BW & Associates, Inc.

BW & Associates provides investment management and related financial planning and consulting to individuals (including high‑net‑worth clients), charitable organizations, and businesses, managing $692,790,049 of client assets on a non‑discretionary basis as of 12/31/2025. Services center on individual portfolio management using open‑end mutual funds and ETFs, with variable annuity analysis and complimentary planning work offered as part of ongoing relationships.

The firm emphasizes a long‑term, asset‑allocation approach, generally buying and holding diversified mutual funds or ETFs and advising clients against market‑timing or tactical trading; recommendations are implemented only after client approval, with limited discretionary authority primarily to effect fee debits and small reallocations. BWA monitors fund managers and seeks lower‑cost share classes when appropriate, and its advice explicitly addresses retirement distributions, IRA processes, and annuity suitability including consideration of 1035 exchanges.

What is notable about the firm is the combination of a predominantly non‑discretionary practice and a relatively large asset base managed by a small advisor team—resulting in unusually high AUM per advisor compared with peers. The firm also discloses broker‑dealer and insurance affiliations and the potential conflicts that arise when representatives recommend insurance products or 1035 exchanges into advisory‑fee‑based variable annuities, and it documents procedures intended to address those conflicts.