Blue Trust

What Blue Trust does

Blue Trust, Inc. is a privately held, fee-only fiduciary wealth management firm headquartered in Alpharetta, Georgia, founded in 1979 by Ron Blue as Ronald Blue & Co. and rebranded to Blue Trust in December 2023. The firm advises on more than $62 billion in assets for over 11,000 individuals and families across 18 U.S. offices, serving clients in all 50 states through in-person and virtual channels via 140+ financial advisors. Service delivery is organized into three tiers — Everyday Steward ($200K–$2M investable assets), Private Wealth ($1M+ investable / $2M+ net worth), and Family Office (~$30B AUA across 250 families) — with dedicated practices for Athletes & Entertainers, Business Owners, and Institutional clients such as ministries and foundations.

Core offerings include Financial Planning, Investment Management (Principles-Based Investing and ACCESS Portfolios), Trust & Estate Services with corporate trustee capability, Business Consulting for middle-market transitions, and Philanthropic Consulting through its subsidiary Calvin Edwards & Company. The technology stack is largely partner-sourced: BluePort Investments runs on Orion Advisor, the Wealth Management Portal on eMAPlan, the BlueGive donor-advised fund platform is delivered via GiveClear Foundation and TIFIN Wealth, and a faith-based private investing platform was launched in September 2024 with Vident Asset Management, Brightlight, and Mammoth Technology, alongside a $1 billion alternatives milestone on the iCapital platform. Two wholly owned operating subsidiaries (Calvin Edwards & Company and BlueGive) extend the platform into philanthropic due diligence and digital DAF services.

The firm is compensated exclusively through client-paid advisory fees with no product sales commissions, reinforcing the fiduciary positioning. Distribution combines direct advisor relationships across the 18-office national footprint with content marketing (Insights, True Riches Series with John Maxwell, Wisdom For Wealth newsletter) and faith-based community engagement including biblical stewardship seminars. The firm reports a 96% client retention rate and an 89 Net Promoter Score, and is led by President/CEO Brian Shepler with a senior team spanning CFO, COO, Chief Fiduciary Officer, and regional Managing Directors.

Name

Blue Trust

Legal name

Blue Trust, Inc.

Website

https://bluetrust.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1979

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

251–500 employees

Short description

Blue Trust is a privately held, fee-only fiduciary wealth management firm advising on $62B for 11,000+ clients across 18 U.S. offices, serving Everyday Steward, Private Wealth, and Family Office segments with biblically-informed financial planning, investment management, and trust services.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

NAICS

Portfolio Management and Investment Advice (523940), Trust, Fiduciary, and Custody Activities (523991)

SIC

Investment Advice (6282)

akta.pro primary industry

Family Office Trust & Fiduciary Services (FSAEAKAF)

akta.pro secondary industries

Estate Planning, Trust Structuring & Governance (FSAAADAF), Trust Administration & Fiduciary Accounting Services (FSAAANAF), Philanthropic & Charitable Trust Services (FSAAANAI), Personal & Family Trust Services (FSAAANAA)

Keywords

• Faith-based wealth management
• Fiduciary financial planning
• Investment management advisory
• Trust and estate services
• Family office services

Headquarters

HQ city

Alpharetta

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices19 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. Fee-Only Advisory Services: Blue Trust operates as a fee-only fiduciary firm, compensated only by clients. The firm does not receive compensation from product sales, reducing potential conflicts of interest. Revenue is generated through advisory fees for financial planning, investment management, trust services, and consulting.

Go-to-market motion3 records

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

Blue Trust is a fee-only fiduciary wealth management firm that delivers comprehensive financial planning, investment management, trust and estate services, business consulting, and philanthropic consulting to individuals, families, and institutional clients. The firm operates through three service tiers — Everyday Steward, Private Wealth, and Family Office — providing biblically-informed guidance that coordinates investing, tax, estate, and generosity decisions across more than $62 billion in assets under advisement for over 11,000 client households.

