Our Practice and Service Philosophy

Ascential Wealth Advisors is an independent practice located in the Technology Village in downtown Duluth, Minnesota. The roots of our business go back over 45 years. Prior to starting Ascential Wealth, our team was Lake Superior Wealth Management Group at Piper Jaffray, which was acquired by UBS Financial Services in 2006. In 2011, we started an independent practice with Raymond James Financial Services as our broker/dealer. Securities are offered through Raymond James Financial Services, member FINRA/SIPC.

We serve business owners, organizations and affluent families with roots in the Midwest. While they reside in many states today, most of our clients have some connection to the Duluth-Superior area. We manage over $590 million in assets (as of August 2024).

Our advisors offer a broad range of comprehensive wealth planning services, including investment management, financial planning, individual and small business retirement plans, estate planning, insurance and risk management, and tax planning.

Our Service Philosophy

We are dedicated to providing our clients the highest level of personalized service by offering them access to a responsive, experienced team of financial professionals. In addition to our commitments identified below we routinely accommodate special requests from our clients.

Our client service commitment focuses on three key deliverables: accountability, transparency and confidentiality. This commitment is demonstrated through:

• Formal portfolio reviews including performance review against benchmarks, discussion of overall strategy and tactical adjustments, and individual security recommendations.
• Portfolio reviews and adjustments are also done on an as needed basis in addition to formal reviews.
• Comprehensive planning services are included in our offering at no additional cost.
• Clear and straightforward pricing.

Relationship to Raymond James

Raymond James  & Associates, Inc., an affiliate of Raymond James Financial Services, Inc., is the custodian of our clients’ assets. This means they hold our client’s securities and maintain all of the logistical functions for investing. Our clients’ statements, tax documents and online account viewing services are all provided by Raymond James. If desired, our clients can access services such as electronic funds transfer, cash management accounts with check writing, bill pay, credit cards, and through Raymond James Bank, mortgages, and securities backed lending.* Raymond James also holds all of our securities licenses and oversees our practice’s compliance with Securities and Exchange Commission and FINRA regulations. Individual securities licensing information, along with employment history, educational qualifications and disciplinary history, for each of our registered staff can be found on FINRA’s Broker Check website at: http://brokercheck.finra.org/

Raymond James Financial Inc. is a financial services company founded in 1962, established to serve the investment and financial planning needs of individual investors. With corporate headquarters in Tampa Bay, Florida, Raymond James Financial, through its wholly owned broker-dealers, serves more than 8,200 (as of 9/30/20) financial advisors in 3,000 locations throughout the United States, Canada and overseas.

Raymond James & Associates is a member of the Securities Investor Protection Corporation (SIPC), which protects securities customers of its members up to $500,000 (including $250,000 for claims for cash). An explanatory brochure is available upon request or at sipc.org or by calling 202.371.8300. Raymond James has purchased excess-SIPC coverage through various syndicates of Lloyd’s, a London-based firm. Excess SIPC is fully protected by the Lloyd’s trust funds and Lloyd’s Central Fund. The additional protection currently provided has an aggregate firm limit of $750 million, including a sub-limit of $1.9 million per customer for cash above basic SIPC for the wrongful abstraction of customer funds. Account protection applies when a SIPC-member firm fails financially and is unable to meet obligations to securities clients, but it does not protect against market fluctuations. All funds held at Raymond James Bank and participating banks in the Bank Deposit Program are insured by the Federal Deposit Insurance Company (FDIC) up to $250,000 per depositor, per insured bank, for each account ownership category. Additional information can be found at fdic.gov or by calling 877.ASK.FDIC (877.275.3342). Raymond James & Associates, Inc., and Raymond James Financial Services, Inc., are affiliated with Raymond James Bank, National Association (N.A.). Unless otherwise specified, products purchased from or held at Raymond James & Associates or Raymond James Financial Services are not insured by the FDIC, are not deposits or other obligations of Raymond James Bank, N.A., are not guaranteed by Raymond James Bank, N.A., and are subject to investment risks, including possible loss of the principal invested.

*Raymond James Financial Services, Inc., and your Raymond James financial advisor do not solicit or offer residential mortgage products and are unable to accept any residential mortgage loan applications or to offer or negotiate terms of any such loan. You will be put into contact with a Raymond James Bank employee for your residential mortgage needs.