
SignatureFD, LLC is the 100% owner of SignatureFD Fund Management, LLC, which is
the 100% owner of Fairway RA Fund Manager, LLC (“Fairway”). Fairway is the General
Partner of Fairway Real Asset Fund I, LP (the “Fairway Fund”), which is a private
investment fund that primarily invests in other private investment funds that invest primarily
in timber and oil and gas limited partnerships. The Registrant may recommend, on a non-
discretionary basis, that qualified clients allocate a portion of their investment assets to the
Fairway Fund. To the extent that Registrant’s individual advisory clients qualify, and
determine that an investment is appropriate given their investment objective(s) and financial
situation, they may participate as limited partners in the Fairway Fund. The terms and
conditions for participation in the Fairway Fund, including management and incentive fees,
conflicts of interest, and risk factors, are set forth in the Fairway Fund offering documents
which each prospective investor client shall receive. The client shall be required to submit
the corresponding Subscription Agreement to the General Partner in order to demonstrate
qualification for investment in the Fairway Fund.
Series Limited Partnerships Sub-Advised by SignatureFD, LLC the “Private Credit
Strategy”
Registrant has entered into an agreement to serve as the sub-adviser, with discretion over
investment selection, of four series of the Curio Select, L.P.--Sig Opportunistic Private Debt
Series – Taxable, Sig Opportunistic Private Debt Series – Non-Taxable, Sig Core Private
Debt Series - Taxable and Sig Core Private Debt Series – Non-Taxable. These series are
collectively referred to as the “Private Credit Strategy”. The Registrant may recommend,
on a non-discretionary basis, that qualified clients invest in one or more of the series. To the
extent that Registrant’s individual advisory clients qualify, and determine that an investment
is appropriate given their investment objective(s) and financial situation, they may
participate as limited partners in one or more of the series. The terms and conditions for
participation in the series, including management and incentive fees, conflicts of interest,
and risk factors, are set forth in the offering documents which each prospective investor
client will receive. The client shall be required to submit the corresponding Subscription
Agreement to the General Partner, FEG Curio Investment Partners, LLC, in order to
demonstrate qualification for investment in one or more of the series.
Risks. 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 maintain, 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 he/she is qualified
for investment in the fund, and acknowledges and accepts the various risk factors that are
associated with such an investment.
Conflict Of Interest. Because Registrant and/or its affiliates can earn compensation from
the Fund (i.e., management fees, performance fees, incentive compensation, etc.) that could
generally exceed the fee that Registrant would earn under its standard asset-based fee
schedule referenced in Item 5 below, the recommendation that a client become a Fund
investor presents a conflict of interest. No client is under any obligation to become a Fund
investor. Given the conflict of interest, Registrant advises that clients consider seeking
advice from independent professionals (i.e., attorney, accountant, adviser, etc.) of their
choosing prior to becoming a Fund investor. No client is under any obligation to become a
Fund investor.
Valuation. In the event that the Registrant references private investment funds owned by
the client on any supplemental account reports prepared by the Registrant, the value(s) for
all such private investment funds shall reflect either the initial purchase price and/or the
most recent valuation or estimate provided by the fund sponsor. If the valuation reflects the
initial purchase price (and/or a value or estimate as of a previous date), the current value(s)
(to the extent ascertainable) could be significantly more or less than the original purchase
price.
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) 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. The investment management fees
charged by the designated Independent Manager(s), together with the fees charged by the
corresponding designated broker-dealer/custodian of the client’s assets, are in addition to
Registrant’s ongoing investment advisory fee. Fees charged by Registrant pursuant to the
use of Independent Manager(s) may be either in advance or arrears depending upon the
specific Independent Manager relationship, and will be disclosed to the client at the point
of entering into the advisory relationship.
Retirement Rollovers - 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 creates a
conflict of interest if Registrant will earn new (or increase its current) compensation as a
result of the rollover. Whether Registrant provides a recommendation as to whether a client
should engage in a rollover or not, 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 rollover retirement plan assets to an account managed by Registrant.
Use of Mutual Funds, ETFs, and Pooled Investment Vehicles: Registrant recommends
mutual funds, exchange traded funds, and other pooled investment vehicles. 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 pooled investment vehicles, charges
imposed at the fund level (e.g. management fees and other fund expenses).
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. It remains the client’s responsibility to promptly
notify the Registrant if there is ever any change in their financial situation or investment
objectives so that the Registrant can review, and if necessary revise, its previous
recommendations and/or services.
C. The Registrant shall provide investment advisory services specific to the needs of each
client. Prior to providing investment advisory services, generally, 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. The Registrant does not sponsor a wrap fee program.
E. As of December 31, 2023, the Registrant had $6,327,178,916 in assets under management
on a discretionary basis and $675,452,178 in assets under management on a non-
discretionary basis. The Registrant has separately managed account relationships with
certain clients where the client has invested in pooled investment vehicles managed and/or
subadvised by the Registrant. The firm has reported these assets in Form ADV, Part 1A
with respect to both relationships. The numbers above are reported by excluding the assets
that are invested in a client’s separately managed account in an affiliated private investment
fund.