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About Us
Foss Mountain Capital, LLC is a wealth management firm specializing in absolute return commodity strategies. Through an open architecture manager platform we offer customized managed futures and foreign exchange investment solutions to institutional and high net worth investors.
A Word from the Founder: Bernard J. Braudis
Modern portfolio theory states that more efficient investment portfolios can be created by diversifying among asset classes with low to negative correlations. After many years of working with high net worth and institutional investors, I have found that strategy diversification is just as important in creating a more diversified portfolio.
Strategy diversification involves absolute return investing and is typically associated with alternative investments. The main characteristics of alternative investments include the use of sophisticated investment strategies, ability to earn profits and defend gains in both rising and falling markets and the alignment of interests where manager compensation is tied to investment performance.
A number of years ago I read a white paper on a sub-class of alternative investments called Managed Futures. The article discussed professional money managers who actively managed client funds under an investment strategy broadly defined as an absolute return commodity focus. From an intellectual standpoint, I was hooked. I had substantial experience allocating funds to alternative investments such as hedge funds, private equity and real estate partnerships. The more I learned about the benefits of allocating to managed futures, the more intrigued I became at how under-represented these particular managers were in the asset allocation process, especially in the high net worth marketplace. I also recognized a tremendous opportunity to offer a unique value proposition to sophisticated investors.
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With this in mind, I founded Foss Mountain Capital to better serve the needs of investors interested in proactively structuring their portfolios for volatile markets and prolonged economic uncertainty. Our clients are long-term investors who recognize that not every data release, breaking news announcement or market rumor is all that significant over the long haul. They are seeking the advice of a trusted advisor and are concerned with loss of principal, comfortable retirement and market volatility. Their primary focus is on the real return of their investment portfolio after fees, taxes and inflation. Performance is key, however when taking a holistic view of their investments, overall risk management and wealth preservation is paramount.
Our website is built on transparency and disclosure and designed to educate investors on both the merits of this compelling asset class and the benefits of adding managed futures to a well-balanced portfolio. At a minimum, I hope you find the content informative and learn a little more about this dynamic aspect of the investment world.
Please do not hesitate to contact me directly at bbraudis@FossMountainCapital.com.
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| Experience |
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Before founding Foss Mountain Capital LLC, Bernie was a Portfolio Manager for U.S. Trust, Bank of America’s private banking unit, and Columbia Management Group, Bank of America’s investment asset division. At Bank of America Bernie was responsible for managing investment portfolios for both institutional and high net worth clients.
Before joining Bank of America Bernie provided investment management and hedging and diversification strategies for concentrated equity positions as a member of the Montgomery Private Client Group at Banc of America Securities, LLC.
Bernie also successfully founded and managed an information technology company, B&L Trading Corp.
Bernie began his investment career as a Financial Consultant with E.F. Hutton (now known as Smith Barney) and Prudential-Bache Securities, after receiving his B.A. in History at the College of the Holy Cross.
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Philosophy
Our investment mandate is to offer access to institutional quality managers who possess attractive risk-adjusted returns and provide exposure to different risk/return characteristics compared to traditional investments.
Our bias toward absolute-return style investing is validated by today’s secular global growth trends, fundamental and market valuations, uncertain economic environment and geopolitical conditions.
Our investment philosophy is grounded in the academically validated principle that asset allocation along with strategy diversification rather than security selection or market timing is the primary driver for achieving increased investment returns over the long-term.
| We Believe Asset Allocation is Most Successful if Implemented in Two Steps: |
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Step one involves building a core portfolio comprised of the traditional asset classes. The equity allocation should include domestic and international (developed and emerging) stocks, diversified by market cap and style (growth/value). The fixed income allocation should include a combination of tax exempt and taxable securities with a focus on duration.
Step two in the asset allocation process involves identifying investment strategies that may be significant sources of "alpha" and allocating a portion of client funds to them. Alpha is a "skill-based" return measure and is the difference between a portfolio’s actual returns and its expected performance, given its level of risk as measured by beta.
The benefits of a managed futures offering within a well-balanced portfolio include:
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| Brief Overview of our Manager of Managers’ Approach |
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According to its business model, Foss Mountain Capital will create investment portfolios utilizing a manger of managers’ approach. Through careful and extensive research, Foss Mountain Capital will select a customized team of independent money mangers to meet the investment objectives of each client. There are hundreds of managers referred to as Commodity Trading Advisors (CTAs) in which to invest. Each manager has a different strategy, risk profile, investment minimum and level of experience. The goal of Foss Mountain Capital’s selection process is as follows:
- Evaluate each manager’s risk/reward profile according to a set of benchmarks which include their standard deviation tendencies, Sharpe and Sortino ratios, drawdown/recovery times and return distribution.
- Based on these risk adjusted statistics, build a portfolio comprised of non-correlating managers where the risk/return profile is in line with the client’s investment goals and risk tolerance.
Once the selection is complete, on an ongoing basis, Foss Mountain Capital will provide the following service:
- Continual monitoring of each manager to ensure they are adhering to their trading strategy and that the strategy continues to meet the client’s investment objectives. This monitoring is done through review of trading positions, risk assessment and review of brokerage accounts. Recommendations to adjust manager allocations are made as necessary. This is an important feature of the manager of managers’ approach, as clients gain an additional layer of oversight.
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International Call: +1 (617) 449-0039
