Overview
Assets Under Management: $4.6 billion
High-Net-Worth Clients: 544
Average Client Assets: $7 million
Services Offered
Services: Portfolio Management for Individuals, Portfolio Management for Pooled Investment Vehicles
Fee Structure
Primary Fee Schedule (ADV PART 2A 12.03.2025)
Min | Max | Marginal Fee Rate |
---|---|---|
$0 | $2,000,000 | 0.85% |
$2,000,001 | $5,000,000 | 0.75% |
$5,000,001 | $10,000,000 | 0.65% |
$10,000,001 | $25,000,000 | 0.55% |
$25,000,001 | $50,000,000 | 0.45% |
$50,000,001 | and above | Negotiable |
Minimum Annual Fee: $17,000
Illustrative Fee Rates
Total Assets | Annual Fees | Average Fee Rate |
---|---|---|
$1 million | $17,000 | 1.70% |
$5 million | $39,500 | 0.79% |
$10 million | $72,000 | 0.72% |
$50 million | $267,000 | 0.53% |
$100 million | Negotiable | Negotiable |
Clients
Number of High-Net-Worth Clients: 544
Percentage of Firm Assets Belonging to High-Net-Worth Clients: 80.19
Average High-Net-Worth Client Assets: $7 million
Total Client Accounts: 862
Discretionary Accounts: 862
Regulatory Filings
CRD Number: 142512
Last Filing Date: 2025-01-27 00:00:00
Website: https://pnaa.pictet.com
Form ADV Documents
Primary Brochure: ADV PART 2A 12.03.2025 (2025-03-17)
View Document Text
PICTET NORTH AMERICA ADVISORS
Form ADV: Part 2A
Brochure
12 MARCH 2025
FORM ADV: PART 2A
PICTET NORTH AMERICA ADVIS ORS
This brochure provides information about the qualifications
and business practices of Pictet North America Advisors SA. If
you have any questions about the contents of this brochure,
please contact us at +41 22 307 90 00 or by email at info@picte-
tadvisors.com. The information in this brochure has not been
approved or verified by the United States Securities and Ex-
change Commission (SEC) or by any state securities authority.
Additional information about Pictet North America Advisors
SA also is available on the SEC’s website at www.advis-
erinfo.sec.gov.
Although Pictet North America Advisors SA is a registered
investment adviser with the SEC, registration with the SEC
does not imply a certain level of skill or training.
Geneva Head Office
Route des Acacias 48
1211 Geneva 73
Tel +41 22 307 90 00
Fax +41 22 307 90 01
Zurich Representative Office
Bahnhoftstrasse 32
8001 Zurich
Tel +41 43 283 64 00
Fax +41 43 283 64 01
https://pnaa.group.pictet/
Item 2: Material Changes
This Brochure is dated March 12th 2025.
The most recent version of this brochure is available by con-
tacting Jean-Jacques Vaucher, CEO, ad interim, at +41 22 307
90 00 or by email at info@pictetadvisors.com.
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FORM ADV: PART 2A
PICTET NORTH AMERICA ADVIS ORS
ITEM 3: TABLE OF CONTENTS
Item 4: Advisory Business
3
Item 5: Fees & Compensation
4
Item 6: Performance – Based Fees and Side-By-Side
Management
5
Item 7: Types of Clients
5
Item 8: Methods of Analysis, Investment Strategies
and Risk of Loss
5
Item 9: Disciplinary Information
7
Item 10: Other Financial Industry Activities and
Affiliations
7
Item 11: Code of Ethics, Participation or Interest in
Client Transactions and Personal Trading
8
Item 12: Brokerage Practices
9
Item 13: Review of Accounts
10
Item 14: Client Referrals and Other Compensation
11
Item 15: Custody
11
Item 16: Investment Discretion
11
Item 17: Voting Client Securities
11
Item 18: Financial Information
11
Appendix 1 - Privacy Policy
12
Appendix 2 - General Risk Warnings
13
Appendix 3 - Glossary of Risks
15
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ITEM 4: ADVISORY BUSINESS
The Advisory Firm
regarding PNAA’s views and recommendations concern-
ing securities, currencies, securities markets and market
trends, and related investment options, strategies, and
opportunities, and will discuss the foregoing with clients
at reasonable length. PNAA will also, but is not obligated
to, contact the client from time to time (by phone, email,
letter, or other means) with recommendations that we
believe are appropriate for the client based on the Client
Investment Profile. PNAA’s investment recommendations
under this Mandate relate (but are not limited) to stocks
and other equity securities, bonds and other debt securi-
ties, money market and other cash management instru-
ments, derivatives, mutual funds, exchange traded funds
and other investments.
Pictet North America Advisors SA (PNAA) is a corporation
organized under the laws of Switzerland, a wealth man-
ager under the Swiss Financial Institutions Services Act
(FinIA) with its head office in Geneva, and a representa-
tive office in Zurich. PNAA is registered as an investment
adviser with the SEC and has been in business for 17
years. PNAA is also an exempt international adviser in the
provinces of Québec, Ontario, Alberta, Nova Scotia and
British-Columbia in Canada. These registrations and ap-
pointments do not imply a certain level of skill or train-
ing. PNAA is part of the Pictet Group.
PNAA completes a Form ADV which contains additional
information about its business and its affiliates.
This document is filed with the SEC and is publicly avail-
able through the SEC’s website:
http://www.adviserinfo.sec.gov/IAPD/IAPDFirmSum-
mary.aspx?ORG_PK=142512.
(PNAA’s IARD Number is 142512 and its SEC Number is
801-67491).
The Types of Advisory Services
We provide both discretionary investment services and
non-discretionary investment services mainly to indivi-
duals, trusts, estates, private funds, charitable organiza-
tions and small corporations or similar small business en-
tities and mainly to U.S. persons.
Under the Advisory Mandate, the client will be solely re-
sponsible for making all investment decisions and PNAA
will not have any discretionary authority over the client’s
account, will not regularly monitor positions held in a cli-
ent’s securities portfolio, and will not be responsible for
automatically updating any information or recommenda-
tions previously provided, subject to adhering to PNAA’s
fiduciary relationship standards. In addition, PNAA is not
registered as a securities broker-dealer and, therefore,
does not provide brokerage services. As per the terms of
the Advisory Mandate, PNAA will not monitor the client’s
investment portfolio (even held in the custody of an affili-
ate of PNAA) or other assets to determine whether
changes should be made thereto. Lastly, PNAA will not
monitor information that it previously provided or rec-
ommendations it previously made to the client to deter-
mine whether such information and recommendations
require updating to reflect changed market conditions or
changes to the client’s investment profile.
a) Discretionary Mandate
See Item 8 below for more details on methods of analysis,
investment strategies and risk of loss.
Client Needs & Restrictions
Clients who wish to receive discretionary investment ser-
vices will sign a Discretionary Asset Management Man-
date (‘’Discretionary Mandate’’) with PNAA. Under this
Discretionary Mandate, PNAA is authorized to manage
the assets on a fully discretionary basis, according to the
client’s investment needs, objectives and restrictions. Un-
der the Discretionary Mandate, PNAA will be solely re-
sponsible for determining the account’s asset allocation
and for investing the account’s assets subject to re-
strictions, if any. PNAA will periodically review and up-
date discretionary accounts’ asset allocation and hold-
ings, such as in response to economic, political or market
conditions.
We tailor our advisory services to the individual needs of
clients based on the information they provide to us in the
Client Investment Profile (as updated from time to time
by the clients). Also, we generally permit discretionary
clients to impose restrictions on their accounts such as
on certain securities or types of securities. We generally
do not permit advisory (non-discretionary) clients to im-
pose restrictions on their accounts, as these accounts are
managed on a non-discretionary basis and any re-
strictions desired by the client would be self-imposed.
See Item 8 below for more details on methods of analysis,
investment strategies and risk of loss.
Amount of Clients’ Assets Under Management
b) Non-discretionary Mandate
As of January 31, 2025, we provide advice regarding assets
representing approximately USD4,691,290,871 on a discre-
tionary basis and USD3,968,672,648 on a non-discretion-
ary basis, for a total of approximately USD8,659,963,520.
For greater clarity relating to the figures set out in Form
ADV Part 1 (Item 5. F) as filed on the SEC website, note
Clients who wish to receive non-discretionary investment
services will sign an Advisory Mandate (“Advisory Man-
date’’) with PNAA. Under the Advisory Mandate, PNAA
will provide investment advisory advice upon request and
will respond within a reasonable time frame to the cli-
ent’s telephone calls or e-mail requesting discussion
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FORM ADV: PART 2A
PICTET NORTH AMERICA ADVIS ORS
ACCOUNT VALUE
IN CHF**
MARGINAL
RATE
EFFECTIVE
RATE*
0 to 2,000,000
0.200%
0.20%
2,000,001 to 5,000,000
0.175%
0.19%
5,000,001 to 10,000,000
0.150%
0.17%
10,000,001 to 25,000,000
0.125%
0.14%
that we do not provide “continuous and regular supervi-
sory services” as defined in the abovementioned Form
ADV Part 1 for non-discretionary clients (see b) above for
a description of this category of clients and the services
provided to them). For this reason, we have not included
the assets relating to such non-discretionary clients in
ADV Part 1 but are including them here.
25,000,001 to 50,000,000
0.100%
0.12%
50,000,001 and above
As agreed
Minimum quarterly fees: CHF1,000
ITEM 5: FEES & COMPENSATION
Compensation for Advisory Services
* The effective rates are given as an example for information
purposes only and have been rounded to the second decimal.
The effective rates shown in the chart have been calculated
assuming the maximum account assets level amount in the
corresponding “breakpoint” range. Effective rate on a client’s
account differs depending on account asset levels.
** The Swiss Franc is the reference currency used for fees
calculation. If the client has requested another reference
currency, we will then apply the current exchange rate at the
time of the client account debit.
These standard fee rates are negotiable, and we reserve
the right to negotiate fees with clients.
We are compensated for our services with a fee based on
a percentage of assets under management. The cash part
of client portfolios however will be included in the AUM
for fees calculation purposes, as it is an integral part of
the strategy. Investments in collective investment vehi-
cles (including vehicles affiliated with or managed by
PNAA), typically mutual funds and exchange traded
funds, will also be included in the AUM for fees calcula-
tions, although a fee for the vehicle’s investment manage-
ment is already deducted from the fund’s Net Asset Value
(NAV) or share price.
Fees Deduction
The fee schedule for discretionary asset management ser-
vices is the following subject to a minimum quarterly fee
of CHF4,250:
Standard Annual Fee Rates for Discretionary Asset
Management Services
ACCOUNT VALUE
IN CHF**
MARGINAL
RATE
EFFECTIVE
RATE*
0 to 2,000,000
0.85%
0.85%
2,000,001 to 5,000,000
0.75%
0.79%
When elected by clients to act as custodian, our fees are
debited directly by our affiliate banks on a quarterly basis
in arrears, on the first Monday following the 15th of the
last month of the quarter. The value date of the debit will
be the last business day of the quarter. Fees are calculated
based on the average of the end-of month balances of the
three previous months. For example, the first quarter of
each calendar year, fees will be debited on the first Mon-
day after March 15, and will cover December, January and
February.
5,000,001 to 10,000,000
0.65%
0.72%
10,000,001 to 25,000,000
0.55%
0.62%
25,000,001 to 50,000,000
0.45%
0.53%
50,000,001 and above
As agreed
Minimum quarterly fees: CHF4,250
Where a non-affiliated custodian is selected by a client,
we will work with that client and custodian regarding the
debiting of our fees by the custodian on a mutually agree-
able basis. Our fees are calculated based on the value of
the client’s assets under management, as determined by
the client’s custodian.
Other Types of Fees and Expenses
* The effective rates are given as an example for information
purposes only and have been rounded to the second decimal.
The effective rates shown in the chart have been calculated
assuming the maximum account assets level amount in the
corresponding “breakpoint” range. Effective rate on a client’s
account differs depending on account asset levels.
Brokerage commissions, transaction fees, custodian fees,
other related costs and expenses which shall be incurred
by the clients are exclusive and in addition to our advi-
sory services fees.
** The Swiss Franc is the reference currency used for fees
calculation. If the client requests another reference currency,
we will apply the current exchange rate at the time of the
client account debit.
The fee schedule for the non-discretionary asset manage-
ment services is the following subject to a minimum
quarterly fee of CHF1,000:
Standard Annual Fee Rates for
Non-Discretionary Services
Clients incur additional charges such as stamp duties,
taxes, commission charges, exchanges and other fees
charged by third-party brokers including related brokers.
More specifically, third-party brokers including related
brokers charge commissions when acting as agent, or a
mark-up when acting as principal, plus fees to execute se-
curities transactions. Those commissions and mark-up
fees are passed on by brokers to our clients. Mutual funds
and exchange traded funds also charge internal manage-
ment and administration fees, which are disclosed in each
4 OF 16
FORM ADV: PART 2A
PICTET NORTH AMERICA ADVIS ORS
fund’s prospectus and are not included in our advisory
services fee. See Item 12 below for more details on broker-
age practices.
PNAA does not reduce its Advisory Services fees to offset
any of the above fees, costs or expenses.
accounts, including accounts that are generally managed
in a similar style, also differ as a result of these considera-
tions. As a result, some clients will not participate at all
in some investments in which other clients participate or
will participate to a different degree or at a different time
than other clients do.
No Other Compensation
Please see Item 12, Brokerage Practices, for more infor-
mation regarding allocation of investment opportunities
ITEM 7: TYPES OF CLIENTS
PNAA and its employees do not accept compensation for
the sale of securities or other investment products. PNAA
does not charge clients any transaction-based fees. In ad-
dition, Pictet does not charge clients routings fees when
transmitting orders to third party brokers for execution.
PNAA is not registered as a securities broker-dealer and,
therefore, does not provide brokerage services. See Item
14 below for more details on client referrals and other
compensation.
ITEM 6: PERFORMANCE – BASED FEES AND
SIDE-BY-SIDE MANAGEMENT
We do not charge performance-based fees to any clients.
As noted in Item 4 above, we advise mainly individuals,
trusts, estates, private funds, charitable organizations and
small corporations or similar small business entities that
are mainly US persons. Although there is no minimal dol-
lar value for establishing a discretionary or non-discre-
tionary asset management account with us, we believe
that a minimum of approximately USD5,000,000 typically
allows for an adequate diversification of the clients’ port-
folio. We enter into agreements with clients who have
different account sizes and, in special circumstances, ac-
cept lesser amounts in our discretion.
ITEM 8: METHODS OF ANALYSIS, INVESTMENT
STRATEGIES AND RISK OF LOSS
Methods of Analysis
a) Discretionary Mandate
We recognize that conflicts related to side-by-side man-
agement of different accounts exist for other reasons. For
example, our portfolio managers manage more than one
discretionary account (client account or affiliated private
fund account) according to the same or a substantially
similar investment strategy. Side-by side management of
different types of accounts by portfolio managers involves
potential conflicts of interest that arise when two or more
accounts invest in the same securities or pursue a similar
strategy. These potential conflicts include the favorable
or preferential treatment of an account or a group of ac-
counts, conflicts related to the allocation of investment
opportunities, particularly with respect to securities that
have limited availability, such as initial public offerings,
and transactions in one account that closely follow re-
lated transactions in a different account, (e.g., a purchase
of securities for an account after a purchase of the same
securities in another account has increased the value of
the securities). In addition, the results of the investment
activities for one account may differ significantly from
the results achieved by PNAA for other accounts.
