Discretionary account management through a structure that keeps your capital in your own name, under your direct view, held at an institutional custodian—while Arbor executes the strategy on your behalf.
A separately managed account is not a fund. You do not buy shares of a pooled vehicle. You open an account in your own name at a qualified custodian and grant Arbor limited authority to trade within it.
Your capital never commingles with other clients' capital. Your positions are your positions, visible at any time through your custodian's interface, withdrawable according to the terms of your advisory agreement.
The structure is favored by sophisticated investors for a reason: it preserves the clarity of direct ownership while delegating the operational complexity of systematic execution.
The client. You own the account. You fund it. You receive the statements. You retain the right to withdraw and the ability to terminate the advisory relationship at any time.
The investment adviser. Arbor executes the strategy under limited trading authority. Arbor does not take custody of your capital and does not have the ability to withdraw funds from the account.
An institutional-grade broker-dealer holds your capital, clears and settles every trade, and produces independent statements. The custodian is a SIPC member regulated by the SEC and FINRA, and operates independently of Arbor.
Qualified investors with non-IRA taxable accounts who seek the full risk-adjusted return profile of the framework and are prepared for moderate drawdowns as the cost of the protection the system provides.
Full tactical expression. Margin permitted within predefined limits. Short exposure through inverse ETFs during defensive regimes. The complete system as validated.
Traditional, Roth, and Rollover IRAs where tax-advantaged treatment constrains the use of margin, shorting, and certain leveraged instruments. Preserves the regime engine within IRA-compliant execution.
Fully long-only, unleveraged execution. Defensive positioning expressed through inverse ETFs and allocation to treasuries. Same regime signals, constrained implementation.
Retirement accounts where minimizing drawdown is the primary concern. Suitable for clients near or in retirement who prioritize capital preservation alongside returns.
Reduced equity exposure, expanded commodity and treasury allocation. Lower leverage ceiling. Designed for the lowest drawdown profile in the Arbor product family.
A direct discussion of the framework, its assumptions, and its limitations. We evaluate fit from both sides—the strategy is not appropriate for every investor, and we would rather identify that early than later.
We provide Form ADV Part 2A, the investment management agreement, and detailed performance and methodology documentation. You review on your own timeline, with your advisors if desired, and return with questions or comments.
You open an account directly with the qualified custodian we recommend for your account type. We provide templates and assistance, but the account is yours and the application runs through the custodian's standard process. Existing clients of the custodian may be able to use an existing account subject to structure.
Through the custodian's standard advisor authorization process, you grant Arbor limited trading authority over the account. This authorization is revocable at any time.
You fund the account; the strategy executes the initial positioning consistent with the prevailing regime. Allocation is phased rather than executed in a single trade, reducing single-day entry risk.
You retain full visibility into your account through the custodian's platform. Every position, every trade, every transaction is visible to you at all times. Arbor does not control what you can see.
The custodian produces monthly and annual statements reporting your account activity. These statements come from the custodian, not from Arbor, preserving independent verification of every figure.
Each quarter, Arbor publishes a detailed letter covering recent regime behavior, any material changes to the framework, and discussion of current market conditions. Written in the same voice as our public research.
Clients have access to enough detail about the framework to understand any position taken, including during drawdowns. The goal is never “trust us”; the goal is “here is what the signals are doing and why.”
Ongoing questions, methodology discussions, and account-related inquiries are handled directly by the principal. No call center, no tiered support, no routing through an assistant.
Unlike fund structures, an SMA imposes no lock-up period. You retain the ability to deposit or withdraw subject to the operational requirements of the strategy, which are disclosed up front.
Your capital remains at the qualified custodian, in your name, unaffected. Arbor is the adviser; the custodian holds your assets. The two roles are deliberately separated precisely so that the continuity of your assets does not depend on the continuity of the advisory firm. You would revoke the trading authority and either manage the account yourself or transfer it to another adviser.
No. The trading authority granted through the custodian allows Arbor to execute trades within the account. It does not permit Arbor to move funds to any external account, write checks against the account, or access the account for any non-trading purpose. This is the critical feature of the limited power of attorney used in SMA structures.
Live performance is reported through the custodian, not through Arbor. The custodian produces independent statements showing every trade, position, and account value. Performance figures we present can be cross-referenced directly against custodian records. This is a basic requirement, not a feature.
Terminate the advisory agreement, revoke the trading authority, and either retain or transfer the account at your discretion. There are no lock-ups, exit fees, or contractual obligations to continue the relationship. We would rather retain clients through the quality of the service than through exit friction.
No, and any adviser who tells you otherwise should be regarded with skepticism. The framework is designed to protect capital during credit-led drawdowns and participate in trending markets. It will underperform during prolonged low-volatility grinds when a passive equity allocation would have outperformed. This is a known trade-off and is discussed openly with every prospective client.
Fee arrangements vary by client qualification status and account structure. The specifics are discussed during the initial consultation and documented in the advisory agreement before services commence. Arbor receives no commissions, payments for order flow, or compensation from any source other than client advisory fees.
Our intellectual framework: credit-first regime detection, systematic execution, and the discipline of economic interpretability over factor proliferation.
Complete disclosures covering our regulatory status, performance methodology, risk factors, qualified client standards, and client rights.
For qualified investors considering a systematic allocation, we offer an initial thirty-minute discussion of methodology, structure, and fit. No pitch; a direct conversation about whether the strategy is a match for your objectives.
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