What a Registered Investment Advisor Actually Does (And Why It Matters When You Have Real Money) #
A registered investment advisor is a firm or individual legally required to act in your best interest when managing your money. That’s it. That’s the whole deal. But that simple definition hides a lot of complexity that matters when you’re dealing with serious wealth.
The registration part means they’ve filed with the SEC or state regulators and agreed to follow specific rules. The investment advisor part means they get paid to give you advice about securities. Put those together and you get someone who has a legal obligation to put your interests first, every single time. That obligation is called Fiduciary Duty, and it’s not optional.
Here’s where it gets interesting. A lot of people who call themselves financial advisors aren’t actually fiduciaries. Broker-dealers, for example, only have to meet a “suitability” standard. That means they can sell you something that’s suitable for your situation even if there’s a better option that pays them less commission. An RIA can’t do that. They have to recommend the best option, period.
The Custody piece is separate but related. Most RIAs don’t actually hold your assets. They manage them, but a third-party Custodian like Schwab or Fidelity keeps the actual cash and securities. This protects you because the advisor can’t access your money directly. They can make trades and manage the Portfolio, but they can’t write themselves a check. When you’re dealing with eight or nine figures, that separation matters.
Wealth management changes shape as your assets grow. Below $1 million, you’re mostly looking at investment accounts and basic planning. Between $1 million and $10 million, you need more sophisticated Tax Planning and estate work. Once you’re past $10 million, the complexity jumps again. You’re coordinating multiple entities, trusts, business interests, Real Estate holdings, and possibly digital assets that require specialized Custody solutions.
That’s where family offices come in. A Family Office isn’t just wealth management on steroids. It’s the infrastructure that handles everything money touches in your life. Tax strategy, Estate Planning, philanthropic giving, Succession Planning for your business, coordination between your various advisors. Someone at the Family Office level might be handling Proof of Reserves for your private Treasury, reconciling onchain Wallet balances to internal ledgers, managing institutional custody attestations.
Digital Wealth Partners provides registered investment advisor services for people who need professional Portfolio management, financial planning, and fiduciary guidance. They handle the core wealth management work with proper asset Custody and advisory oversight.
Digital Ascension Group operates at the Family Office level. They coordinate the entire financial picture across generations. Estate and Succession Planning. Tax strategy that spans multiple jurisdictions and entity types. The kind of concierge-level financial coordination that makes sense when your wealth creates complexity that a standard RIA can’t handle alone.
The difference between needing an RIA and needing a Family Office is usually about complexity, not just account size. If you have multiple business interests, family members in different countries, significant Digital Asset holdings, or philanthropic goals that require sophisticated structuring, you’re probably past what traditional wealth management can handle cleanly.
Contact Digital Ascension Group to learn how our Family Office services can coordinate your complete financial picture.