For our discretionary clients, we generally focus on allo-
cating investments among various asset classes, following
a top-down investment approach, with the asset alloca-
tion decision being the biggest source of alpha. We seek
international diversification in an effort to enhance port-
folio return while trying to diversify risks. Our securities
analysis methods include, but are not limited to, funda-
mental, quantitative and technical research. We will also
use hedging strategies to alter the equity and/or currency
exposure of discretionary mandate portfolios to try to
protect the clients’ assets against market events likely to
have a negative impact on performance. Our clients’ dis-
cretionary managed portfolios include various instru-
ments including, but not limited to, equity securities,
corporate debt securities, commercial papers, certificates
of deposit, municipal and governmental securities, mu-
tual and exchange traded fund shares, precious metals,
derivatives and alternative investments such as funds of
hedge funds.
Our conservative investment style and advices tend to fo-
cus primarily on long-term purchases. We also generally
focus on liquid investments, investment grade fixed in-
come instruments and well-known funds. In addition, we
aim at avoiding micro cap securities, certain unstable
We have policies and procedures in place aiming at en-
suring that all client accounts are treated fairly and equi-
tably. For example, we strive to equitably allocate invest-
ment opportunities among relevant accounts over time.
In addition, investment decisions for each account are
made with specific reference to the individual needs and
objectives of the account. Accordingly, we give advice or
exercise investment responsibility or take other actions
for some clients (including related persons) that differ
from the advice given, or the timing and nature of actions
taken, for other clients. Investment results for different
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countries, leverage and derivatives for speculative pur-
poses.
b) Other Material Risks Associated with
Discretionary & Non-Discretionary Mandates
Generally, clients should keep in mind that all types of in-
vestments in financial instruments involve risks of loss.
b) Non-Discretionary Mandates
Investing in financial instruments including securities in-
volves a risk of loss that clients should be prepared to
bear. Other usual material risks relating to investments
include, but are not limited to:
Market Risk – market price of securities can go up or
down, sometimes rapidly or unpredictably, and can lead
clients to lose up to their whole investment. Market risk
exists in all types of investments.
Liquidity Risk – a particular security or other instru-
ments can become difficult to trade. An illiquid asset re-
duces the returns because the investor is not able to sell
the assets at the time desired for an acceptable price or is
not able to sell the assets at all.
For our non-discretionary clients (advisory clients), we
provide a trade by-trade basis advice, tailored to each cli-
ent depending on individual needs and profile. We pro-
vide advice on various instruments including, but not
limited to, equity securities, warrants, corporate debt se-
curities, commercial papers, certificates of deposit, mu-
nicipal securities, mutual and exchange-traded fund
shares, governmental securities, options, precious metals,
derivatives and alternative investments (including hedge
funds and private equity vehicles).
Generally, clients should keep in mind that all types of in-
vestments in financial instruments involve risks of loss.
Key Investment Strategies & Material Risks
Credit/Counterparty Risk – possibility that the issuer or
guarantor of a fixed income security, a bank or the coun-
terparty of a derivatives contract will default on its obli-
gation to pay interest and/or principal, which could cause
an investor to lose money.
a) Discretionary Mandate
High Yield Risk – lower-quality debt securities as rated
by the major credit rating agencies (those of less than in-
vestment grade quality, commonly known as “high yield
bonds” or “junk bonds”) are riskier, speculative and in-
volve greater risk of default.
We offer discretionary clients depending on their profiles
various strategies including, but not limited to, fixed in-
come, conservative, moderate growth, growth, cash &
gold, US, Swiss and international equities.
Interest Rate Risk – debt securities fluctuate in value as
interest rates change. The general rule is that if interest
rates rise, the market prices of debt securities will usually
decrease and vice versa.
These strategies involve financial instruments with differ-
ent risk levels from lower risk (e.g. cash and fixed income
securities) to higher risk (e.g. equities in emerging coun-
tries). For example, the discretionary mandates offer:
• low risk strategies including, but not limited to, en-
hanced fixed income investments;
Commodities Risks – commodities prices can be very
volatile and show important fluctuation on short periods
of time; with the exception of precious metals, we do not
invest directly in commodities.
• balanced risk strategies investing mainly in fixed in-
come instruments and equities. The level of risk for
such strategies ranges from medium risk where the eq-
uities level is lower than the fixed income level, to
higher risk where the equities’ part is higher than the
fixed income level;
• medium risk strategies including but not limited to
100% equities either global, US or specific markets,
cash management or precious metal, and
Foreign/Emerging Markets – foreign securities involve
the risk of loss due to political, economic, regulatory, and
operational uncertainties, currency fluctuations, and gen-
erally higher credit risks for foreign issuers. Clients
should be aware that all these risks are heightened in
emerging markets more specifically. Investing in foreign
or emerging markets is generally intended only for clients
who are able to bear and assume the increased risk that
they represent.
• high risk strategies including, but not limited to, strat-
egies where the equities level is much higher than the
fixed income level.
Currency Risk – form of risk that generally arises from
the change in price of one currency against another.
Whenever clients have assets or business operations
across national borders, they face currency risk if their
positions are not hedged. Currency risks are not always
hedged.
Our discretionary mandates can opportunistically also in-
clude a portion of alternative investments (funds of hedge
funds) and/or precious metals to seek diversification of fi-
nancial instruments and markets (including emerging
countries).
All positions can be held directly or indirectly through
funds (including affiliated funds).
We strive to mitigate the above risks by monitoring,
among others, markets, economic conditions, industries
concerns and changes to general outlooks on corporate
earnings, regulatory developments, monetary policies by
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central banks, changes to interest or currency rates or ad-
verse investor sentiment in general.
Different financial instruments involve different levels
of exposure to risk and are therefore inappropriate to
your circumstances or risk appetite.
Please consult the Appendix 2 to this brochure enti-
tled “General Risk Warnings” for additional risk infor-
mation per financial instrument type.
noted in Item 5 above, Pictet does not charge clients rout-
ings fees when transmitting orders to third party brokers
for execution. However, our clients will be charged the
brokers’ commissions as also described under Item 5. As
further explained under Item 12 below, our clients’ orders
are not aggregated with Pictet clients’ orders. Pictet acts,
from time to time, as principal by being the counterparty
for certain types of client transactions such as Forex (op-
tion, spot, swap, forward) and precious metal (gold, sil-
ver, platinum & palladium) as well as use its Eurex mem-
bership to place derivatives on this market.
ITEM 9: DISCIPLINARY INFORMATION
While PNAA and Pictet do not share staff, two of PNAA’s
members of the Board of Directors (including the Chair-
man) have executive functions at Pictet.
In addition to the above, we have other arrangements
with Pictet regarding various corporate support services,
all of which are generally unrelated to the investment ad-
visory services we provide to our clients.
Form ADV Part 2A requires a registered investment ad-
viser like PNAA to disclose legal or disciplinary events in-
volving the firm or our managed employees that are ma-
terial to your evaluation of our business or integrity of
our management. At this time, we have no information
to report that is applicable to this item.
b) Clients and PNAA affiliates
As noted in Item 4 above, PNAA also completes a Form
ADV which contains additional information about its
business and its affiliates, including legal or disciplinary
events. This document is filed with the SEC and is pub-
licly available through the SEC’s website: http://www.ad-
viserinfo.sec.gov/ IAPD/IAPDFirmSummary.
aspx?ORG_PK=142512. (PNAA’s IARD Number is 142512
and its SEC Number is 801-67491)
Clients have the option to enter directly into the separate
non-investment advisory related arrangements described
below with some other entities of the Pictet Group. PNAA
is not party to these arrangements and does not receive
compensation in relation to those arrangements, but has
a general indirect incentive, being part of the Pictet
Group, to refer business to its affiliated entities.
i) Custody Services
ITEM 10: OTHER FINANCIAL INDUSTRY
ACTIVITIES AND AFFILIATIONS
Other Registrations & Material Conflicts
PNAA’s clients who select Pictet to provide custodial ser-
vices for their assets, will enter into a separate custodial
arrangement directly with Pictet. Pictet also provides
other non-investment related services to our clients, in-
cluding clearing, matching and settlement of trades into
client accounts, valuation of assets and provision of state-
ments, pursuant to separate agreements between each cli-
ent and Pictet. See Item 15 for more information.
In addition to PNAA, other Pictet affiliates are registered
with the SEC, and PNAA has certain business dealings or
shares premises with other affiliates of the Pictet Group,
which have various registrations with foreign regulators.
These affiliates however do not have a controlling influ-
ence over PNAA.
ii) Brokerage Services
Pictet Asset Management SA (PAM SA), an affiliate, pro-
vides PNAA generic portfolio models for a thematic in-
vestment strategy, which PNAA can use in the discretion-
ary portfolio management of its clients' separated man-
aged accounts.
Material Relationships or Arrangements with
Affiliated Entitles
Clients select the broker of their choice. In this context,
we propose Pictet Overseas Inc., an affiliate of PNAA, to
our Clients for brokerage trading services. If Clients select
Pictet Overseas Inc., they will then enter into a separate
brokerage arrangement directly with this affiliate. For
greater clarity, PNAA is not a party to this separate bro-
kerage agreement. Under such brokerage arrangement,
clients will place directly trades in securities with Pictet
Overseas Inc.
a) PNAA and Pictet
Pursuant to a service level agreement supplemented by a
brokerage agreement (Order Handling SLA), Pictet acts as
broker-dealer for our clients’ transactions as further de-
scribed under Item 12 below. Our clients’ transactions are
executed by Pictet or transmitted to third-party broker
dealers (including related brokers) for execution. As
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D. Hold all client information, including securities hold-
ings and financial information in confidence.
E. Maintain independence in the decision-making pro-
cess on behalf of clients.
ITEM 11: CODE OF ETHICS, PARTICIPATION
OR INTEREST IN CLIENT TRANSACTIONS AND
PERSONAL TRADING
Code of Ethics
If a person subject to the Code fails to comply with it,
such person can be subject to sanctions, which include,
but are not limited to, warnings, disgorgement of profits,
restrictions on future personal trading, and in the most
severe cases the possibility of dismissal.
Clients and prospective clients can review a copy of the
Code by contacting us at the address or telephone num-
ber listed on the first page of this brochure.
We strive to adhere to certain standards of conduct based
on principles of professionalism, integrity, honesty and
trust, and have adopted a Code of Ethics (“Code”), under
SEC Rule 204A–1, to help us meet these standards and
prevent conflicts of interest. All our Access Persons must
comply with the Code which covers the following key ar-
eas:
A. Prohibition against insider trading
Participation or Interests in Clients Transactions
and Personal Trading
B. Staff personal account dealing rules
C. Gifts and entertainment rules
D. Protecting the confidentiality of client information
E. Dealing with personal conflicts of interest of Super-
vised Persons
F. Respecting PNAA corporate confidential information
We recommend to our clients that they buy or sell inter-
ests in the same investment products in which our em-
ployees (including their connected persons) or affiliates
have from time to time some financial interest, including
ownership. Further, we occasionally recommend to our
client’s investments in one or more investment vehicles,
including mutual funds and other pooled investment ve-
hicles, in which we, our affiliates or other related persons
have a financial interest as investment manager, general
partner, trustee, or co-investor. However, any such rec-
ommendations would be based on the best interest of the
relevant client(s). Further, we do not receive any compen-
sation as a result of these recommendations. Lastly, per-
sonal transactions and holdings of our employees are
subject to the Code of Ethics and related controls de-
scribed above.
Among other things, the Code also includes policies and
procedures relating to the personal investment activities
of our Access Persons, including transactions involving
securities that PNAA has recommended to its clients and
that are held by its clients. Depending upon a person’s
functions, duties and obligations, the Code places some
restrictions, requires pre-clearance and/or reporting of
certain personal securities transactions, and imposes tim-
ing and other restrictions on transactions, outright prohi-
bitions and compliance certification. The Code also re-
quires the maintenance and review of certain records as
well as periodic meetings to familiarize persons subject to
the Code with their responsibilities under it.
Although we do not hold proprietary positions, our em-
ployees or some of our affiliates have the right to own,
buy or sell for themselves (proprietary account of our af-
filiates where applicable) the same securities that they or
we have recommended to clients. The risks associated
with personal trading is that individuals will benefit or
seek to benefit personally with respect to a personal secu-
rity holding from client transactions in the same or a sim-
ilar security. However, our employees (and other access
persons where applicable) are subject to the Code of Eth-
ics and related controls described above. In addition,
there are information barriers in place between us and
our affiliates, including separate staff.
We owe a fiduciary duty to our clients and a duty to act
in the best interests of our clients. This duty generally re-
quires that the interests of clients be placed above the in-
terests of PNAA, its employees and all Associated Persons
whenever a conflict is present. In addition, we must treat
all clients equitably. Therefore, we expect that all of our
Access Persons will observe the highest standards of hon-
esty, integrity and professionalism as noted above. More
specifically, we always expect that, our Access Persons
will:
A. Comply with all relevant laws and regulations.
B. Place the interests of our clients first.
As mentioned in Item 10 above, Pictet acts, from time to
time, as principal by being the counterparty for certain
types of client transactions such as Forex (option, spot,
swap, forward) and precious metal (gold, silver, platinum
& palladium) as well as use its Eurex membership to place
derivatives on this market.
Please also see Item 6 above, regarding side-by-side man-
agement and related conflicts and controls.
C. Conduct all personal securities transactions in compli-
ance with the Code and avoid any actual or potential
conflict of interest, or any abuse of their position of
trust and responsibility.
8 OF 16
FORM ADV: PART 2A
PICTET NORTH AMERICA ADVIS ORS
ITEM 12: BROKERAGE PRACTICES
Brokers Selection
a) Discretionary Mandates
With clients under discretionary mandate, we have the
authority and discretion to determine the securities, and
the amounts of securities, to be bought or sold for clients’
accounts, subject to restrictions clients have imposed as
noted in Item 4 above.
querying many markets and using smart routers, commis-
sion rates and responsiveness. Accordingly, although Pic-
tet will seek competitive commission rates, it is not obli-
gated to choose the broker-dealer offering the lowest
available commission rate if, in its reasonable judgment,
there is a material risk that the total cost or proceeds
from the transaction might be less favorable than else-
where, or, if a higher commission is justified by the trad-
ing provided by the broker dealer, or if other considera-
tions, such as those set forth above dictate utilizing a dif-
ferent broker-dealer.
