Divergent Planning, LLC (Bethesda)

Name: Divergent Planning, LLC
Address: 6701 Democracy Blvd., Bethesda, MD, 20817
Telephone: (240) 428-8911

Divergent Planning, LLC is a large advisory firm based in Bethesda. It manages $105.7 million of regulatory assets for 610 client accounts. It has been registered with the SEC as an adviser since 2016 and has operated in the jurisdictions of California, District of Columbia, Louisiana, and 5 other states.

Divergent Planning provides financial planning services, portfolio management for individuals and small businesses, portfolio management for businesses and institutional clients, and financial consulting. It prepares financial plans for less than 10 clients. On top of advisory services, the firm doesn't engage in other business activities.

Divergent Planning: assets under management

The assets under management (AUM) of Divergent Planning, LLC is $105.7 million, all of which is managed in discretionary accounts. The firm's AUM has grown by 30% since the beginning of its operation, and $208.85 thousand of the total AUM is attributable to clients outside of the United States.

The firm manages $105.7 million in discretionary accounts. On average, the discretionary accounts where all decisions are made on behalf of the client hold $173.28 thousand each.

Divergent Planning has custody of $88.15 million in cash and securities for 189 clients in total but doesn’t act as a qualified custodian.

Investments

The firm invests in exchange traded securities the most. They account for 94% of the total AUM. The second-largest asset type is non-exchange traded securities, which make up 3% of the firm’s portfolio. Investments in cash and cash equivalents form 3% of the total invested assets.

Fees & Commissions

The advisory firm has several streams of revenue. Clients pay Divergent Planning, LLC for their services and products based on a percentage of assets under management and fixed fees. Flat-fee based compensation is the most transparent and the one you can safely predict in advance. These fees don’t include brokerage commissions, interest, taxes, and other account expenses.

What kind of clients Divergent Planning serves?

The firm provides services to individuals and high net worth individuals. The largest group of clients of Divergent Planning is high net worth individuals with 100 clients and $81.39 million of assets under management. Among the 10 most similar advisory firms, Divergent Planning has the 3rd lowest percentage of high net worth individuals out of all clients.

The amount of regulatory assets under management is $105.7 million for 220 clients that can include trusts, estates, and 401(k) plans and IRAs of individuals and their family members. 1% of the firm’s clients are foreign persons or businesses.

Divergent Planning doesn't advise any private funds.

Careers at Divergent Planning, LLC

The company employs 5 people that are either part- or full-time employees. 40 percent of the employees work as investment advisers or researchers. 2 employees are registered as investment adviser representatives with the state securities authorities.

There isn’t anyone with the role of looking for and bringing in new clients on behalf of the firm. The firm doesn’t compensate employees in addition to the salary for bringing in new clients. Employees don’t receive compensation from other entities for client referrals.

Direct owners and executive officers

Name	Entity	Date acquired	Ownership	Employer ID
Matthew Barnes Brock	Managing member & chief compliance officer	1 Jan 2017	50% - 75%	4624406
Ara Patrick Abrahamian	Managing member	1 Jan 2017	50% - 75%	4623755

Based in Bethesda

The principal office where Divergent Planning, LLC performs its advisory services is located at 6701 Democracy Blvd., Bethesda, MD 20817, which is also the mailing address of the firm. It doesn’t run an office outside of the United States.

You can reach the main office by calling the phone number (240) 428-8911. The normal business hours are by appointment on Monday - Friday. You can find more information about the New York firm at divergentplanning.com and its LinkedIn profile.