Clearwater Capital Partners

What Clearwater Capital Partners does

Clearwater Capital Partners is an SEC-registered, fee-only registered investment advisor founded in 2006 by John E. Chapman and headquartered in Hoffman Estates, Illinois. The firm operates as a multi-family office wealth management practice serving ultra-high-net-worth families with net assets exceeding $25 million, as well as successful individuals and institutional clients including foundations, endowments, and corporate retirement plans. Service delivery is organized into three practice areas — Family Office Services, Private Wealth Management, and Institutional Advisory — covering legacy stewardship, investment management, financial and tax planning, estate strategies, risk management, fiduciary trust services, family governance, M&A advisory, and philanthropy administration.

Underlying technology is built on third-party infrastructure rather than proprietary systems. The firm uses Tamarac (by Orion) as its core portfolio management and consolidated reporting platform, Charles Schwab Alliance Center as the primary custodial interface, and LPL Financial as an alternative custodian, with a companion web portal and mobile application (launched 2018) for iOS and Android client access. The firm's differentiated intellectual property centers on the C3 Framework (Clarity, Conviction, Commitment), a proprietary decision-making methodology applied across client engagements.

The business model is a recurring fee-only advisory structure with full fee transparency, no commissions, and no proprietary product sales, operating under a strict fiduciary standard. Go-to-market is sales-led through partners and senior advisors, with the firm's primary growth engine being referral origination from existing clients, professional advisors (attorneys, accountants), and the Family Wealth Alliance network. Marketing is reinforced through thought-leadership content including the Clear Conversations (Entrepreneurial Legacies) podcast, an insights blog, and branded client events.

Name

Clearwater Capital Partners

Legal name

Clearwater Capital Partners

Website

https://ccpwealth.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2006

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Clearwater Capital Partners is a fee-only, SEC-registered investment advisor founded in 2006 that provides multi-family office wealth management, private wealth, and institutional advisory services to ultra-high-net-worth families ($25M+ net assets), institutions, and business owners, primarily in the United States.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Private Wealth Management

NAICS

Portfolio Management and Investment Advice (523940)

SIC

Investment Advice (6282)

akta.pro primary industry

Estate Planning, Trust Structuring & Governance (FSAAADAF)

Keywords

• Wealth management services
• Investment advisory
• Family office services
• Private wealth management
• Institutional advisory

Headquarters

HQ city

Hoffman Estates

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B and B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. Investment Advisory Fees: Fee-only registered investment advisor model charging advisory fees for comprehensive wealth management, family office services, and institutional advisory. Services are offered under strict fiduciary standard with full fee disclosure.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels2 records

Marketing channels7 records

Core offering

Clearwater Capital Partners is a fee-only registered investment advisor that delivers comprehensive wealth management through three practice areas: Family Office Services for ultra-high-net-worth families (net assets exceeding $25 million), Private Wealth Management for successful individuals and families, and Institutional Advisory Services for foundations, endowments, and corporate retirement plans. Core services include investment management, integrated financial planning, estate and tax strategies, fiduciary trust services, family governance, M&A advisory, business succession planning, and consolidated reporting, supported by the proprietary C3 Framework (Clarity, Conviction, Commitment) decision methodology.

Product overview

Clearwater Capital Partners is a registered investment advisory firm offering a comprehensive suite of wealth management services through three core practice areas: Family Office Services for ultra-high net worth families, Private Wealth Management for individuals and families, and Institutional Advisory Services for organizations. The firm operates a unified team model with an integrated approach, combining services like legacy stewardship, investment management, financial planning, estate and tax strategies, risk management, and M&A advisory. The firm also provides a proprietary C3 Framework methodology (Clarity, Conviction, Commitment) for decision-making, supported by digital platforms including the Clearwater Capital Portal and Mobile App (launched 2018), along with the Clear Conversations podcast series for thought leadership content.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Clearwater Capital Foundation: The company's corporate foundation focused on improving quality of life for people and inspiring generosity in stakeholders. Supports financial empowerment, women and children, people in need, and veterans through charitable grants and community initiatives.

Products and services

• Family Office Services Comprehensive wealth management for ultra-high-net-worth families (net assets exceeding $25 million) including legacy stewardship, strategic asset and liability management, integrated financial planning and wealth transfer, income and estate tax strategies, consolidated reporting and technology, strategic risk management, fiduciary trust services, family and business governance, M&A advisory, strategic philanthropy administration, lifestyle management, and cash management and lending.
• Private Wealth Management Personalized wealth management for successful individuals and families, offering investment management, financial planning, wealth-in-transition support, legacy planning, business owner advisory, tax planning and efficiencies, insurance and risk management, consolidated reporting and technology, cash management and lending, and family consulting and education.
• Institutional Advisory Services Advisory services for organizations including qualified and non-qualified retirement plans, plan governance and fiduciary assessments, foundations and endowments, employee benefit programs, employee education and financial wellness, equity incentives, executive wealth services, business succession planning, corporate cash management, and family office solutions.