As noted in Items 5 and 10 above, however, we do not ex-
ecute our clients’ transactions ourselves. Pictet and POI
are acting as broker-dealer for our clients’ transactions as
follows:
Pictet acts also, from time to time, as principal by being
the counterparty for certain type of transactions such as
Forex (option, spot, swap, forward) and precious metal
(gold, silver, platinum & palladium) as well as use its Eu-
rex membership to place derivatives on this market.
Under the Order Handling SLA, Pictet also provides assis-
tance to PNAA in connection with the following:
• Subscription and redemption of mutual funds
• Pictet acting as introducing broker-dealer by transmit-
ting the received orders from us to third-party brokers
including its related entities such as Pictet Canada LP
(Canadian Broker) which re-transmits to Pictet Over-
seas Inc. (SEC/FINRA broker) for the execution or se-
lecting the appropriate counterparty at its discretion.
• Participation in private equities
• IPOs and new bonds issues subscription
• Pictet acting as executing broker itself or acting as
counterparty for transactions at its discretion; and
• POI acting as executing broker itself.
We have an obligation to seek “best execution” for client
transactions. Best execution generally refers to the execu-
tion of portfolio transactions in such a manner that the
total cost or proceeds in each transaction is the most fa-
vorable under the circumstances. The SEC defines best ex-
ecution as “best qualitative execution”, not merely the
lowest possible execution cost. In evaluating the quality
of execution and selecting broker-dealers to execute client
transactions, we consider various factors, such as execu-
tion capability, commission rate (or spread), financial re-
sponsibility and responsiveness.
Research & Soft Dollars Benefits
In case Pictet acts on an agency basis, it charges 5 basis
points on all trades placed in the Swiss market or 7 bps
for trades placed on other markets. These fees are subject
to annual review in order to be in line with the market’s
practices. Pictet doesn’t charge any fees when it directs
the trade to another party (i.e., the third-party broker) as
it is only acting as an intermediary in the transaction.
When Pictet executes trades, an affiliate of PNAA earns
fees. This represents a conflict of interest, but PNAA be-
lieves in the high quality of Pictet’s execution capabilities
and that its clients have retained PNAA for the holistic
services of the Pictet group of companies.
We do not currently enter into third party soft-dollar ar-
rangements with any related or external brokers. How-
ever, Pictet has such arrangements directly with third
party brokers for which PNAA is not a party to.
We do not currently enter into brokerage arrangements
with non-affiliated brokers and do not select the specific
brokers or counterparties to be used for a client transac-
tion.
In formulating investment advice, we rely on various
sources of information, mainly third-party research mate-
rials, corporate rating services, company’s press releases,
annual reports, prospectuses, filings with the SEC,
Bloomberg and other financial networks. On a periodic
basis, our investment specialists attend conferences orga-
nized by external research firms on various industries or
markets. In addition, we receive and utilize research re-
ports and market analysis from Pictet and its affiliates.
Our personnel participate in investment committees and
meetings with Pictet to discuss or gain information con-
cerning investment opportunities, markets, corporate ac-
tions and strategies.
Pursuant to the Order Handling SLA discussed under
Item 10 above, Pictet maintains an approved list of bro-
kers. Pictet is responsible for applying on a trade by-trade
basis its best execution policy. Pictet’s best execution pol-
icies provide that in selecting brokers and determining
the reasonableness of their commissions, the determina-
tive factor is not only the lowest possible commission
cost but also whether the transaction represents the best
qualitative execution, taking into consideration many fac-
tors. Pictet will consider, among other things, the full
range of a broker’s services including the value of research
provided, if any, execution capabilities on international
markets including block positioning, financial stability,
ability to maintain confidentiality, adequate settle-
ment/delivery capabilities, ability to obtain best price by
Although Pictet provides us with research and infor-
mation about markets and financial instruments, Pictet
9 OF 16
FORM ADV: PART 2A
PICTET NORTH AMERICA ADVIS ORS
b) Non-Discretionary mandates
does not provide advice or recommendations to our cli-
ents. We formulate our own investment advice and rec-
ommendations for our clients. In addition, our receipt of
research and other information from Pictet is not a factor
contributing to our decision to continue outsourcing the
routing of orders to Pictet under the Order Handling SLA.
Brokerage for Client Referrals
For clients with non-discretionary (i.e. advisory) ac-
counts, we deliver our non-discretionary advice. Typi-
cally, they also need an avenue to trade in securities and
most advisory clients open and maintain brokerage ac-
counts with POI, an affiliate of PNAA, to provide broker-
age services on a needed basis. Under such brokerage ar-
rangement, clients will place directly trades on securities
with POI. For greater clarity, Pictet does not act as broker
for such order placed directly by clients to POI.
We do not receive client referrals from external brokers,
dealers or financial intermediaries, and there are no such
arrangements in place.
See Item 14 below for more details on client referrals.
ITEM 13: REVIEW OF ACCOUNTS
Directed Brokerage
Periodical Review
After account opening approval, each client account is as-
signed to one of our Client Advisors. Our Chief Invest-
ment Officer and portfolio management team regularly
monitor discretionary accounts, followed by the monthly
investment controlling review aiming at monitoring per-
formance statistics, compliance with investment re-
strictions and allocation grids per discretionary mandate
types.
If a client asks to direct transaction(s) to a specific broker
or brokers for execution, we are unable to achieve most
favorable execution, which can result in additional costs
and expenses for the client. For example, clients could
pay higher brokerage commissions and receive a less fa-
vorable price when buying or selling if they cannot partic-
ipate in an aggregated trade along with other client or-
ders executed through brokers that Pictet selected. See
below for more detail about trade aggregation.
Trade Aggregation
Lastly, the appointed Client Advisor reviews client invest-
ment objectives for both discretionary and non-discre-
tionary clients on an annual basis.
Punctual Reviews
Punctual reviews are also made by the Chief Investment
Officer (and/or members of the portfolio management
team) and/or the Client Advisor as deemed required.
The Client Advisor will also perform a review in response
to various factors including, but not limited to, market
conditions, changes in Client’s Investment Profile, etc.
Reports to Clients
When buying and selling investments for clients, we gen-
erally aggregate multiple transactions into one order.
Each client that participates in an aggregated order par-
ticipates at the average price. In case of partial execution
of an aggregated order, the executed trades and related
external broker’s commissions are both allocated on a pro
rata basis. Should the prorated allocation lead to uneco-
nomical or unsuitable results, or in the case of securities
issued by specific lots, we shall modify the allocation and
document the reason for this decision. In aggregating or-
ders and allocating such orders, we seek fairness among
our clients over time. Also, our client orders cannot be
aggregated with non PNAA client orders or with the or-
ders of PNAA Access Persons.
Allocation of Investment Opportunities
From time to time, two or more accounts intend to invest
in the same securities or pursue a similar strategy. In such
cases, we seek to ensure that one account or group of ac-
counts is not favored or preferred over another account
or group of accounts. We strive to be particularly sensi-
tive to this potential conflict where a particular invest-
ment opportunity has limited availability, such as initial
public offerings or new/subsequent issues.
We do not ourselves issue client reports. Pictet, when act-
ing as custodian, issues directly to client’s regular written
reports on their accounts (‘’Reports’’). Such Reports are
issued at least on a quarterly basis (or on a monthly basis
at the client’s option) and include a valuation, transaction
statements and a performance summary. These Reports
typically describe all assets held, the quantity and market
price in local currency for each position and the market
value of the account expressed in the client’s base cur-
rency translated at current rates of exchange, which are
also shown. Clients should carefully review those Re-
ports. Where a non-affiliated custodian is selected by a
client, we will work with that client and custodian re-
garding the nature and frequency of client reports.
As noted under Item 6, we have policies and procedures
designed to seek to ensure that client accounts are treated
fairly and equitably over time regarding the allocation of
investment opportunities.
10 OF 16
FORM ADV: PART 2A
PICTET NORTH AMERICA ADVIS ORS
ITEM 14: CLIENT REFERRALS AND OTHER
COMPENSATION
We typically assume and receive this discretionary au-
thority though the written Discretionary Mandate, com-
pleted by the Client Investment Profile.
ITEM 17: VOTING CLIENT SECURITIES
We do not accept from non-client’s economic benefit, in-
cluding sales awards for providing investment advice or
other advisory services to our clients.
We do, from time to time, refer clients to some Pictet
Group entities (or to non-affiliated entities and persons)
for additional services such as custody, trust and estate
planning, or tax optimization and reporting. We do not
receive any remuneration or fee for such referrals (but do
have a general indirect incentive, being part of the Pictet
Group, to refer to our affiliated entities where possible)
and the Pictet Group entities do not charge clients more
as a result of such referrals.
We have a policy to not accept proxy voting responsibil-
ity for securities held in our clients’ accounts subject that
we will exercise investment authority for certain corpo-
rate actions (including, but not limited to, take over, divi-
dend in cash or shares, rights offering, offer to redeem,
split, reverse split, change in nominal value, etc) in con-
nection with the discretionary accounts. For the nondis-
cretionary advisory clients, corporate actions are dis-
cussed with them prior to the event taking place. Clients
should make arrangement directly with their custodian to
vote proxies for securities or to obtain proxies or other
solicitation materials directly from their custodian.
ITEM 18: FINANCIAL INFORMATION
Pictet Group entities also refer, from time to time, clients
to us, but we do not pay or receive any remuneration or
fee for such referrals. We do not charge our clients more
as a result of these referrals. In addition, potential client
referrals from Pictet are not a factor contributing to our
decision to retain Pictet as broker under the Order Han-
dling SLA.
Form ADV 2A requires us to disclose any financial condi-
tion reasonably likely to impair our ability to meet con-
tractual commitments to clients. At this time, we have no
information to report that is responsive to this item.
Occasionally, we enter into relationships with solicitors
to refer prospective clients to us. They are paid a referral
fee in accordance with the requirements of Rule 206(4)-3
of the Advisers Act. This fee is generally calculated based
on a percentage of asset under management and is dis-
closed to you as per our related policy. This referral fee
paid to solicitors does not result in any additional charge
to our clients.
ITEM 15: CUSTODY
PNAA does not have direct custody of client assets. Pictet,
where acting as qualified custodian, provides quarterly
(or more frequent) account statements directly to clients.
Where a non-affiliated custodian is selected by a client,
we will work with that client and custodian to ensure
that the custodian provides directly the Reports to our
clients.
Clients should carefully review those reports received
from their custodians. See Form ADV, Item 9 and Sched-
ule D, Section 7A, 9C for more information relating to
Pictet acting as qualified custodian.
ITEM 16: INVESTMENT DISCRETION
PNAA receives and exercises discretionary authority to
manage investments on behalf of discretionary clients. As
noted in Item 4 above, some discretionary clients impose
limitations on this discretion with respect to certain as-
pects of the management of their account.
11 OF 16
FORM ADV: PART 2A
PICTET NORTH AMERICA ADVIS ORS
APPENDIX 1 - PRIVACY POLICY
described above, and as required or permitted by client
agreement or applicable law. PNAA’s affiliates will not use
any information received from PNAA to solicit you.
Privacy Notice – More Information on Privacy of your In-
formation
We take important steps to help safeguard the infor-
mation we collect about our clients.
Why and How PNAA Shares Information with Non-affili-
ated Third Parties
PNAA does not and will not rent or sell the personal infor-
mation of its clients, their representatives or authorized
persons. However, PNAA shares this information with Pic-
tet or with companies that PNAA hires to perform services
for it. In these cases, PNAA requires these non-affiliated
third parties with which PNAA shares personal information
to agree to strictly limit the use of such information to the
purposes for which it was provided.
At PNAA, we are committed to safeguarding our clients’
personal information. This notice describes the personal
information that PNAA collects regarding an individual’s
current or former relationships with PNAA and how PNAA
handles and protects that information. As part of PNAA’s
normal business practices, PNAA distributes a Privacy No-
tice annually or when significant changes are made to it.
Why and How PNAA Collects Personal Information
PNAA collects personal information to enable it to provide
services to clients and to conduct its business. For exam-
ple, PNAA collects personal information to:
• Help evaluate the needs of clients and comply with
regulatory obligations.
• Process requests and transactions.
• Provide clients with effective and efficient service.
Sharing Information with Providers of Financial Instru-
ments
Some providers of certain financial instruments (e.g., issu-
ers of structured products, investment companies, or lim-
ited partnerships), whether affiliates or not, require PNAA
or its affiliates to disclose personal information including
a tax identification number (“TIN”) or other identifiers.
Where client objectives permit and applicable law allows,
we require such providers to agree to strictly limit their
use of the information only to the purpose for which it was
provided.
PNAA collects information from a variety of sources, in-
cluding:
• Account opening documentation and other forms
submitted to PNAA or its affiliates in the Pictet Group,
which provide information such as the name, address,
email address, telephone numbers, date of birth, So-
cial Insurance or other identification number, occupa-
tion, financial goals, assets, income and source of
funds of our clients or their representatives.
• Our clients’ transactions or communications with
PNAA and PNAA’s affiliates in the Pictet Group.
In particular, PNAA or its affiliates are required to share in-
formation with certain fund managers in accordance with
Rule 22c-2 under the Investment Company Act of 1940.
This rule is intended to help address abuses associated
with short-term trading of fund shares. The rule requires
an open-end fund and its intermediaries to provide the
fund’s management the ability to identify investors whose
trading violates fund restrictions on short-term trading.
PNAA or its affiliates are required to provide all the infor-
mation as set out in Rule 22c-2, amongst others name,
TIN, number of shares, held and dates of transactions.
Who has Access to Personal Information
PNAA maintains personal information about clients, their
representatives and authorized persons on PNAA’s client
database. Access to this database is restricted to employ-
ees of PNAA or certain employees of PNAA’s affiliates that
provide services for PNAA under service level agreements
with client confidentiality safeguards.
Sharing Information to Regulators
PNAA discloses personal information to the Swiss Finan-
cial Market Supervisory Authority (FINMA), the US Securi-
ties and Exchange Commission (SEC), our external audi-
tors or certain other regulators as required or permitted
by applicable law for regulatory or enforcement purposes
(e.g. anti-money laundering investigations).
How PNAA Protects Personal Information
All PNAA employees who have access to personal infor-
mation are required to maintain and protect the confiden-
tiality of that information and must follow established pro-
cedures. PNAA maintains physical, electronic and proce-
dural safeguards (including firewalls, user authentication
systems and access control mechanisms) to protect per-
sonal information and to comply with all applicable laws
and regulations.
Accessing and Revising Personal Information
PNAA will endeavour to keep its client files complete and
accurate. Most of the information PNAA collect is from the
applications and forms that clients have submitted to ob-
tain services from PNAA or its affiliates. PNAA will provide
clients with reasonable access to this information. This in-
formation is reflected in the documentation that PNAA
provides or makes available to its clients. Clients are en-
couraged to review this information and notify their PNAA
client advisor if this information should be corrected or
updated or if they have any questions or concerns about
their personal information.
Why and How PNAA Shares Information with
its Affiliates
Personal information about PNAA’s clients, their repre-
sentatives and authorized persons is shared with certain
PNAA’s affiliates, subject to service level agreements as
12 OF 16
FORM ADV: PART 2A
PICTET NORTH AMERICA ADVIS ORS
APPENDIX 2 - GENERAL RISK WARNINGS
on the changes in the value of a particular kind of property
(of any description) or changes in the value of an index,
such as the SP500 index or any other index.
