What Highwater Wealth Management LLC does

HighWater Wealth Management LLC is a boutique independent fiduciary wealth management firm that provides integrated investment management, advanced wealth planning, and multi-generational office services for high-net-worth individuals and families with $10M–$30M+ in investable assets. The firm serves client segments including entrepreneurs and business owners, corporate executives, multi-generational families, and institutions seeking unbiased fiduciary oversight, addressing pain points around fragmented advisory relationships, product-driven recommendations, and lack of holistic coordination at large wirehouses and private banks. The five-advisor founding team manages approximately $2.4 billion in advisory assets using an open-architecture investment platform that deploys both passive and active strategies through a "Selective Alpha" methodology focused on quality compounders across full market cycles.

The firm's product surface spans institutional-quality investment management (open-architecture portfolio construction, tactical asset allocation, fixed income, structured solutions, private investments, portable alpha), advanced wealth planning (financial planning, tax-aware structuring, cash flow modeling, liquidity and exit planning, estate coordination), and a multi-generational office services tier that includes trust reviews, coordination with attorneys and CPAs, philanthropic strategy, complex asset oversight, and legacy transfer design. Supporting capabilities include tax-efficient portfolio design (tax-loss harvesting, smart asset location), estate and trust coordination, liquidity event planning, retirement and income modeling, structured credit and lending solutions, and mortgage lending. The platform operates without proprietary products, manufacturing, or product sales commissions, positioning advisors as legally obligated fiduciaries.

HighWater Wealth generates revenue through fee-based advisory services delivered via LPL Financial's broker-dealer and Registered Investment Advisor platform under the Quotient Advisor Partners office of supervisory jurisdiction. Securities and advisory services are offered only in states where the firm is properly registered. The go-to-market motion is high-touch and referral-driven, leveraging professional networks of attorneys, accountants, and fellow advisors, supplemented by educational website content, client testimonials, and direct consultation requests. The founding team — CEO Kristian Forster, President Mike Rookus, CIO Falko Hörnicke, Director of Investments Timothy Davidson, and Wealth Advisor Brian Rissman — transitioned from U.S. Bank Private Wealth Management (and prior roles at Wells Fargo, Invesco, Bergquist Wang, Bankhaus Lampe, and Lupus alpha) to establish the independent firm and join LPL's platform in June 2026.

Name

Highwater Wealth Management LLC

Legal name

HighWater Wealth Management LLC

Website

https://highwaterwealth.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2011

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

HighWater Wealth Management LLC is a boutique independent fiduciary wealth management firm managing approximately $2.4 billion in advisory assets for high-net-worth individuals and families with $10M–$30M+ in investable assets, delivering integrated investment management, advanced wealth planning, and multi-generational office services through LPL Financial's platform.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Wealth Management

NAICS

Portfolio Management and Investment Advice (523940), Portfolio Management and Investment Advice (52394), Trusts, Estates, and Agency Accounts (52592)

SIC

Investment Advice (6282)

akta.pro primary industry

Comprehensive/Full-Service RIAs & Independent Wealth Managers (FSAAACAA)

akta.pro secondary industries

Family Wealth & Multi-Generational Planning RIAs (HNW/UHNW-lite) (FSAAACAH), Private Client/High-Net-Worth Advisory (FSAEAAAN), Private Banking & UHNW Wealth Advisory (FSAEABAC)

Keywords

• Wealth management services
• Investment management
• Fiduciary advisory
• Estate planning
• Family office services

Headquarters

HQ city

Glendale

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. Advisory Fees: Fee-based wealth management services where the firm serves as a fiduciary. Securities and Advisory Services offered through LPL Financial, a Registered Investment Advisor and broker-dealer. Revenue is generated through advisory fees, likely based on assets under management (AUM) given the wealth management context.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

Highwater Wealth Management LLC is an independent fiduciary wealth management firm providing investment management, advanced wealth planning, and multi-generational family office services to high-net-worth individuals and families. The firm deploys both passive and active investment strategies through an open-architecture platform with no proprietary products, integrating investment management with tax-aware planning, estate coordination, and liquidity event advisory.

