Frontier Asset Management Expands Strategist Team With Hire of Frank Pape, CFA®, CPA

Firm hires industry veteran from Russell Investments to support its risk and tax-managed model strategy business

SHERIDAN, Wyo.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Frontier Asset Management, L.L.C., a leading asset management firm known for its innovative downside risk-managed strategies, has hired Frank Pape, CFA, CPA to support its risk and tax-managed model strategy business and to be a voice of Frontier to advisors, investors, and the financial services industry.

Mr. Pape has joined Frontier Asset Management as a Director of Strategies. He has 25+ years of industry experience. Most recently he led the Portfolio Consulting Group and served as Senior Director, Consulting Services at Russell Investments, where he advised on portfolio strategies and capital market research to financial advisors and wealth management firms for Russell Investments’ mutual fund and model strategy business. In addition, Mr. Pape was one of Russell Investments’ thought leaders on tax-managed strategies.

“We’re excited that Frank has joined our team,” Robert E. Miller, CFA, Frontier’s Chief Executive Officer explained. “Frank is one of the industry’s foremost thought leaders on asset allocation, capital market insights, and tax-managed investing. He brings a successful track record of experience to our Strategist team and will be instrumental to our current and planned initiatives for innovation in risk- and tax-managed strategies.”

Frontier Asset Management has 22 years of experience in helping advisors and investors manage risk and maximize after-tax return through its investment strategies. The company’s ‘Downside First Focus’ approach is focused on finding ways to minimize loss for investors, while seeking out the best opportunities for growth. This approach is applied to its Tax-Managed Strategies, which are optimized for after-tax returns.

“There’s a common saying in the industry, “It’s not what you earn, but what you keep,” said Miller. “At Frontier, we know it’s both. Many well-known tax-managed approaches in the industry focus on minimizing distributions, which can skew their ability to factor in risk and return potential. We start with our focus on minimizing downside risk, and then optimize our Tax-Managed Strategies for after-tax returns. We believe it’s a better approach.”

In a recent survey of advisors conducted by Frontier, 79% of advisors responded that impending market volatility was one of their greatest concerns for clients in 2022. Another 25% of advisors said it was taxes. Moreover, 71% of advisors said tax-managed products will play an increasing role in their clients’ portfolios going forward. However, only 6% of advisors said 80-100% of their clients’ taxable accounts were tax managed, with 61% of advisors stating they manage for taxes in less than 40% of clients’ taxable accounts.

“Offering tax-managed strategies is a great way for advisors to differentiate themselves. We continue to see growing demand for risk and tax-managed strategies and we believe our strategies are uniquely positioned. Our combined approach of managing risk and taxes represents a massive opportunity for Frontier and the advisors who work with us,” said Miller. “Frank will be an incredible resource to Frontier and our advisor clients. He understands risk and taxes. His insights in these areas are impressive and he will be a key part of our strategic growth going forward.”

“I’m super excited to join Frontier as it takes major steps in its journey to become a leading player in risk- and tax-managed strategies,” said Frank Pape. “This is a great opportunity to be part of strong team where I look forward to helping advisors make informed choices on tax-smart strategies for their investors. At Frontier, I look forward to being part of a process that looks to expand the investment toolkit in helping investors address the headwinds caused by both underappreciated investments risks and investment taxes.”

About Frontier Asset Management, L.L.C.

Frontier Asset Management is an independent asset manager that supports and manages risk-managed strategies for the clients of financial advisors nationwide. Founded in 2000 and based in Sheridan, Wyoming, Frontier Asset Management is an investment industry innovator with expertise in investment manager due diligence, asset allocation and investment strategy design and implementation. Frontier is dedicated to continuous improvement of its investment process as well as being independent from conventional thought. Frontier has offices in Denver and Atlanta and its strategies are available in all 50 U.S. states through select financial advisors and financial institutions. As of December 31, 2021, Frontier’s assets under advisement were $7.2 billion.

Frontier does not provide tax advice. The survey cited is the Frontier Asset Management “2022 Advisor Survey” Questionnaire. Full details are available upon request at no cost.