The general risk warnings are provided to you as clients of
PNAA.
In both cases, the investment or property are referred to
as the “underlying instrument”
Different instruments involve different levels of exposure
to risk and therefore are inappropriate to your circum-
stances or risk appetite. You should not deal in any instru-
ments unless you are satisfied that you understand their
nature and the extent of potential risk.
Risks
Securitized derivatives often involve a high degree of gear-
ing or leverage, so that a relatively small movement in the
price of the underlying investment results in a much larger
movement, unfavorable or favorable, in the price of the
securitized derivative which means that the price of these
instruments can be volatile.
These risk warnings cannot disclose all the risks and other
significant aspects of the financial instruments in which
we deal on your behalf. Neither do these risk warnings
constitute any advice which we could provide to you.
Securitized derivatives have a limited life and can (unless
there is some form of guaranteed return to the amount
you are investing in the product) expire worthless if the
underlying instrument does not perform as expected.
In relation to derivatives, these risk warnings cannot dis-
close all the risks and other significant aspects of warrants
and/or derivative products such as futures, options, and
contracts for differences. Although can be used for the
management of investment risk, some of these products
are unsuitable for many investors.
As a result of this risk, you should only buy these products
if you are prepared to lose all of the money you have in-
vested plus any commission or other transaction charges.
Financial Instruments
You should consider carefully whether or not this product
is suitable for you in light of your circumstances and finan-
cial position and if you are in any doubt you should seek
professional advice.
1. Warrants
Nature
A warrant is a time-limited right to subscribe for shares,
debentures, loan stock or government securities and is ex-
ercisable against the original issuer of the underlying secu-
rities.
3. Contracts for Difference
Nature
Futures and options contracts can also be referred to as
contracts for difference. These can be options and futures
on the SP500 index or any other index, as well as currency
and interest rate swaps. However, unlike other futures and
options, these contracts can only be settled in cash.
Some other instruments are also called warrants but are
actually options (for example, a right to acquire securities
which is exercisable against someone other than the origi-
nal issuer of the securities, often called a ‘covered war-
rant’).
Risks
Investing in a contract for difference carries a high degree
of risk because the ‘gearing’ or ‘leverage’ often obtainable
means that a small deposit or down payment can lead to
large losses as well as gains.
Risks
It is important to note that a relatively small movement in
the price of the underlying security results in a dispropor-
tionately large movement, unfavorable or favorable, in the
price of the warrant. As a result, the prices of warrants can
be volatile.
This also means that a relatively small movement can lead
to a proportionately much larger movement in the value of
your investment and this can work against you as well as
for you.
The right to subscribe conferred by a warrant is generally
limited by time, which means that if the investor fails to
exercise this right within the predetermined timescale,
then the investment becomes worthless.
4. Options
Nature
An option is an instrument sold by one party to another
that offers the buyer the right, but not the obligation, to
buy (call) or sell (put) a security at an agreed-upon price
during a certain period of time or on a specific date.
It is therefore important to understand that if you are con-
sidering purchasing a warrant you should be prepared to
lose all of the money you have invested plus any commis-
sion or other transaction charges.
There are many different types of options with different
characteristics and risks. Two examples are set out below.
2. Securitized Derivatives
Nature
Certain types of securitized derivatives, including covered
warrants, contain a time-limited right to buy or sell one or
more types of investment which is normally exercisable
against someone other than the issuer of that investment.
Risks of Buying Options
Buying options involves less risk than selling options be-
cause, if the price of the underlying asset moves against
you, you can simply allow the option to lapse. The maxi-
mum loss is limited to the premium, plus any commission
or other transaction charges.
Other types of securitized derivatives give you rights un-
der a contract for differences which allow for speculation
13 OF 16
FORM ADV: PART 2A
PICTET NORTH AMERICA ADVIS ORS
It is impossible to trade units or shares in collective invest-
ment products if there is no liquid market.
Risks of Writing Options
If you write an option, the risk involved is considerably
greater than buying options. You are liable for margin to
maintain its position and a loss could be sustained well in
excess of the premium received.
In the case of open-ended funds, in particular hedge
funds, there will probably be limits to your ability to re-
deem units while some funds also engage in shorting or
leveraging techniques.
When writing an option, you accept a legal obligation to
purchase or sell the underlying asset if the option is exer-
cised against you, however far the market price has moved
away from the exercise price.
If you already own the underlying asset which you have
contracted to sell (when the options will be known as
‘covered call options’) the risk is reduced.
6. Shares
Nature
Shares, known as equities, represent a portion of a com-
pany’s share capital. The extent of your ownership in a
company depends on the number of shares you own in re-
lation to the total number of shares in issue.
Some shares are bought and sold on stock exchanges and
their values can go down as well as up in line with market
conditions. These shares are termed “quoted”.
Risks
If you do not own the underlying asset (‘uncovered call
options’) the risk can be unlimited. Only experienced per-
sons should contemplate writing uncovered options, and
then only after securing full details of the applicable con-
ditions and potential risk exposure.
5. Collective Investment Products
Nature
In respect of unlisted shares or shares in small companies,
there is an extra risk of losing money when such shares are
bought or sold as there usually is a big difference between
the buying and selling price. Shares in companies incorpo-
rated in emerging markets are generally harder to buy and
sell than those in more developed markets and such com-
panies aren’t necessarily regulated as strictly.
7. Specialist sector investments
Collective Investment products include but are not limited
to Mutual Funds, Exchange Traded Funds (ETFs), private
funds, Real Estate Investment Trusts (REITs) and hedge
funds. These are all investment vehicles that invest their
assets in the securities of other issuers, or in cash, in ac-
cordance with their own internal rules.
Investing in shares that are concentrated in a specialist
sector is considered to be a higher risk strategy, due to the
concentrated exposure to the market sector in question.
Whilst such investments theoretically offer greater returns
over the long term, this can be coupled with the risk of
higher volatility.
REITs are listed companies. Investment Trusts and REITs
trade at a discount or premium to the cumulative value of
their underlying investments, depending on the demand
for their shares. Unit Trusts and ICVCs are usually priced
daily using a set formula based on their net assets minus
charges.
Some collective investment products specialize in certain
countries or sectors, and you should read the terms of any
key features document or prospectus carefully before de-
ciding on an investment.
Risks
The value of an investment in a collective investment
product is determined by the value of the underlying in-
vestment made by the product’s managers.
As with individual equities, the value of your investment
can go down as well as up and you might not get back the
original amount you invested.
Any income you receive from your investment in a collec-
tive investment scheme varies with the dividends or inter-
est paid by the underlying investments and so could fall as
well as rise.
Collective investment products that focus on a country,
sector or market index possibly display greater volatility
than the wider market and so should be considered as
higher risk than more widely invested collective invest-
ment products.
14 OF 16
FORM ADV: PART 2A
PICTET NORTH AMERICA ADVIS ORS
APPENDIX 3 - GLOSSARY OF RISKS
rates directly impact (positively or negatively) the
value/price or income of the holdings. Funds that attempt
to hedge against currency risk can mitigate the direct im-
pact of currency movements but cannot completely iso-
late the indirect effect of foreign exchange fluctuations.
When investing in structured products, investors may ben-
efit from an embedded hedge of the underlying currency
risk that is referred to as a quanto.
Derivative and Leverage Risks
Investing in derivative instruments or leveraging an invest-
ment can lead to a high degree of financial risk. Changes in
the price of an underlying security, investment, interest
rate or benchmark can result in proportionally larger
changes in the price of the derivative instrument or invest-
ment, resulting in losses that can in certain circumstances
exceed the cost of the investment. There is also a poten-
tial risk of default by a counterparty and the risk that that
these products may not be liquid.
Economic Risk
The economic cycle and macroeconomic situation of a
country, a region or the global economy can have a signifi-
cant influence on prices of financial instruments.
Commodity Risk
The value of commodity-linked instruments can fluctuate
substantially due to changes in supply and demand as well
as due to political, economic and market events.
Emerging Market Risk
Investing in emerging markets carries a heightened risk
profile; liquidity may be less reliable and price volatility
can be higher than that experienced in more developed
economies, potentially resulting in sudden and significant
declines in value. Emerging markets have less sophisti-
cated rules governing the clearing and settlement of trans-
actions and investor protection.
Company-specific Risk
Company-specific risk (or unsystematic risk) is specific to
an individual company. For example, even if the stock
market or the share prices of comparable companies are
rising, certain company-specific news can have a negative
impact on the share price.
High Yield Bond Risk
Portfolios with high exposures to non-investment grade
debt instruments (S&P/Moody’s Credit Rating: BB+ and
below) have a higher exposure to credit and default risk.
This company-specific news can include negative events
such as strikes, management crises and poor annual re-
sults as well as positive news such as winning a major con-
tract, the launch of innovative products and a favourable
market outlook. Extraordinary events within a company
may cause the share price to fluctuate (volatility) and can-
not be foreseen.
Inflation Risk
Inflation risk should be considered in particular when in-
vesting in emerging markets or fixed-rate investments. In-
flation is defined as the rate at which prices increase in an
economy. Inflation can lead to currency depreciation and
reduce the real returns of investments and financial in-
struments.
Concentration Risk
Refers to identifying the risk in a portfolio arising from a
concentration in a single asset, counterparty, sector or
country.
Counterparty/Issuer Risk
The risk of losing part or all of an investment due to the in-
solvency of the issuer of the financial instrument. This risk
is particularly relevant for structured products, derivatives
and certain ETFs (exchange-traded funds).
Interest Rate Risk
Changes in interest rates usually result in an opposite
movement in the value of bonds and other debt instru-
ments (e.g. a rise in interest rates is generally reflected by
a fall in bond prices). The longer the maturity of the bond
(the time when the principal is due to be repaid), the
higher the interest rate risk. This is the commonly referred
to as duration risk.
Country Risk
Country risk should be considered when investing in a for-
eign country and in particular in emerging markets, e.g.
the risk of investing in shares of a foreign company that is
exposed to the risk of nationalisation or the inability to re-
patriate proceeds of an investment due to capital controls.
Credit and Default Risk
This risk arises when the financial health of an issuer of a
fixed-income security deteriorates, leading to the issuer’s
inability or unwillingness to repay the bond or meet con-
tractual obligations (interest or principal repayments).
This can result in a decline in the value of the bonds or
render them worthless.
Liquidity Risk
When market conditions are unusual or characterised by
particularly low volumes, a portfolio can encounter diffi-
culties in valuing and/or trading some of its assets. For
funds, liquidity constraints can arise, resulting in limited
availability for subscriptions and redemptions or lockups
can be imposed, meaning investors are subject to market
risk during interim pricing periods and may have limited
ability to access funds at short notice. For structured
products, liquidity risk could materialize before maturity
as investors can encounter difficulties in selling the prod-
uct on the secondary market. The investor may receive
less than their initial investment if the product is sold on
the secondary market (if the parameters impacting the
product market value are unfavourable).
Currency/Exchange Rate Risk
This risk arises when the reference currency differs from
the investment currency. Fluctuations in foreign exchange
15 OF 16
FORM ADV: PART 2A
PICTET NORTH AMERICA ADVIS ORS
Market Risk
Financial instruments are subject to price fluctuation/ vol-
atility and to political and economic risks which can signif-
icantly impact the performance of the financial instru-
ment/ portfolio.
changing rainfall patterns, rising sea levels, ocean acid-
ification, and biodiversity loss. Physical risks may neg-
atively affect the value of investments by impairing as-
sets, productivity or revenues, or by increasing liabili-
ties, capital expenditures, operating and financing
costs.
• Environmental Risk:
Political Risk
Countries with unstable political leadership or where poli-
tics strongly influence markets and business practices may
be subject to greater volatility. Political risk may include
potential for currency controls that would disrupt the fi-
nancial markets in that country.
This refers to the risk associated with the exposure to
issuers that may be affected by environmental degra-
dation and/or the depletion of natural resources. Envi-
ronmental risk can result from air pollution, water pol-
lution, waste generation, the depletion of freshwater
and marine resources, the loss of biodiversity or dam-
ages to ecosystems. Environmental risks can negatively
affect the value of investments by impairing assets,
productivity or revenues, or by increasing liabilities,
capital expenditures, operating and financing costs.
Reinvestment Risk
The risk that coupons from a bond will not be reinvested
at the same interest rate as when the bond was issued.
This risk is related to the fluctuation of interest rates,
where an increase in interest rates will be positive for the
investor and a decrease unfavourable.
• Social Risk:
Risks Linked to Costs/Charges
All investments incur various charges regardless of
whether or not the investment return is positive or nega-
tive. When the investment return is very low or negative,
these charges can significantly impact the overall return.
Smaller Company Risk
Securities of smaller companies may be less liquid than
larger companies. Securities of smaller companies may be
more price volatile and entail greater risk.
This refers to the risk associated with the exposure to
issuers that may be negatively affected by social fac-
tors such as poor labour standards, human rights vio-
lations, damages to public health, data privacy
breaches or increased inequalities. Social risks can
negatively affect the value of investments by impairing
assets, productivity or revenues, or by increasing liabil-
ities, capital expenditures, operating and financing
costs.
• Governance Risk:
Sustainability Risk
The risk arising from any environmental, social or govern-
ance events or conditions that, were they to occur, could
have a material negative impact on the value of the invest-
ment. Specific ESG/sustainability risks include, but are not
limited to, the following:
• Climate Transition Risk:
This refers to the risk associated with issuers that may
be negatively affected by weak governance structures.
For companies, governance risk can result from mal-
functioning boards, inadequate remuneration struc-
tures, abuses of minority shareholders or bondholders’
rights, deficient controls, aggressive tax planning and
accounting practices or lack of business ethics. For
countries, governance risk can stem from governmen-
tal instability, bribery and corruption, privacy breaches
and lack of judicial independence. Governance risk
may negatively affect the value of investments due to
poor strategic decisions, conflicts of interest, reputa-
tional damages, increased liabilities or loss of investor
confidence.
This refers to the risk associated with the exposure to
issuers that may be negatively affected by the transi-
tion to a low-carbon economy due to their involve-
ment in fossil fuel exploration, production, processing,
trading and sale, or their dependency on carbon-inten-
sive materials, processes, products and services. Tran-
sition risk may result from several factors, including
rising costs and/or the limitation of greenhouse gas
emissions, energy-efficiency requirements, the reduc-
tion in fossil fuel demand or the shift to alternative en-
ergy sources due to policy, regulatory, technological
and market demand changes. Transition risks can neg-
atively affect the value of investments by impairing as-
sets or revenues, or by increasing liabilities, capital ex-
penditures, operating and financing costs.
• Climate Physical Risk:
Consequent impacts to the occurrence of Sustainability
Risks can be many and varied according to a specific risk,
region or asset class. Generally, when a Sustainability Risk
occurs for an asset, there will be a negative impact and
potentially a partial or total loss of its value. However, the
integration of Sustainability Risks analysis should mitigate
the impact of such risks on the value of the investments
and could help enhance long-term risk adjusted returns
for investor.
