How long has Altair been in business?
Altair Advisers was founded in June of 2002. Prior to that, Altair’s principals led the Investment Advisory Services practice of Arthur Andersen’s Chicago office, where most had worked together for many years. Therefore, Altair was a continuation and improvement of a practice that began in 1995.
Are you registered the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC)?
Yes, Altair Advisers is a Registered Investment Adviser under the Investment Advisers Act of 1940.
What is the primary business of your firm?
Our only business is to provide the highest level of Independent Investment Counsel for wealthy individuals, families, and foundations.
How many clients do you currently have?
As of June 2009, we have 206 client relationships.
What are your total assets under advisement?
As of June 2009, we oversee client assets totaling approximately $2.3 billion.
How do you prevent conflicts of interest with respect to your advice and recommendations?
The only compensation we receive is for providing investment advice to our clients. We have no proprietary products – we use only third-party managers – and we do not share in the fees of any manager we recommend, so you can be sure our recommendations are unbiased. We do not earn commissions from trading, eliminating any incentive for excessive portfolio turnover. We do not charge more for one asset class over another – there is no incentive to skew advice for our benefit.
Do you have a minimum client size?
Our minimum is $5 million in assets under our advisement.
What is the ownership structure of your firm?
Nearly one-third of our employees are owners of the firm, including all of the Managing Directors and Directors. We structured the firm in this manner because we recognize the importance to our clients of being served by individuals with an equity stake in the organization.
Is your firm affiliated with any organization(s), such as a brokerage firm?
No, Altair Advisers is not affiliated with any other organization or brokerage firm. Our independence from other organizations helps ensure our objectivity in the advice we provide.
Do you receive any payments from money managers you recommend, consider for recommendations, or otherwise mention to clients for consideration?
No, Neither Altair nor the administrators of the databases we use charge fees for inclusion in the database or manager searches. This ensures that we are considering the largest possible universe of managers in each search. We receive no compensation in any form from the investment managers we recommend, or those under consideration for recommendation.
How often do you meet with your clients?
We are available to meet with clients on a quarterly basis when we produce our performance reports. Some clients meet with us each quarter and others prefer semi-annual meetings. Meeting frequency is generally determined by clients based on their desire and availability. Whenever we do not meet with clients in person, we are able to review the report by phone. We are also available between reporting periods.
Who is the custodian of my assets?
We use a bank or a brokerage firm to custody client assets. The custodian provides safekeeping of assets, accounting of transactions, collection of interest and dividends, issuance of statements, and required tax reporting. When the custodian is a brokerage firm, it may also executes transactions. We generally prefer bank custody, the highest form of asset protection, but we do use brokerage custody for smaller, mutual fund-only, accounts, because it is the safest form of custody that offers the highest level of assest protection.
There seem to be a lot of moving parts in the process – with outside managers, custodians, and brokers. Will this be complicated?
Altair Advisers manages every aspect of implementing the portfolio. We prepare all necessary paperwork: our clients simply review and sign it. On an ongoing basis, although clients receive statements from the custodian, the reports from Altair will explain what is happening in the portfolio. We coordinate all of the activities and our clients can contact with us for any needs or questions that arise.
What is your historical performance?
We are investment consultants, and as such, each of our clients has a unique allocation and mix of managers, making the traditional measures of standard (composite) performance not applicable. However, each manager we recommend to clients does have a performance record that is among the criteria we consider when selecting the manager.