Quantifiable outcome

• Clearwater Capital Foundation raised $90,000 at 2026 Sixth Annual Charity Supercar Show benefiting three local nonprofits
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers6 records

Segments5 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature2 records

Partnerships

Four partnerships are on record, tiered core and secondary.

• Family Wealth AlliancecoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerClearwater Capital Partners is a proud member of the Family Wealth Alliance (FWA), a Charles Schwab company. FWA is a membership organization supporting firms serving ultra-high-net-worth families with shared philosophy of 'We Place Families First.' The partnership provides collaborative network, educational resources, and industry best practices for member firms.
• Charles SchwabcoreOthersCharles Schwab serves as primary custodian for client managed accounts. The Schwab Alliance Center provides custodial website for clients to access real-time account balances, tax documents, and service requests. Clearwater Capital uses Schwab as a custodian under a corporate relationship where John Sleeting sits on the FWA Advisory Board.
• LPL FinancialsecondaryOthersLPL Financial provides alternative custodial services for clients who have assets custodied at LPL. AccountView website provides access to account balances, positions, and statements.
• Tamarac (by Orion)coreTechnology or IntegrationTamarac cloud-based platform serves as the Clearwater Capital Portal for investment account information, account aggregation, document vault, and comprehensive reporting capabilities across managed accounts and household net worth.

Scale indicators2 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Emerging players

• HighTower Advisors: Advisor-owned RIA platform serving high-net-worth and ultra-high-net-worth clients with a fiduciary model, integrating breakaway advisors from wirehouses. Competes with Clearwater for the same advisor talent and end-client segment but operates as a multi-advisor platform.

Broad incumbents

• Goldman Sachs Private Wealth Management: Private wealth arm of Goldman Sachs serving UHNW families with investment, banking, lending, and estate planning services. Competes for the same $25M+ households with broader balance-sheet capabilities and significantly larger national footprint.
• Edelman Financial Engines: Large national RIA combining financial planning, investment management, and retirement plan advisory for high-net-worth households and employer plans. Comparable on the Institutional Advisory and Private Wealth sides, with much greater scale and brand recognition.
• Bessemer Trust: Long-standing UHNW wealth management and family office firm serving multigenerational families with investment, trust, and estate services. Comparable in serving $25M+ households and trust-adjacent offerings, but with substantially greater scale and multi-office presence.
• Mariner Wealth Advisors: Large national RIA serving UHNW families and institutions with a comprehensive family-office-style offering including investment, tax, estate, and retirement plan advisory. Comparable in service breadth but materially larger and multi-office, making it both a competitor and a potential consolidator.
• Mercer Advisors: National RIA and family-office provider offering wealth management, investment advisory, tax, estate, and retirement plan services to UHNW households and institutions. Overlaps with Clearwater's three core service lines but operates at substantially greater scale through acquisitions.

Others

• Schwab Wealth Advisory: Schwab-affiliated fee-based advisory program serving affluent and high-net-worth households, leveraging the Family Wealth Alliance infrastructure that Clearwater participates in. Functions as both a referral channel and a competitive alternative for clients evaluating custodial-tied advisors.

Direct peers

• Aspiriant: Fee-only RIA focused on high-net-worth and ultra-high-net-worth clients with integrated investment, tax, and estate planning services. Directly comparable fiduciary, fee-only model and UHNW target segment to Clearwater.
• Glenmede: Wealth and investment manager serving UHNW families, foundations, and endowments with discretionary portfolio management and advisory services. Overlaps directly with Clearwater's family office and institutional practice areas.
• Cresset Capital: Chicago-based multi-family office and registered investment advisor serving ultra-high-net-worth families with integrated wealth, estate, and family-office services. Closest geographic and service-model peer to Clearwater's Family Office and Private Wealth practices.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• YouTubeyoutube.com/channel/UCnS6aQHfMGvqKWqP2vJQZPQ
• Facebookfacebook.com/ccpwealth
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/ccpwealth
• Instagraminstagram.com/ccpwealth
• Xx.com/ccpwealth

Compliance3 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles11 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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

M&A1 record

Investments

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

Frequently asked questions about Clearwater Capital Partners