Source: Six Swiss Exchange
This refers to the risk associated with the exposure to
issuers that may be negatively affected by the physical
impact of climate change. Physical risk includes acute
risks arising from extreme weather events such as
storms, floods, droughts, fires or heatwaves, and
chronic risks from gradual climate changes, such as
16 OF 16
Additional Brochure: ADV PART 2 A BROCHURE 07.02.2024 (2025-03-17)
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Form ADV: Part 2A
Brochure
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This brochure provides information about the qualifications and
business practices of Pictet North America Advisors SA. If you have
any questions about the contents of this brochure, please contact
us at +41 22 307 90 00 or by email at info@pictetadvisors.com. The
information in this brochure has not been approved or verified by
the United States Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) or
by any state securities authority.
2
Additional information about Pictet North America Advisors SA
also is available on the SEC’s website at www.adviserinfo.sec.gov.
Although Pictet North America Advisors SA is a registered investment
adviser with the SEC, registration with the SEC does not imply a certain
level of skill or training.
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Geneva Head Office
Route des Acacias 48
CH-1211 Geneva 73
Tel: +41 (0) 22 307 90 00
Fax: +41 (0) 22 307 90 01
Zurich Representative Office
Bahnhoftstrasse 32 CH-8001 Zurich
Tel: +41 (0) 43 283 64 00
Fax: +41 (0) 43 283 64 01
https://pnaa.group.pictet/
Item 2: Material Changes
This Brochure is dated July 2nd, 2024.
There is one material change since the last annual filing on March 22nd, 2024. Karine Genevey
resigned in May 2024. Jean-Jacques Vaucher is the CEO ad interim since July 1st, 2024.
The most recent version of this brochure is available by contacting Jean-Jacques Vaucher,
CEO, ad interim, at +41 22 307 90 00 or by email at info@pictetadvisors.com.
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Item 3: Table of Contents
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Item 4 – Advisory Business
Item 5 – Fees and Compensation
Item 6 – Performance-Based Fees and Side-By-Side Management
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Item 7 – Types of Clients
Item 8 – Methods of Analysis, Investment Strategies
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and Risk of Loss
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Item 9 – Disciplinary Information
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Item 10 – Other Financial Industry Activities and Affiliations
Item 11 – Code of Ethics, Participation or
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Interest in Client Transactions & Personal Trading
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Item 12 – Brokerage Practices
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Item 13 – Review of Accounts
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Item 14 – Client Referrals and Other Compensation
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Item 15 – Custody
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Item 16 – Investment Discretion
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Item 17 – Voting Client Securities
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Item 18 – Financial Information
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Appendix 1 – Privacy Policy
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Appendix 2 – General Risk Warnings
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Appendix 3 – Glossary of risks
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Item 4: Advisory Business
THE AdvisOry Firm
will periodically review and update
discretionary accounts’ asset
allocation and holdings, such as in
response to economic, political or
market conditions.
See Item 8 below for more details
on methods of analysis, investment
strategies and risk of loss.
the custody of an affiliate of PNAA)
or other assets to determine whether
changes should be made thereto.
Lastly, PNAA will not monitor
information that it previously
provided or recommendations it
previously made to the client to
determine whether such information
and recommendations require
updating to reflect changed market
conditions or changes to the client’s
investment profile.
See Item 8 below for more details
on methods of analysis, investment
strategies and risk of loss.
ClIENT NEEDS & RESTRICTIONS
Pictet North America Advisors SA
(PNAA) is a corporation organized
under the laws of Switzerland, a
wealth manager under the Swiss
Financial Institutions Services Act
(FinIA) with its head office in Geneva,
and a representative office in Zurich.
PNAA is registered as an investment
adviser with the SEC and has been in
business for 16 years. PNAA is also an
exempt international adviser in the
provinces of Québec, Ontario, Alberta,
Nova Scotia and British-Columbia in
Canada. These registrations and
appointments do not imply a certain
level of skill or training. PNAA is
part of the Pictet Group.
PNAA completes a Form ADV
which contains additional information
about its business and its affiliates.
This document is filed with the SEC
and is publicly available through the
SEC’s website: http://www.adviserinfo.
sec.gov/IAPD/IAPDFirmSummary.
aspx?ORG_PK=142512.
(PNAA’s IARD Number is 142512
and its SEC Number is 801-67491).
We tailor our advisory services to
the individual needs of clients based
on the information they provide to
us in the Client Investment Profile
(as updated from time to time by the
clients). Also, we generally permit
discretionary clients to impose
restrictions on their accounts such
as on certain securities or types of
securities. We generally do not permit
advisory (non-discretionary) clients
to impose restrictions on their
accounts, as these accounts are
managed on a non-discretionary
basis and any restrictions desired
by the client would be self-imposed.
THE TyPES Of
ADVISORy SERVICES
AMOuNT Of ClIENTS’ ASSETS
uNDER MANAgEMENT
b) Non-discretionary Mandate
Clients who wish to receive non-
discretionary investment serviaces
will sign an Advisory Mandate
(“Advisory Mandate’’) with PNAA.
Under the Advisory Mandate, PNAA
will provide investment advisory
advice upon request and will respond
within a reasonable time frame to
the client’s telephone calls or e-mail
requesting discussion regarding
PNAA’s views and recommendations
concerning securities, currencies,
securities markets and market trends,
and related investment options,
strategies, and opportunities, and
will discuss the foregoing with clients
at reasonable length. PNAA will also,
but is not obligated to, contact the
client from time to time (by phone,
email, letter, or other means) with
recommendations that we believe are
appropriate for the client based on the
Client Investment Profile. PNAA’s
investment recommendations under
this Mandate relate (but are not
limited) to stocks and other equity
securities, bonds and other debt
securities, money market and other
cash management instruments,
derivatives, mutual funds, exchange-
traded funds and other investments.
Under the Advisory Mandate, the
We provide both discretionary
investment services and non-
discretionary investment services
mainly to individuals, trusts,
estates, private funds, charitable
organizations and small corporations
or similar small business entities and
mainly to U.S. persons.
As of January 31, 2024, we provide
advice regarding assets representing
approximately USD4,636,335,313
on a discretionary basis and
USD3,476,175,111 on a non-discretionary
basis, for a total of approximately
USD8,112,510,424.
For greater clarity relating to the
figures set out in Form ADV Part 1
(Item 5. F) as filed on the SEC
website, note that we do not provide
“continuous and regular supervisory
services” as defined in the above-
mentioned Form ADV Part 1 for
non-discretionary clients (see b)
above for a description of this
category of clients and the services
provided to them). For this reason,
we have not included the assets
relating to such non-discretionary
clients in ADV Part 1 but are
including them here.
a) Discretionary Mandate
Clients who wish to receive
discretionary investment services
will sign a Discretionary Asset
Management Mandate (‘’Discretionary
Mandate’’) with PNAA. Under this
Discretionary Mandate, PNAA is
authorized to manage the assets on
a fully discretionary basis, according
to the client’s investment needs,
objectives and restrictions. Under the
Discretionary Mandate, PNAA will
be solely responsible for determining
the account’s asset allocation and
for investing the account’s assets
subject to restrictions, if any. PNAA
client will be solely responsible for
making all investment decisions and
PNAA will not have any discretionary
authority over the client’s account,
will not regularly monitor positions
held in a client’s securities portfolio,
and will not be responsible for
automatically updating any
information or recommendations
previously provided, subject to
adhering to PNAA’s fiduciary
relationship standards. In addition,
PNAA is not registered as a securities
broker-dealer and, therefore, does not
provide brokerage services. As per
the terms of the Advisory Mandate,
PNAA will not monitor the client’s
investment portfolio (even held in
4
PICTET NORTH AMERICA ADVISORS SA 2 July 2024
Item 5: Fees & Compensation
The fee schedule for discretionary asset management services is the
following subject to a minimum quarterly fee of CHF 4,250:
COmpEnsATiOn FOr
AdvisOry sErviCEs
Standard Annual Fee Rates for
Discretionary Asset Management Services
ACCOunT vAluE in CHF**
mArginAl
rATE
EFFECTivE
rATE*
0 to 2,000,000
0.85%
0.85%
2,000,001 to 5,000,000
0.75%
0.79%
5,000,001 to 10,000,000
0.65%
0.72%
10,000,001 to 25,000,000
0.55%
0.62%
25,000,001 to 50,000,000
0.45%
0.53%
50,000,001 and above
As agreed
Minimum quarterly fees: CHF 4,250
*The effective rates are given as an example for information purposes only and have been rounded
to the second decimal. The effective rates shown in the chart have been calculated assuming the
maximum account assets level amount in the corresponding “breakpoint” range. Effective rate on
a client’s account differs depending on account asset levels.
** The Swiss Franc is the reference currency used for fees calculation. If the client requests another
reference currency, we will apply the current exchange rate at the time of the client account debit.
We are compensated for our services
with a fee based on a percentage of
assets under management, with
the exception of Cash Account
Agreements for which we do not
charge any fee as we don’t provide
any advice. The cash part of client
portfolios however will be included
in the AUM for fees calculation
purposes, as it is an integral part of
the strategy. Investments in collective
investment vehicles (including
vehicles affiliated with or managed
by PNAA), typically mutual funds
and exchange traded funds, will also
be included in the AUM for fees
calculations, although a fee for the
vehicle’s investment management is
already deducted from the fund’s Net
Asset Value (NAV) or share price.
Please see item 10 c) for an exception
to this rule.
The fee schedule for the non-discretionary asset management services
is the following subject to a minimum quarterly fee of CHF 1,000:
Standard Annual Fee Rates for
Non-Discretionary Services
ACCOunT vAluE in CHF**
mArginAl
rATE
EFFECTivE
rATE*
0 to 2,000,000
0.200%
0.20%
2,000,001 to 5,000,000
0.175%
0.19%
5,000,001 to 10,000,000
0.150%
0.17%
10,000,001 to 25,000,000
0.125%
0.14%
25,000,001 to 50,000,000
0.100%
0.12%
50,000,001 and above
As agreed
Minimum quarterly fees: CHF 1,000
*The effective rates are given as an example for information purposes only and have been rounded
to the second decimal. The effective rates shown in the chart have been calculated assuming the
maximum account assets level amount in the corresponding “breakpoint” range. Effective rate on
a client’s account differs depending on account asset levels.
** The Swiss Franc is the reference currency used for fees calculation. If the client has requested
another reference currency, we will then apply the current exchange rate at the time of the client
account debit.
These standard fee rates are negotiable, and we reserve the right to
negotiate fees with clients.
5
PICTET NORTH AMERICA ADVISORS SA 2 July 2024
fEES DEDuCTION
NO OTHER COMPENSATION
We manage an affiliated private fund
of hedge funds, held by some of our
clients. The fund selects third party
and/or affiliated hedge funds and has
therefore an incentive to favor an
affiliated fund versus a third-party
fund. This is addressed by various
measures such as offsetting the fees
so as to avoid “double dipping” and
having a documented and controlled
selection process in place. Some
affiliated underlying funds receive
performance fee, however no such
fee is paid to PNAA. See Item 10 for
further information.
PNAA and its employees do not
accept compensation for the sale
of securities or other investment
products. PNAA does not charge
clients any transaction-based fees.
In addition, Pictet does not charge
clients routings fees when
transmitting orders to third party
brokers for execution. PNAA is not
registered as a securities broker-dealer
and, therefore, does not provide
brokerage services. See Item 14 below
for more details on client referrals
and other compensation.
When elected by clients to act as
custodian, our fees are debited
directly by our affiliate banks on a
quarterly basis in arrears, on the first
Monday following the 15th of the last
month of the quarter. The value date
of the debit will be the last business
day of the quarter. Fees are calculated
based on the average of the end-of-
month balances of the three previous
months. For example, the first quarter
of each calendar year, fees will be
debited on the first Monday after
March 15, and will cover December,
January and February.
Item 6: Performance –
Based Fees and Side-By-
Side Management
We do not charge performance-based
fees to any clients.
We recognize that conflicts related
Where a non-affiliated custodian is
selected by a client, we will work with
that client and custodian regarding
the debiting of our fees by the
custodian on a mutually agreeable
basis. Our fees are calculated based
on the value of the client’s assets
under management, as determined
by the client’s custodian.
OTHER TyPES Of fEES
AND ExPENSES
Brokerage commissions, transaction
fees, custodian fees, other related
costs and expenses which shall be
incurred by the clients are exclusive
and in addition to our advisory
services fees.
Clients incur additional charges
We have policies and procedures
in place aiming at ensuring that all
client accounts are treated fairly
and equitably. For example, we strive
to equitably allocate investment
opportunities among relevant
accounts over time. In addition,
investment decisions for each account
are made with specific reference to
the individual needs and objectives
of the account. Accordingly, we give
advice or exercise investment
responsibility or take other actions
for some clients (including related
persons) that differ from the advice
given, or the timing and nature of
actions taken, for other clients.
Investment results for different
accounts, including accounts that
are generally managed in a similar
style, also differ as a result of these
considerations. As a result, some
clients will not participate at all in
some investments in which other
clients participate or will participate
to a different degree or at a different
time than other clients do.
Please see Item 12, Brokerage
Practices, for more information
regarding allocation of
investment opportunities.
such as stamp duties, taxes,
commission charges, exchanges and
other fees charged by third-party
brokers including related brokers.
More specifically, third-party brokers
including related brokers charge
commissions when acting as agent,
or a mark-up when acting as
principal, plus fees to execute
securities transactions. Those
commissions and mark-up fees are
passed on by brokers to our clients.
Mutual funds and exchange traded
funds also charge internal
management and administration
fees, which are disclosed in each
fund’s prospectus and are not
included in our advisory services fee.
See Item 12 below for more details on
brokerage practices.
PNAA does not reduce its
to side-by-side management of
different accounts exist for other
reasons. For example, our portfolio
managers manage more than one
discretionary account (client account
or affiliated private fund account)
according to the same or a substantially
similar investment strategy. Side-by-
side management of different types
of accounts by portfolio managers
involves potential conflicts of interest
that arise when two or more accounts
invest in the same securities or pursue
a similar strategy. These potential
conflicts include the favorable or
preferential treatment of an account or
a group of accounts, conflicts related
to the allocation of investment
opportunities, particularly with
respect to securities that have limited
availability, such as initial public
offerings, and transactions in one
account that closely follow related
transactions in a different account,
(e.g., a purchase of securities for an
account after a purchase of the
same securities in another account
has increased the value of the
securities). In addition, the results
of the investment activities for one
account may differ significantly
from the results achieved by PNAA
for other accounts.
Advisory Services fees to offset any
of the above fees, costs or expenses.
6
PICTET NORTH AMERICA ADVISORS SA 2 July 2024
Item 7: Types of Clients
• medium risk strategies including
but not limited to 100% equities
either global, US or specific markets,
cash management or precious
metal, and
investment grade fixed income
instruments and well-known funds.
