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Updated September 28, 2026. Quick answer: Yes, on every account. Ballentine Partners is registered with the SEC only as an investment adviser (it is not a broker-dealer), so the Investment Advisers Act of 1940 requires it to act as your fiduciary. Its own Form CRS states: “When we act as your investment adviser, we have to act in your best interest and not put our interest ahead of yours.”
How it’s registered
From Form CRS, Customer Relationship Summary, Ballentine Partners (not dated on the document itself): “Ballentine Partners, LLC is an SEC-registered investment advisory firm. We have no affiliation with a broker-dealer.”
The standard of conduct, in its own words
“When we act as your investment adviser, we have to act in your best interest and not put our interest ahead of yours.”
On commissions: “Compensation is not tied directly to any of the following factors: the amount of client assets they service; the time and complexity required to meet a client’s needs; or revenue the firm earns from the financial professional’s advisory services or recommendations. There is absolutely no connection between compensation and (1) products sold (i.e., differential compensation); or (2) product sales commissions.”
Fiduciary status by capacity
| Capacity | Registration | Standard you’re owed | Can earn commissions | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| As your investment adviser | SEC-registered investment adviser | Fiduciary duty (Investment Advisers Act of 1940) | No (asset-based advisory fee: $40,000 a year at $500,000. That is the stated $40,000 minimum annual fee, not a rate: the published High Net Worth schedule ranges from 0.95% down to 0.25%.) | Form CRS, Customer Relationship Summary, Ballentine Partners, not dated on the document itself |
What this means for what you pay
Fiduciary status is one input, not the whole picture. Ballentine Partners discloses a published fee that runs $40,000 a year on a $500,000 account; see the full dollar breakdown from Ballentine Partners’ own fee disclosure before deciding whether the standard of conduct here changes your answer.
If the answer above changes your mind about staying, read the general mechanics of switching financial advisors, or use a dated termination letter once you decide.
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Source: WiserAdvisor’s service descriptionSources
- Form CRS, Customer Relationship Summary, Ballentine Partners (not dated on the document itself): https://reports.adviserinfo.sec.gov/crs/crs_152802.pdf
- SEC Investment Adviser Public Disclosure, Ballentine Partners (CRD #152802): https://adviserinfo.sec.gov/firm/summary/152802
- Ballentine Partners, SEC Form ADV filing: https://reports.adviserinfo.sec.gov/reports/ADV/152802/PDF/152802.pdf
Methodology. This page was built September 28, 2026, quoting directly from Ballentine Partners’ own current Form CRS, with the source linked above; any distinction we could not independently confirm this session is named as an honest gap rather than presented as verified. Nothing here is personalized financial, tax, legal, or investment advice, and it is not a substitute for reading the firm’s own Form CRS. See our Editorial Policy, Corrections, Affiliate Disclosure, and Disclaimer.