Product overview

HighWater Wealth offers a unified boutique wealth management platform combining institutional-quality investment management, advanced wealth planning, and multi-generational office coordination services. The platform integrates Investment Management with open-architecture portfolio construction, Advanced Wealth Planning for strategic financial decisions, Tax-Efficient Portfolio Design for after-tax optimization, Estate and Trust Coordination for legacy transfer, Liquidity Event Planning for business transitions, Retirement and Income Modeling, Structured Credit and Lending Solutions, Mortgage Lending, Multi-Generational Office Services, Multi-Generational Wealth Strategy, and Philanthropic Planning—all delivered through independent fiduciary advisors who do not sell products or manufacture proprietary solutions.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Investment Management Customized institutional portfolios designed around client goals, risk profile, liquidity needs, and tax considerations, utilizing an open-architecture approach to access a broad universe of investment strategies including open-architecture portfolio construction, quality dividend and growth strategies, tactical asset allocation, fixed income and structured solutions, select private investments, and portable alpha strategies. Targeted at high-net-worth individuals and families.
• Advanced Wealth Planning Integrated strategic planning across income, liquidity, taxes, estate strategy, business interests, and family priorities for complex financial decisions. Includes comprehensive financial planning, tax-aware structuring, cash flow modeling, liquidity and exit planning, and estate planning coordination. Targeted at high-net-worth individuals and families facing complex financial decisions.
• Multi-Generational Office Services Concierge-level coordination for high-net-worth families with complex assets, advisors, entities, and planning needs. Services include multi-generational planning, trust reviews, coordination with attorneys and CPAs, philanthropic strategy, complex asset oversight, and legacy transfer design. The firm serves as a central point of contact across investments and reporting for multi-generational families.
• Tax-Efficient Portfolio Design Portfolio construction focused on after-tax outcomes, asset location, gain management, and tax-aware implementation utilizing tax-loss harvesting and smart asset location strategies to minimize, defer, or eliminate tax liabilities.
• Estate and Trust Coordination Coordination with attorneys, trustees, and CPAs to align structures, accounts, and legacy objectives ensuring seamless wealth transfer and probate avoidance. Includes aligning, funding, and updating all personal assets and business interests so they work together as a unified strategy.
• Liquidity Event Planning Planning before and after business sales, concentrated stock events, inheritances, and other major financial transitions to maximize net proceeds while minimizing taxes. Includes coordination between business and personal finances.
• Structured Credit and Lending Solutions Customized credit strategies designed to support liquidity, flexibility, and broader balance sheet goals through tailored credit facilities for borrowers with non-traditional collateral.
• Multi-Generational Wealth Strategy Planning designed to help families preserve, grow, and transition wealth across generations, addressing legal, financial, and human elements to create sustainable family legacy.
• Philanthropic Planning Charitable strategies that align wealth, values, tax planning, and long-term legacy goals through structured, long-term donation approaches.

Named customers3 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

Feature1 record

Partnerships

Three partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• LPL FinancialcoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ Distributor · 14 July 2026HighWater Wealth joined LPL Financial's broker-dealer and Registered Investment Advisor platform through Quotient Advisor Partners. LPL provides the regulatory infrastructure, custody, research capabilities, and scale that enables the independent advisory model. This affiliation replaced their previous relationship with U.S. Bank Private Wealth Management.
• Quotient Advisor PartnerscoreImplementation/ SI/ Consulting Partner · 14 July 2026Quotient Advisor Partners served as the transition and infrastructure partner designed to reduce the operational burden for advisor teams moving from large institutions to independence. It is an office of supervisory jurisdiction at LPL that provides back-office support and transition assistance.
• U.S. Bank (Previous)minorOthers · 14 July 2026Previously employed at U.S. Bank Private Wealth Management before transitioning to LPL Financial in July 2026. The five-person team including Kristian Forster, Mike Rookus, Falko Hörnicke, Tim Davidson, and Brian Rissman departed U.S. Bank to join the independent model.

Scale indicators5 records

Recent moves4 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Broad incumbents

• Fisher Investments: Large independent investment manager serving HNW clients globally with discretionary portfolio management. Comparable in independent positioning but operates at materially greater scale and focuses more on discretionary investment management than integrated planning.
• Northern Trust Wealth Management: Major U.S. wealth manager serving HNW and UHNW clients with investment management, trust, private banking, and family office services. Comparable target client and service breadth but with far larger scale and institutional resources.
• Brown Brothers Harriman Wealth Management: Long-established private bank and wealth manager serving HNW families with integrated investment, trust, and banking services. Comparable HNW focus with broader institutional scale and full private banking capabilities HighWater cannot match.

Direct peers

• Bessemer Trust: Privately held multi-generational wealth advisor serving HNW/UHNW families with investment management, estate planning, and family office services. Highly comparable given similar fiduciary positioning, multi-generational focus, and boutique delivery model.
• Pathstone: Independent, partner-owned wealth management firm serving HNW families, foundations, and endowments. Direct peer given fiduciary RIA model, family-office-style service breadth, and multi-generational planning emphasis.
• Glenmede: Independent, employee-owned investment and wealth management firm serving HNW families, foundations, and endowments. Closely comparable as an independent fiduciary RIA with open-architecture investment approach and multi-generational planning capabilities.
• Aspiriant: Fee-only RIA focused on HNW individuals and families, with offices across major U.S. cities. Highly comparable business model—fiduciary-only, open-architecture, integrated tax and estate planning, with similar per-advisor AUM productivity.
• Freestone Capital Management: Boutique, employee-owned RIA serving HNW families with open-architecture investment management and integrated wealth planning. Closely comparable in boutique fiduciary positioning, multi-family-office-style service model, and Western U.S. client base.
• Edelman Financial Engines: Large independent RIA serving HNW households with fee-only wealth management, tax planning, and estate coordination. Comparable fiduciary-only model and HNW focus, though much larger and with a hybrid advisor-plus-digital-engagement delivery model.

Emerging players

• Creative Planning: Rapidly growing independent RIA serving HNW households via both advisor-led and digital channels. Comparable fiduciary and fee-only model but has aggressively scaled via acquisitions; relevant as a consolidator that may compete for HighWater's clients or advisors.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/highwater-wealth-management-llc

Compliance1 record

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles5 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 Highwater Wealth Management LLC