In addition, we aim at avoiding micro
cap securities, certain unstable
countries, leverage and derivatives
for speculative purposes.
• high risk strategies including, but
not limited to, strategies where
the equities level is much higher
than the fixed income level.
Generally, clients should keep in
mind that all types of investments
in financial instruments involve risks
of loss.
Our discretionary mandates can
opportunistically also include a
portion of alternative investments
(funds of hedge funds) and/or precious
metals to seek diversification of
financial instruments and markets
(including emerging countries).
All positions can be held directly
As noted in Item 4 above, we advise
mainly individuals, trusts, estates,
private funds, charitable organizations
and small corporations or similar
small business entities that are mainly
U.S. persons. Although there is no
minimal dollar value for establishing
a discretionary or non-discretionary
asset management account with us,
we believe that a minimum of
approximately USD5,000,000 typically
allows for an adequate diversification
of the clients’ portfolio. We enter into
agreements with clients who have
different account sizes and, in special
circumstances, accept lesser amounts
in our discretion.
or indirectly through funds
(including affiliated funds).
Item 8: Methods of Analysis,
Investment Strategies and
Risk of Loss
mETHOds OF AnAlysis
b) Non-Discretionary Mandates
For our non-discretionary clients
(advisory clients), we provide a trade-
by-trade basis advice, tailored to each
client depending on individual needs
and profile. We provide advice on
various instruments including,
but not limited to, equity securities,
warrants, corporate debt securities,
commercial papers, certificates of
deposit, municipal securities,
mutual and exchange-traded fund
shares, governmental securities,
options, precious metals, derivatives
and alternative investments
(including hedge funds and private
equity vehicles).
b) Other Material Risks
Associated with Discretionary
& Non-Discretionary Mandates
Investing in financial instruments
including securities involves a risk of
loss that clients should be prepared
to bear. Other usual material risks
relating to investments include, but
are not limited to:
Generally, clients should keep in
mind that all types of investments
in financial instruments involve
risks of loss.
KEy invEsTmEnT sTrATEgiEs
& mATEriAl risKs
Market Risk – market price
of securities can go up or down,
sometimes rapidly or unpredictably,
and can lead clients to lose up to
their whole investment. Market risk
exists in all types of investments.
Liquidity Risk – a particular
security or other instruments can
become difficult to trade. An illiquid
asset reduces the returns because the
investor is not able to sell the assets
at the time desired for an acceptable
price or is not able to sell the assets
at all.
Credit/Counterparty Risk –
a) Discretionary Mandates
We offer discretionary clients
depending of their profiles various
strategies including, but not limited
to, fixed income, conservative,
moderate growth, growth, cash & gold,
US, Swiss and international equities.
These strategies involve financial
instruments with different risk levels
from lower risk (e.g. cash and fixed
income securities) to higher risk
(e.g. equities in emerging countries).
For example, the discretionary
mandates offer:
possibility that the issuer or
guarantor of a fixed income security,
a bank or the counterparty of a
derivatives contract will default on
its obligation to pay interest and/or
principal, which could cause an
investor to lose money.
• low risk strategies including, but
not limited to, enhanced fixed
income investments;
• balanced risk strategies investing
a) Discretionary Mandates
For our discretionary clients,
we generally focus on allocating
investments among various asset
classes, following a top-down
investment approach, with the asset
allocation decision being the biggest
source of alpha. We seek international
diversification in an effort to enhance
portfolio return while trying to
diversify risks. Our securities analysis
methods include, but are not limited
to, fundamental, quantitative and
technical research. We will also use
hedging strategies to alter the equity
and/or currency exposure of
discretionary mandate portfolios
to try to protect the clients’ assets
against market events likely to have
a negative impact on performance.
Our clients’ discretionary managed
portfolios include various instruments
including, but not limited to, equity
securities, corporate debt securities,
commercial papers, certificates of
deposit, municipal and governmental
securities, mutual and exchange-
traded fund shares, precious metals,
derivatives and alternative investments
such as funds of hedge funds.
Our conservative investment style
and advices tend to focus primarily on
long-term purchases. We also generally
focus on liquid investments,
mainly in fixed income instruments
and equities. The level of risk for
such strategies range from
medium risk where the equities
level is lower than the fixed
income level, to higher risk where
the equities part is higher than
the fixed income level;
High Yield Risk – lower-quality
debt securities as rated by the major
credit rating agencies (those of less
than investment grade quality,
commonly known as “high yield
bonds” or “junk bonds”) are riskier,
speculative and involve greater risk
of default.
Interest Rate Risk – debt securities
fluctuate in value as interest rates
change. The general rule is that if
7
PICTET NORTH AMERICA ADVISORS SA 2 July 2024
Item 9: Disciplinary
Information
interest rates rise, the market prices
of debt securities will usually
decrease and vice versa.
Commodities Risks –
Form ADV Part 2A requires a registered
investment adviser like PNAA to
disclose legal or disciplinary events
involving the firm or our managed
employees that are material to your
evaluation of our business or integrity
of our management. At this time, we
have no information to report that is
applicable to this item.
As noted in Item 4 above, PNAA
fees when transmitting orders to
third party brokers for execution.
However, our clients will be charged
the brokers’ commissions as also
described under Item 5. As further
explained under Item 12 below, our
clients’ orders are not aggregated with
Pictet clients’ orders. Pictet acts, from
time to time, as principal by being
the counterparty for certain types
of client transactions such as Forex
(option, spot, swap, forward) and
precious metal (gold, silver, platinum
& palladium) as well as use its Eurex
membership to place derivatives on
this market.
also completes a Form ADV which
contains additional information
about its business and its affiliates,
including legal or disciplinary events.
This document is filed with the SEC
and is publicly available through the
SEC’s website:
While PNAA and Pictet do not
share staff, two of PNAA’s members
of the Board of Directors (including
the Chairman) have executive
functions at Pictet.
http://www.adviserinfo.sec.gov/
In addition to the above, we have
commodities prices can be very volatile
and show important fluctuation
on short periods of time; with the
exception of precious metals, we do
not invest directly in commodities.
Foreign/Emerging Markets –
foreign securities involve the risk
of loss due to political, economic,
regulatory, and operational
uncertainties, currency fluctuations,
and generally higher credit risks
for foreign issuers. Clients should
be aware that all these risks are
heightened in emerging markets
more specifically. Investing in foreign
or emerging markets is generally
intended only for clients who are able
to bear and assume the increased risk
that they represent.
Currency Risk – form of risk that
IAPD/IAPDFirmSummary.
aspx?ORG_PK=142512. (PNAA’s IARD
Number is 142512 and its SEC
Number is 801-67491)
other arrangements with Pictet
regarding various corporate support
services, all of which are generally
unrelated to the investment advisory
services we provide to our clients.
generally arises from the change in
price of one currency against another.
Whenever clients have assets or
business operations across national
borders, they face currency risk if their
positions are not hedged. Currency
risks are not always hedged.
Item 10: Other Financial
Industry Activities
and Affiliations
OTHEr rEgisTrATiOns &
mATEriAl COnFliCTs
We strive to mitigate the above risks by
monitoring, among others, markets,
economic conditions, industries
concerns and changes to general
outlooks on corporate earnings,
regulatory developments, monetary
policies by central banks, changes to
interest or currency rates or adverse
investor sentiment in general.
b) Clients and pnAA affiliates
Clients have the option to enter
directly into the separate
non-investment advisory related
arrangements described below with
some other entities of the Pictet
Group. PNAA is not party to these
arrangements and does not receive
compensation in relation to those
arrangements, but has a general
indirect incentive, being part of
the Pictet Group, to refer business
to its affiliated entities.
In addition to PNAA, other Pictet
affiliates are registered with the SEC,
and PNAA has certain business
dealings or shares premises with
other affiliates of the Pictet Group,
which have various registrations with
foreign regulators. These affiliates
however do not have a controlling
influence over PNAA.
Different financial instruments
involve different levels of exposure
to risk and are therefore
inappropriate to your circumstances
or risk appetite.
MATERIAl RElATIONSHIPS
OR ARRANgEMENTS wITH
AffIlIATED ENTITIES
Please consult the Appendix 2
to this brochure entitled “General
Risk Warnings” for additional risk
information per financial
instrument type.
i) Custody Services
PNAA’s clients who select Pictet to
provide custodial services for their
assets, will enter into a separate
custodial arrangement directly with
Pictet. Pictet also provides other
non-investment related services
to our clients, including clearing,
matching and settlement of trades
into client accounts, valuation of
assets and provision of statements,
pursuant to separate agreements
between each client and Pictet.
See Item 15 for more information.
a) pnAA and Pictet
Pursuant to a service level agreement
supplemented by a brokerage
agreement (Order Handling SLA &
Brokerage Agreement), Pictet acts
as broker-dealer for our clients’
transactions as further described
under Item 12 below. Our clients’
transactions are executed by Pictet
or transmitted to third-party broker-
dealers (including related brokers) for
execution. As noted in Item 5 above,
Pictet does not charge clients routings
ii) Brokerage Services
Clients select the broker of their
choice. In this context, we propose
Pictet Overseas Inc., an affiliate of
PNAA, to our Clients for brokerage
8
PICTET NORTH AMERICA ADVISORS SA 2 July 2024
Clients and prospective clients
can review a copy of the Code by
contacting us at the address or
telephone number listed on the first
page of this brochure.
PARTICIPATION OR INTERESTS
IN ClIENTS TRANSACTIONS AND
PERSONAl TRADINg
trading services. If Clients select
Pictet Overseas Inc., they will then
enter into a separate brokerage
arrangement directly with this
affiliate. For greater clarity, PNAA is
not a party to this separate brokerage
agreement. Under such brokerage
arrangement, clients will place directly
trades in securities with Pictet
Overseas Inc.
Among other things, the Code also
includes policies and procedures
relating to the personal investment
activities of our Access Persons,
including transactions involving
securities that PNAA has
recommended to its clients and that
are held by its clients. Depending
upon a person’s functions, duties and
obligations, the Code places some
restrictions, requires pre-clearance
and/or reporting of certain personal
securities transactions, and imposes
timing and other restrictions on
transactions, outright prohibitions
and compliance certification. The
Code also requires the maintenance
and review of certain records as well
as periodic meetings to familiarize
persons subject to the Code with their
responsibilities under it.
We recommend to our clients that
they buy or sell interests in the same
investment products in which our
employees (including their connected
persons) or affiliates have from time
to time some financial interest,
including ownership. Further, we
occasionally recommend to our
client’s investments in one or more
investment vehicles, including
mutual funds and other pooled
investment vehicles, in which we, our
affiliates or other related persons have
a financial interest as investment
manager, general partner, trustee,
or co-investor. However, any such
recommendations would be based
on the best interest of the relevant
client(s). Further, we do not receive
any compensation as a result of these
recommendations. Lastly, personal
transactions and holdings of our
employees are subject to the Code
of Ethics and related controls
described above.
Although we do not hold
c) Private Fund
We manage a private fund entirely
dedicated to our clients for their
investments in alternative funds
such as hedge funds. This fund, its
General Partner, its custodian and
its administrator are all our affiliates.
The fund selects third party and/or
affiliated hedge funds with an
incentive to favor an affiliated fund
versus a third-party fund. The conflicts
of interests are addressed through
a number of measures including:
offsetting the fees so as to avoid
“double dipping”; not allowing any
specific remuneration to our staff
involved in the management of
the fund for that activity; having
a documented and controlled
investment selection process in place.
Ultimately, when some affiliated
underlying funds receive performance
fees, no such fee is paid to PNAA.
See Items 6 above, 11 and 14 below
for more details.
We owe a fiduciary duty to our
clients and a duty to act in the best
interests of our clients. This duty
generally requires that the interests of
clients be placed above the interests
of PNAA, its employees and all
Associated Persons whenever a conflict
is present. In addition, we must treat
all clients equitably. Therefore, we
expect that all of our Access Persons
will observe the highest standards of
honesty, integrity and professionalism
as noted above. More specifically,
we always expect that, our Access
Persons will:
A. Comply with all relevant laws
and regulations;
B. Place the interests of our
clients first;
C. Conduct all personal securities
Item 11: Code of Ethics,
Participation or Interest
in Client Transactions
and Personal Trading
COdE OF ETHiCs
transactions in compliance with
the Code of Ethics and avoid any
actual or potential conflict of
interest, or any abuse of their
position of trust and responsibility;
D. Hold all client information,
including securities holdings
and financial information
in confidence;
E. Maintain independence in the
decision-making process on behalf
of clients.
proprietary positions, our employees
or some of our affiliates have the right
to own, buy or sell for themselves
(proprietary account of our affiliates
where applicable) the same securities
that they or we have recommended
to clients. The risks associated with
personal trading is that individuals
will benefit or seek to benefit
personally with respect to a personal
security holding from client
transactions in the same or a similar
security. However, our employees
(and other access persons where
applicable) are subject to the Code
of Ethics and related controls
described above. In addition, there
are information barriers in place
between us and our affiliates,
including separate staff.
We strive to adhere to certain
standards of conduct based on
principles of professionalism, integrity,
honesty and trust, and have adopted
a Code of Ethics (“Code”), under SEC
Rule 204A–1, to help us meet these
standards and prevent conflicts of
interest. All our Access Persons must
comply with the Code which covers
the following key areas:
A. Prohibition against insider trading
B. Staff personal account dealing rules
C. Gifts and entertainment rules
D. Protecting the confidentiality
of client information
If a person subject to the Code fails
to comply with it, such person can be
subject to sanctions, which include,
but are not limited to, warnings,
disgorgement of profits, restrictions
on future personal trading, and in
the most severe cases the possibility
of dismissal.
E. Dealing with personal conflicts
of interest of Supervised Persons
F. Respecting PNAA corporate
confidential information
PNAA is the investment manager
of an investment vehicle organized as
a limited partnership under the rules
of the Cayman Islands. Its General
Partners is a company limited by
shares (also under the rules of the
Cayman Islands) related to the
Pictet Group; its administrator is
FundPartner Solutions (Europe) SA,
9
PICTET NORTH AMERICA ADVISORS SA 2 July 2024
Pictet acts also, from time to time, as
principal by being the counterparty
for certain type of transactions such
as Forex (option, spot, swap, forward)
and precious metal (gold, silver,
platinum & palladium) as well as
use its Eurex membership to place
derivatives on this market.
Under the Order Handling SLA,
Pictet also provides assistance to PNAA
in connection with the following:
• Subscription and redemption of
mutual funds
an entity part of the Pictet Group,
and the custodian is Pictet & Cie
(Europe) SA. This fund has been
created exclusively for certain clients,
to facilitate participations in third
party hedge funds or funds of hedge
funds. PNAA addresses the conflicts
of interest related to this structure by
disclosing it to the Clients/investors,
by verifying that the additional fees,
if any, relate to services effectively
provided, and by ensuring on a case-
by-case that the investment is in the
Client’s best interest and is suitable
to their investment profile.