Product overview

Blue Trust is a faith-based wealth management firm offering a multi-tiered service model through three divisions: Everyday Steward (for individuals with $200K-$2M investable assets), Private Wealth (for those with $1M+ investable assets), and Family Office (for families of significant wealth with $30B under advisement). The firm provides five core services: Financial Planning, Investment Management (Principles-Based Investing with $62B in assets), Trust & Estate Services, Business Consulting, and Philanthropic Consulting through Calvin Edwards & Company. Product offerings include the BlueGive digital donor-advised fund platform, ACCESS Portfolios for values-aligned investing, and a faith-based private investing platform built with Vident Asset Management. The firm operates as a fee-only fiduciary and serves over 11,000 individuals and families across 18 offices nationwide since its founding in 1979.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Calvin Edwards & Company: Philanthropic consulting division providing investment-grade research and disciplined evaluation for donors, foundations, faith-based entities, and agencies
• BlueGive
• True Riches
• Everyday Steward
• Private Wealth
• Family Office

Named customers2 records

Segments6 records

Ideal customer profiles1 record

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration5 records

Partnerships

Seven partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• iCapitalcoreTechnology or Integration · 24 September 2024Blue Trust clients have invested $1 billion on the iCapital platform, a global fintech platform providing access to alternative investments for the wealth management industry. This partnership enables Blue Trust to offer alternative investments to high-net-worth clients.
• Vident Asset ManagementcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 23 September 2024Selected by Blue Trust to build a faith-based private investing platform providing specialized due diligence and state-of-the-art technology for advisors and clients to access investments aligned with their faith and values.
• BrightlightcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 23 September 2024Partnered with Blue Trust to develop a revolutionary faith-based private investing platform for values-aligned investment opportunities.
• Mammoth TechnologycoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 23 September 2024Technology partner selected to build Blue Trust's faith-based private investing platform with state-of-the-art technology.
• TIFIN WealthcoreTechnology or Integration · 25 May 2023Launched BlueGive, a digital donor-advised fund platform in partnership with TIFIN Wealth, the AI engine for organic growth, to help facilitate the charitable giving of Blue Trust's clients.
• Church Law & Tax (Christianity Today)minorGTM or Marketing Partner · 19 June 2018Partnership with Church Law & Tax, a publication of Christianity Today, to provide content for ChurchSalary tool featuring compensation best practices and guidance on personal financial topics including budgeting, debt management, and retirement planning.
• GiveClear FoundationcoreTechnology or IntegrationGiveClear Foundation is a registered 501(c)(3) DAF Sponsor partnered with Blue Trust to offer the BlueGive donor-advised fund program for facilitating charitable giving.

Scale indicators10 records

Recent moves12 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Direct peers

• Creative Planning: Large fee-only RIA with multi-billion AUA and a comparable multi-tier service model spanning mass-affluent through Family Office clients. Closest direct comp on business model and scale to Blue Trust.
• Carson Group: Large faith-friendly RIA and coaching ecosystem serving advisors and their clients across the US. Comparable in scale and has similar Christian-advisor positioning to Blue Trust.
• Mercer Advisors: National RIA with family office, trust, and estate services, including dedicated sports-and-entertainment practice that overlaps Blue Trust's Family Office division.
• Glenmede: Wealth management and trust company serving HNW/UHNW families and foundations with investment, trust, and estate services. Overlaps with Blue Trust's Private Wealth and Family Office offerings.
• Bessemer Trust: Privately-held multi-family office providing investment management, trust and estate services to UHNW families. Directly comparable to Blue Trust's Family Office tier.
• Mariner Wealth Advisors: National RIA with integrated family office, trust, estate, and investment management services. Overlaps Blue Trust's Private Wealth and Family Office divisions and competes for similar HNW/UHNW advisor talent.
• Buckingham Strategic Wealth: Fee-only RIA offering financial planning, investment management, and tax services to HNW households. Closely aligned with Blue Trust's fiduciary, fee-only service model.

Broad incumbents

• Northern Trust Wealth Management: Major incumbent wealth manager with deep trust, estate, and family office capabilities. Competes for Blue Trust's Family Office and institutional clients as a broader-market incumbent.
• Edelman Financial Engines: Large national RIA combining personal financial planning with employer-sponsored advice. Overlaps Blue Trust's Everyday Steward segment at broader scale.

Others

• Focus Financial Partners: RIA consolidator and partnership platform for independent wealth management firms. Relevant as a potential acquirer/capital partner for Blue Trust given the firm's growth orientation.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/bluetrustwealth
• Xx.com/_BlueTrust
• Facebookfacebook.com/bluetrustfinancial

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Subsidiaries2 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Blue Trust