As mentioned in Item 10 above,
• Participation in private equities
• IPOs and new bonds
issues subscription
In case Pictet acts on an agency basis,
it charges 5 basis points on all trades
placed in the Swiss market or 7 bps
for trades placed on other markets.
These fees are subject to annual
review in order to be in line with
the market’s practices. Pictet doesn’t
charge any fees when it directs the
trade to another party (i.e., the third-
party broker) as it is only acting as
an intermediary in the transaction.
When Pictet executes trades, an
affiliate of PNAA earns fees. This
represents a conflict of interest, but
PNAA believes in the high quality of
Pictet’s execution capabilities and
that its clients have retained PNAA
for the holistic services of the Pictet
group of companies.
Pictet acts, from time to time, as
principal by being the counterparty
for certain types of client transactions
such as Forex (option, spot, swap,
forward) and precious metal (gold,
silver, platinum & palladium) as well
as use its Eurex membership to place
derivatives on this market.
Please also see Item 6 above,
regarding side-by-side management
and related conflicts and controls.
Item 12: Brokerage Practices
BrOKErs sElECTiOn
We have an obligation to seek “best
execution” for client transactions.
Best execution generally refers to the
execution of portfolio transactions
in such a manner that the total cost
or proceeds in each transaction is
the most favorable under the
circumstances. The SEC defines
best execution as “best qualitative
execution”, not merely the lowest
possible execution cost. In evaluating
the quality of execution and selecting
broker-dealers to execute client
transactions, we consider various
factors, such as execution capability,
commission rate (or spread), financial
responsibility and responsiveness.
RESEARCH & SOfT
DOllARS BENEfITS
a) Discretionary mandates
With clients under discretionary
mandate, we have the authority and
discretion to determine the securities,
and the amounts of securities, to be
bought or sold for clients’ accounts,
subject to restrictions clients have
imposed as noted in Item 4 above.
We do not currently enter into third
party soft-dollar arrangements
with any related or external brokers.
However, Pictet has such
arrangements directly with third-
party brokers for which PNAA is
not a party to.
As noted in Items 5 and 10 above,
however, we do not execute our clients’
transactions ourselves. Pictet and
POI are acting as broker-dealer for
our clients’ transactions as follows:
In formulating investment advice,
• Pictet acting as introducing
broker-dealer by transmitting
the received orders from us to
third-party brokers including its
related entities such as Pictet
Canada LP (Canadian Broker)
which re-transmits to Pictet
Overseas Inc. (SEC/FINRA
broker) for the execution or
selecting the appropriate
counterparty at its discretion;
• Pictet acting as executing broker
itself or acting as counterparty for
transactions at its discretion; and
• POI acting as executing
broker itself.
We do not currently enter into
brokerage arrangements with non-
affiliated brokers and do not select
the specific brokers or counterparties
to be used for a client transaction.
Pursuant to the Order Handling
SLA & Brokerage Agreement discussed
under Item 10 above, Pictet maintains
an approved list of brokers. Pictet is
responsible for applying on a trade-
by-trade basis its best execution
policy. Pictet’s best execution policies
provide that in selecting brokers and
determining the reasonableness of
their commissions, the determinative
factor is not only the lowest possible
commission cost but also whether
the transaction represents the best
qualitative execution, taking into
consideration many factors. Pictet
will consider, among other things,
the full range of a broker’s services
including the value of research
provided, if any, execution capabilities
on international markets including
block positioning, financial stability,
ability to maintain confidentiality,
adequate settlement/delivery
capabilities, ability to obtain best
price by querying many markets and
using smart routers, commission rates
and responsiveness. Accordingly,
although Pictet will seek competitive
commission rates, it is not obligated
to choose the broker-dealer offering
the lowest available commission rate
if, in its reasonable judgment, there
is a material risk that the total cost or
proceeds from the transaction might
be less favorable than elsewhere, or,
if a higher commission is justified by
the trading provided by the broker-
dealer, or if other considerations,
such as those set forth above dictate
utilizing a different broker-dealer.
we rely on various sources of
information, mainly third-party
research materials, corporate rating
services, company’s press releases,
annual reports, prospectuses, filings
with the SEC, Bloomberg and other
financial networks. On a periodic
basis, our investment specialists
attend conferences organized by
external research firms on various
industries or markets. In addition,
we receive and utilize research
reports and market analysis from
Pictet and its affiliates. Our personnel
participate in investment committees
and meetings with Pictet to discuss
or gain information concerning
investment opportunities, markets,
corporate actions and strategies.
10
PICTET NORTH AMERICA ADVISORS SA 2 July 2024
PuNCTuAl REVIEwS
AllOCATION Of
INVESTMENT OPPORTuNITIES
Punctual reviews are also made by
the Chief Investment Officer (and/or
members of the portfolio management
team) and/or the Client Advisor as
deemed required.
The Client Advisor will also
perform a review in response to
various factors including, but not
limited to, market conditions, changes
in Client’s Investment Profile, etc.
Although Pictet provides us with
research and information about
markets and financial instruments,
Pictet does not provide advice or
recommendations to our clients.
We formulate our own investment
advice and recommendations for our
clients. In addition, our receipt of
research and other information from
Pictet is not a factor contributing to
our decision to continue outsourcing
the routing of orders to Pictet under
the Order Handling SLA.
REPORTS TO ClIENTS
From time to time, two or more
accounts intend to invest in the
same securities or pursue a similar
strategy. In such cases, we seek to
ensure that one account or group of
accounts is not favored or preferred
over another account or group of
accounts. We strive to be particularly
sensitive to this potential conflict
where a particular investment
opportunity has limited availability,
such as initial public offerings or
new/subsequent issues.
BROkERAgE fOR
ClIENT REfERRAlS
We do not receive client referrals
from external brokers, dealers or
financial intermediaries, and there
are no such arrangements in place.
See Item 14 below for more details
As noted under Item 6, we have
policies and procedures designed to
seek to ensure that client accounts
are treated fairly and equitably over
time regarding the allocation of
investment opportunities.
on client referrals.
DIRECTED BROkERAgE
We do not ourselves issue client
reports. Pictet, when acting as
custodian, issues directly to client’s
regular written reports on their
accounts (‘’Reports’’). Such Reports
are issued at least on a quarterly basis
(or on a monthly basis at the client’s
option) and include a valuation,
transaction statements and a
performance summary. These Reports
typically describe all assets held, the
quantity and market price in local
currency for each position and the
market value of the account expressed
in the client’s base currency translated
at current rates of exchange, which are
also shown. Clients should carefully
review those Reports. Where a non-
affiliated custodian is selected by a
client, we will work with that client
and custodian regarding the nature
and frequency of client reports.
b) Non-Discretionary mandates
For clients with non-discretionary
(i.e. advisory) accounts, we deliver our
non-discretionary advice. Typically,
they also need an avenue to trade in
securities and most advisory clients
open and maintain brokerage
accounts with POI, an affiliate of
PNAA, to provide brokerage services
on a needed basis. Under such
brokerage arrangement, clients will
place directly trades on securities
with POI. For greater clarity, Pictet
does not act as broker for such order
placed directly by client s to POI.
If a client asks to direct transaction(s)
to a specific broker or brokers for
execution, we are unable to achieve
most favorable execution, which
can result in additional costs and
expenses for the client. For example,
clients could pay higher brokerage
commissions and receive a less
favorable price when buying or
selling if they cannot participate in
an aggregated trade along with other
client orders executed through brokers
that Pictet selected. See below for
more detail about trade aggregation.
Item 14: Client Referrals
and Other Compensation
Item 13: Review of Accounts
TRADE AggREgATION
pEriOdiCAl rEviEw
We do not accept from non-client’s
economic benefit, including sales
awards for providing investment
advice or other advisory services to
our clients.
After account opening approval,
each client account is assigned to
one of our Client Advisors. Our Chief
Investment Officer and portfolio
management team regularly monitor
discretionary accounts, followed by
the monthly investment controlling
review aiming at monitoring
performance statistics, compliance
with investment restrictions and
allocation grids per discretionary
mandate types.
Lastly, the appointed Client
Advisor reviews client investment
objectives for both discretionary
and non-discretionary clients on
an annual basis.
We do, from time to time, refer
clients to some Pictet Group entities
(or to non-affiliated entities and
persons) for additional services such
as custody, trust and estate planning,
or tax optimization and reporting.
We do not receive any remuneration
or fee for such referrals (but do have
a general indirect incentive, being
part of the Pictet Group, to refer to
our affiliated entities where possible)
and the Pictet Group entities do not
charge clients more as a result of
such referrals.
When buying and selling investments
for clients, we generally aggregate
multiple transactions into one order.
Each client that participates in an
aggregated order participates at
the average price. In case of partial
execution of an aggregated order, the
executed trades and related external
broker’s commissions are both
allocated on a pro rata basis. Should
the prorated allocation lead to
uneconomical or unsuitable results,
or in the case of securities issued
by specific lots, we shall modify the
allocation and document the reason
for this decision. In aggregating
orders and allocating such orders, we
seek fairness among our clients over
time. Also, our client orders can not
be aggregated with non PNAA client
orders or with the orders of PNAA
Access Persons.
11
PICTET NORTH AMERICA ADVISORS SA 2 July 2024
Item 16: Investment
Discretion
Pictet Group entities also refer, from
time to time, clients to us, but we do
not pay or receive any remuneration
or fee for such referrals. We do not
charge our clients more as a result of
these referrals. In addition, potential
client referrals from Pictet are not a
factor contributing to our decision to
retain Pictet as broker under the Order
Handling SLA & Brokerage Agreement.
Occasionally, we enter into
PNAA receives and exercises
discretionary authority to manage
investments on behalf of discretionary
clients. As noted in Item 4 above,
some discretionary clients impose
limitations on this discretion with
respect to certain aspects of the
management of their account.
We typically assume and receive
this discretionary authority though
the written Discretionary Mandate,
completed by the Client
Investment Profile.
Item 17: Voting
Client Securities
relationships with solicitors to refer
prospective clients to us. They are
paid a referral fee in accordance with
the requirements of Rule 206(4)-3 of
the Advisers Act. This fee is generally
calculated based on a percentage of
asset under management and is
disclosed to you as per our related
policy. This referral fee paid to
solicitors does not result in any
additional charge to our clients.
Item 15: Custody
PNAA does not have direct custody
of client assets. Pictet, where acting
as qualified custodian, sends
quarterly (or more frequent) account
statements directly to clients. Where
a non-affiliated custodian is selected
by a client, we will work with that
client and custodian to ensure that
the custodian sends directly the
Reports to our clients.
We have a policy to not accept proxy
voting responsibility for securities
held in our clients’ accounts subject
that we will exercise investment
authority for certain corporate actions
(including, but not limited to, take-
over, dividend in cash or shares, rights
offering, offer to redeem, split, reverse
split, change in nominal value, etc)
in connection with the discretionary
accounts. For the nondiscretionary
advisory clients, corporate actions
are discussed with them prior to the
event taking place. Clients should
make arrangement directly with
their custodian to vote proxies for
securities or to obtain proxies or
other solicitation materials directly
from their custodian.
Clients should carefully review
those reports received from their
custodians. See Form ADV, Item 9
and Schedule D, Section 7A, 9C for
more information relating to Pictet
acting as qualified custodian.
Item 18: Financial
Information
Form ADV 2A requires us to disclose
any financial condition reasonably
likely to impair our ability to meet
contractual commitments to clients. At
this time, we have no information to
report that is responsive to this item.
12
PICTET NORTH AMERICA ADVISORS SA 2 July 2024
Appendix 1
privACy pOliCy
PNAA’s affiliates will not use any information received
from PNAA to solicit you.
Privacy Notice – More Information on Privacy
of Your Information
We Take Important Steps to Help Safeguard the
Information We Collect About Our Clients
At PNAA, we are committed to safeguarding our clients’
personal information. This notice describes the personal
information that PNAA collects regarding an individual’s
current or former relationships with PNAA and how
PNAA handles and protects that information. As part of
PNAA’s normal business practices, PNAA distributes a
Privacy Notice annually or when significant changes are
made to it.
Why and How pnAA Shares Information with Non-
affiliated Third Parties
PNAA does not and will not rent or sell the personal
information of its clients, their representatives or
authorized persons. However, PNAA shares this
information with Pictet or with companies that PNAA
hires to perform services for it. In these cases, PNAA
requires these non-affiliated third parties with which
PNAA shares personal information to agree to strictly
limit the use of such information to the purposes for
which it was provided.
Why and How pnAA Collects Personal Information
PNAA collects personal information to enable it to
provide services to clients and to conduct its business.
For example, PNAA collects personal information to:
• Help evaluate the needs of clients and comply with
regulatory obligations;
• Process requests and transactions;
• Provide clients with effective and efficient service.
PNAA collects information from a variety of sources,
including:
Sharing Information with Providers of Financial
Instruments
Some providers of certain financial instruments (e.g.,
issuers of structured products, investment companies,
or limited partnerships), whether affiliates or not, require
PNAA or its affiliates to disclose personal information
including a tax identification number (“TIN”) or other
identifiers. Where client objectives permit and applicable
law allows, we require such providers to agree to strictly
limit their use of the information only to the purpose
for which it was provided.
• Account opening documentation and other
In particular, PNAA or its affiliates are required to
forms submitted to PNAA or its affiliates in the
Pictet Group, which provide information such as
the name, address, email address, telephone
numbers, date of birth, Social Insurance or other
identification number, occupation, financial goals,
assets, income and source of funds of our clients
or their representatives.
• Our clients’ transactions or communications with
PNAA and PNAA’s affiliates in the Pictet Group.
share information with certain fund managers in
accordance with Rule 22c-2 under the Investment
Company Act of 1940. This rule is intended to help
address abuses associated with short-term trading of
fund shares. The rule requires an open-end fund and its
intermediaries to provide the fund’s management the
ability to identify investors whose trading violates fund
restrictions on short-term trading. PNAA or its affiliates
are required to provide all the information as set out in
Rule 22c-2, amongst others name, TIN, number of shares,
held and dates of transactions.
Who Has Access to Personal Information
PNAA maintains personal information about clients,
their representatives and authorized persons on PNAA’s
client database. Access to this database is restricted to
employees of PNAA or certain employees of PNAA’s
affiliates that provide services for PNAA under service
level agreements with client confidentiality safeguards.
Sharing Information to Regulators
PNAA discloses personal information to the Swiss
Financial Market Supervisory Authority (FINMA),
the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC),
our external auditors or certain other regulators as
required or permitted by applicable law for
regulatory or enforcement purposes (e.g. anti-money
laundering investigations).
How pnAA Protects Personal Information
All PNAA employees who have access to personal
information are required to maintain and protect the
confidentiality of that information and must follow
established procedures. PNAA maintains physical,
electronic and procedural safeguards (including firewalls,
user authentication systems and access control
mechanisms) to protect personal information and to
comply with all applicable laws and regulations.
Accessing and Revising Personal Information
PNAA will endeavor to keep its client files complete
and accurate. Most of the information PNAA collect
is from the applications and forms that clients have
submitted to obtain services from PNAA or its affiliates.
PNAA will provide clients with reasonable access
to this information. This information is reflected
in the documentation that PNAA provides or makes
available to its clients. Clients are encouraged to review
this information and notify their PNAA client advisor
if this information should be corrected or updated
or if they have any questions or concerns about their
personal information.
Why and How PNAA Shares Information
With its Affiliates
Personal information about PNAA’s clients, their
representatives and authorized persons is shared with
certain PNAA’s affiliates, subject to service level
agreements as described above, and as required or
permitted by client agreement or applicable law.
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Appendix 2
gEnErAl risK wArnings
The general risk warnings are provided to you as clients
of PNAA.
Different instruments involve different levels of
Risks
Securitized derivatives often involve a high degree of
gearing or leverage, so that a relatively small movement
in the price of the underlying investment results in
a much larger movement, unfavorable or favorable,
in the price of the securitized derivative which means
that the price of these instruments can be volatile.
Securitized derivatives have a limited life and can
(unless there is some form of guaranteed return to
the amount you are investing in the product) expire
worthless if the underlying instrument does not perform
as expected.
exposure to risk and therefore are inappropriate to your
circumstances or risk appetite. You should not deal in
any instruments unless you are satisfied that you
understand their nature and the extent of potential risk.
These risk warnings cannot disclose all the risks and
other significant aspects of the financial instruments in
which we deal on your behalf. Neither do these risk
warnings constitute any advice which we could provide
to you.
In relation to derivatives, these risk warnings cannot
As a result of this risk, you should only buy these
products if you are prepared to lose all of the money
you have invested plus any commission or other
transaction charges.
disclose all the risks and other significant aspects of
warrants and/or derivative products such as futures,
options, and contracts for differences. Although can be
used for the management of investment risk, some of
these products are unsuitable for many investors.
You should consider carefully whether or not this
product is suitable for you in light of your circumstances
and financial position and if you are in any doubt you
should seek professional advice.
fINANCIAl INSTRuMENTS
1. Warrants
Nature
A warrant is a time-limited right to subscribe for shares,
debentures, loan stock or government securities and is
exercisable against the original issuer of the underlying
securities.
3. Contracts for difference
Nature
Futures and options contracts can also be referred to as
contracts for difference. These can be options and futures
on the SP500 index or any other index, as well as currency
and interest rate swaps. However, unlike other futures
and options, these contracts can only be settled in cash.
Some other instruments are also called warrants
but are actually options (for example, a right to acquire
securities which is exercisable against someone other
than the original issuer of the securities, often called
a ‘covered warrant’).
Risks
Investing in a contract for difference carries a high degree
of risk because the ‘gearing’ or ‘leverage’ often obtainable
means that a small deposit or down payment can lead to
large losses as well as gains.
This also means that a relatively small movement can
lead to a proportionately much larger movement in the
value of your investment and this can work against you
as well as for you.
Risks
It is important to note that a relatively small movement
in the price of the underlying security results in a
disproportionately large movement, unfavorable or
favorable, in the price of the warrant. As a result,
the prices of warrants can be volatile.
The right to subscribe conferred by a warrant is
generally limited by time, which means that if the investor
fails to exercise this right within the predetermined
timescale then the investment becomes worthless.
4. Options
Nature
An option is an instrument sold by one party to another
that offers the buyer the right, but not the obligation, to
buy (call) or sell (put) a security at an agreed-upon price
during a certain period of time or on a specific date.
It is therefore important to understand that if you
There are many different types of options with different
characteristics and risks. Two examples are set out below.
are considering purchasing a warrant you should be
prepared to lose all of the money you have invested
plus any commission or other transaction charges.
Risks of buying options
Buying options involves less risk than selling options
because, if the price of the underlying asset moves
against you, you can simply allow the option to lapse.
The maximum loss is limited to the premium, plus any
commission or other transaction charges.
2. Securitized derivatives
Nature
Certain types of securitized derivatives, including
covered warrants, contain a time-limited right to buy or
sell one or more types of investment which is normally
exercisable against someone other than the issuer of that
investment.
Risks of writing options:
If you write an option, the risk involved is considerably
greater than buying options. You are liable for margin to
maintain its position and a loss could be sustained well
in excess of the premium received.
When writing an option, you accept a legal obligation
Other types of securitized derivatives give you rights
under a contract for differences which allow for speculation
on the changes in the value of a particular kind of property
(of any description) or changes in the value of an index,
such as the SP500 index or any other index.
In both cases, the investment or property are referred
to purchase or sell the underlying asset if the option is
exercised against you, however far the market price has
moved away from the exercise price.
to as the “underlying instrument”.
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If you already own the underlying asset which you have
contracted to sell (when the options will be known as
‘covered call options’) the risk is reduced.
6. Shares
Nature
Shares, known as equities, represent a portion of a
company’s share capital. The extent of your ownership
in a company depends on the number of shares you own
in relation to the total number of shares in issue.
If you do not own the underlying asset (‘uncovered
call options’) the risk can be unlimited. Only experienced
persons should contemplate writing uncovered options,
and then only after securing full details of the applicable
conditions and potential risk exposure.
Some shares are bought and sold on stock exchanges
and their values can go down as well as up in line with
market conditions. These shares are termed “quoted”.
5. Collective investment products
Nature
Collective Investment products include but are not
limited to Mutual Funds, Exchange Traded Funds (ETFs),
private funds, Real Estate Investment Trusts (REITs) and
hedge funds. These are all investment vehicles that invest
their assets in the securities of other issuers, or in cash,
in accordance with their own internal rules.
Risks
In respect of unlisted shares or shares in small
companies, there is an extra risk of losing money when
such shares are bought or sold as there usually is a big
difference between the buying and selling price. Shares
in companies incorporated in emerging markets are
generally harder to buy and sell than those in more
developed markets and such companies aren’t necessarily
regulated as strictly.
REITs are listed companies. Investment Trusts and
REITs trade at a discount or premium to the cumulative
value of their underlying investments, depending on the
demand for their shares. Unit Trusts and ICVCs are
usually priced daily using a set formula based on their
net assets minus charges.
7. Specialist sector investments
Investing in shares that are concentrated in a specialist
sector is considered to be a higher risk strategy, due to
the concentrated exposure to the market sectorin
question.
Some collective investment products specialize in
certain countries or sectors and you should read the
terms of any key features document or prospectus
carefully before deciding on an investment.
Whilst such investments theoretically offer greater
returns over the long term, this can be coupled with the
risk of higher volatility.
Risks
The value of an investment in a collective investment
product is determined by the value of the underlying
investment made by the product’s managers.
As with individual equities, the value of your
investment can go down as well as up and you might
not get back the original amount you invested.
Any income you receive from your investment in a
collective investment scheme varies with the dividends
or interest paid by the underlying investments and so
could fall as well as rise.
Collective investment products that focus on a
country, sector or market index possibly display greater
volatility than the wider market and so should be
considered as higher risk than more widely invested
collective investment products.
It is impossible to trade units or shares in collective
investment products if there is no liquid market.
In the case of open-ended funds, in particular hedge
funds, there will probably be limits to your ability to
redeem units while some funds also engage in shorting
or leveraging techniques.
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Appendix 3
glOSSARy Of RISkS
Currency/exchange rate risk
This risk arises when the reference currency differs
from the investment currency. Fluctuations in foreign
exchange rates directly impact (positively or negatively)
the value/price or income of the holdings. Funds that
attempt to hedge against currency risk can mitigate the
direct impact of currency movements but cannot
completely isolate the indirect effect of foreign exchange
fluctuations. When investing in structured products,
investors may benefit from an embedded hedge of the
underlying currency risk that is referred to as a quanto.
Derivative and leverage risks
Investing in derivative instruments or leveraging an
investment can lead to a high degree of financial risk.
Changes in the price of an underlying security, investment,
interest rate or benchmark can result in proportionally
larger changes in the price of the derivative instrument
or investment, resulting in losses that can in certain
circumstances exceed the cost of the investment. There is
also a potential risk of default by a counterparty and the
risk that that these products may not be liquid.
Economic risk
The economic cycle and macroeconomic situation of
a country, a region or the global economy can have a
significant influence on prices of financial instruments.
Commodity risk
The value of commodity-linked instruments can fluctuate
substantially due to changes in supply and demand as
well as due to political, economic and market events.
Company-specific risk
Company-specific risk (or unsystematic risk) is specific to
an individual company. For example, even if the stock
market or the share prices of comparable companies are
rising, certain company-specific news can have a negative
impact on the share price.
Emerging market risk
Investing in emerging markets carries a heightened risk
profile; liquidity may be less reliable and price volatility
can be higher than that experienced in more developed
economies, potentially resulting in sudden and significant
declines in value. Emerging markets have less sophisticated
rules governing the clearing and settlement of transactions
and investor protection.
High yield bond risk
Portfolios with high exposures to non-investment grade
debt instruments (S&P/Moody’s Credit Rating: BB+ and
below) have a higher exposure to credit and default risk.
This company-specific news can include negative events
such as strikes, management crises and poor annual results
as well as positive news such as winning a major contract,
the launch of innovative products and a favourable market
outlook. Extraordinary events within a company may
cause the share price to fluctuate (volatility) and cannot
be foreseen.
Concentration risk
Refers to identifying the risk in a portfolio arising
from a concentration in a single asset, counterparty,
sector or country.
Inflation risk
Inflation risk should be considered in particular when
investing in emerging markets or fixed-rate investments.
Inflation is defined as the rate at which prices increase
in an economy. Inflation can lead to currency
depreciation and reduce the real returns of investments
and financial instruments.
Counterparty/issuer risk
The risk of losing part or all of an investment due to
the insolvency of the issuer of the financial instrument.
This risk is particularly relevant for structured products,
derivatives and certain ETFs (exchange-traded funds).
Interest rate risk
Changes in interest rates usually result in an opposite
movement in the value of bonds and other debt instruments
(e.g. a rise in interest rates is generally reflected by a fall
in bond prices). The longer the maturity of the bond (the
time when the principal is due to be repaid), the higher
the interest rate risk. This is the commonly referred to as
duration risk.
Country risk
Country risk should be considered when investing in a
foreign country and in particular in emerging markets,
e.g. the risk of investing in shares of a foreign company
that is exposed to the risk of nationalisation or the
inability to repatriate proceeds of an investment due
to capital controls.
Liquidity risk
When market conditions are unusual or characterised
by particularly low volumes, a portfolio can encounter
difficulties in valuing and/or trading some of its assets.
For funds, liquidity constraints can arise, resulting in
limited availability for subscriptions and redemptions or
lockups can be imposed, meaning investors are subject
to market risk during interim pricing periods and may
have limited ability to access funds at short notice. For
Credit and default risk
This risk arises when the financial health of an issuer of
a fixed-income security deteriorates, leading to the issuer’s
inability or unwillingness to repay the bond or meet
contractual obligations (interest or principal repayments).
This can result in a decline in the value of the bonds or
render them worthless.
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• Climate physical risk
structured products, liquidity risk could materialize before
maturity as investors can encounter difficulties in selling
the product on the secondary market. The investor may
receive less than their initial investment if the product is
sold on the secondary market (if the parameters impacting
the product market value are unfavourable).
Market risk
Financial instruments are subject to price fluctuation/
volatility and to political and economic risks which can
significantly impact the performance of the financial
instrument/portfolio.
This refers to the risk associated with the exposure to
issuers that may be negatively affected by the physical
impact of climate change. Physical risk includes acute
risks arising from extreme weather events such as storms,
floods, droughts, fires or heatwaves, and chronic risks
from gradual climate changes, such as changing rainfall
patterns, rising sea levels, ocean acidification, and
biodiversity loss. Physical risks may negatively
affect the value of investments by impairing assets,
productivity or revenues, or by increasing liabilities,
capital expenditures, operating and financing costs.
• Environmental risk
Political risk
Countries with unstable political leadership or where
politics strongly influence markets and business practices
may be subject to greater volatility. Political risk may include
potential for currency controls that would disrupt the
financial markets in that country.
This refers to the risk associated with the exposure to
issuers that may be affected by environmental degradation
and/or the depletion of natural resources. Environmental
risk can result from air pollution, water pollution, waste
generation, the depletion of freshwater and marine
resources, the loss of biodiversity or damages to
ecosystems. Environmental risks can negatively affect the
value of investments by impairing assets, productivity or
revenues, or by increasing liabilities, capital expenditures,
operating and financing costs.
Reinvestment risk
The risk that coupons from a bond will not be reinvested
at the same interest rate as when the bond was issued. This
risk is related to the fluctuation of interest rates, where an
increase in interest rates will be positive for the investor
and a decrease unfavourable.
• Social risk
Risks linked to costs/charges
All investments incur various charges regardless of whether
or not the investment return is positive or negative. When
the investment return is very low or negative, these charges
can significantly impact the overall return.
This refers to the risk associated with the exposure to
issuers that may be negatively affected by social factors
such as poor labour standards, human rights violations,
damages to public health, data privacy breaches or
increased inequalities. Social risks can negatively
affect the value of investments by impairing assets,
productivity or revenues, or by increasing liabilities,
capital expenditures, operating and financing costs.
• Governance risk
Smaller company risk
Securities of smaller companies may be less liquid than
larger companies. Securities of smaller companies may
be more price volatile and entail greater risk.
Sustainability risk
The risk arising from any environmental, social or
governance events or conditions that, were they to occur,
could have a material negative impact on the value of
the investment. Specific ESG/sustainability risks include,
but are not limited to, the following:
• Climate transition risk
This refers to the risk associated with issuers that may
be negatively affected by weak governance structures.
For companies, governance risk can result from
malfunctioning boards, inadequate remuneration
structures, abuses of minority shareholders or
bondholders’ rights, deficient controls, aggressive tax
planning and accounting practices or lack of business
ethics. For countries, governance risk can stem from
governmental instability, bribery and corruption,
privacy breaches and lack of judicial independence.
Governance risk may negatively affect the value of
investments due to poor strategic decisions, conflicts
of interest, reputational damages, increased liabilities
or loss of investor confidence.
Consequent impacts to the occurrence of Sustainability
Risks can be many and varied according to a specific risk,
region or asset class. Generally, when a Sustainability Risk
occurs for an asset, there will be a negative impact and
potentially a partial or total loss of its value. However,
the integration of Sustainability Risks analysis should
mitigate the impact of such risks on the value of the
investments and could help enhance long-term risk
adjusted returns for investor.
This refers to the risk associated with the exposure to
issuers that may be negatively affected by the transition
to a low-carbon economy due to their involvement in
fossil fuel exploration, production, processing, trading
and sale, or their dependency on carbon-intensive
materials, processes, products and services. Transition
risk may result from several factors, including rising costs
and/or the limitation of greenhouse gas emissions,
energy-efficiency requirements, the reduction in fossil
fuel demand or the shift to alternative energy sources due
to policy, regulatory, technological and market demand
changes. Transition risks can negatively affect the value
of investments by impairing assets or revenues, or by
increasing liabilities, capital expenditures, operating
and financing costs.
Source: SIx Swiss Exchange
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