Awards & Recognition¹

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Citizens Private Client is comprised of banking, insurance, brokerage, trust, and investment-related affiliated companies, including Citizens Bank, N.A. (for deposit products, Member FDIC), Clarfeld Financial Advisors, LLC, (a subsidiary of Citizens Bank, N.A.), and Estate Preservation Services, LLC, (a subsidiary of Clarfeld Financial Advisors, LLC) and Citizens Securities, Inc., (a subsidiary of Citizens Bank, N.A.), Member FINRA/SIPC.

Clarfeld Citizens Private Wealth is a division of Citizens Bank, N.A. that offers bank products (deposit and credit), fiduciary (trust) services, insurance and investment advisory services. The bank products and fiduciary (trust) services are provided by Citizens Bank, N.A. Investment advisory services are offered through Clarfeld Financial Advisors, LLC, an SEC registered investment adviser. Insurance products are offered through Estate Preservation Services, LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Clarfeld Financial Advisors, LLC or an unrelated party. Clarfeld Financial Advisors, LLC and Estate Preservation Services, LLC are both affiliates of Citizens Bank, N.A.

Banking products are offered through Citizens. Citizens is a brand name of Citizens Bank, N.A. For deposit products, Member FDIC.

This content is intended for informational purposes only and should not be construed as advice. Citizens Securities, Inc. does not provide legal or tax advice. Always consult an attorney or tax professional regarding your specific legal or tax situation. The investment products and financial strategies suggested herein are subject to investment risk, including possible loss of principal amount invested. There can be no guarantee the suggested strategies or investments will lead to successful outcomes. Investment decisions should be based on each individual's goals, time horizon and tolerance for risk.

Mutual Funds, Variable Annuities and Unit Investment Trusts are sold by prospectus. Please consider the investment objectives, risks, charges and expenses carefully before investing. The prospectus which contains this and other information can be obtained by calling your Financial Advisor. Read it carefully before you invest.

¹Please Note: Limitations. Clarfeld Financial Advisors, LLC (“Clarfeld”) is an SEC registered investment adviser and a subsidiary of Citizens Bank, N.A. Neither rankings nor recognitions by unaffiliated rating services, publications, media, or other organizations (including without limitation from “Barron’s,” “Forbes,” and other organizations),  nor the achievement of any professional designation, certification, degree, or license, membership in any professional organization, or any amount of prior experience or success, should be construed by a client or prospective client as a guarantee that the client will experience a certain level of results if the investment professional or the  investment professional’s firm is engaged, or continues to be engaged, to provide investment advisory services. A fee was not paid by either the investment professional or the investment professional’s firm to receive the ranking. The ranking is based upon specific criteria and methodology (see below ranking criteria/methodology). No ranking or recognition should be construed as an endorsement by any past or current client of the investment professional or the investment professional’s firm.  Clarfeld’s Chief Compliance Officer remains available to address any questions regarding rankings and/or recognitions, including the criteria used for any reflected ranking. 

²With respect to references on this Website or in other Clarfeld publications to Barron’s “Top 100 RIA Rankings” in 2022, which is provided to the best of Clarfeld’s knowledge: Barron’s is a registered trademark of Dow Jones & Company, L.P. Clarfeld is not affiliated with Barron’s or Dow Jones & Company, L.P. Barron’s “Top 100 RIA Rankings” bases its rankings upon data provided by individual advisers and their firms, including submissions by Clarfeld. Barron’s confirms that data via regulatory databases, crosschecks with securities firms and conversations with individual advisers. Clarfeld applied for consideration, and the results were independently granted. As of 2022, advisors who wished to be ranked filled out a 102-question survey about their practice. Barron’s then verified that data with the advisors’ firms and with regulatory databases and applied its rankings formula to the data to generate a ranking. The formula Barron’s uses to rank advisers is proprietary. It has three major components: assets managed, revenue produced and quality of practice. Investment returns are not a component of the rankings because an adviser’s returns are dictated largely by the risk tolerance of clients. Barron’s also considers a wide range of qualitative factors, including the advisors’ experience, their advanced degrees and industry designations, the size and shape of their teams, their charitable and philanthropic work and compliance records. Clarfeld is unaware, nor has Barron’s published the number of nominees considered for the award ranking.

³The following is with respect to Clarfeld Financial Advisors, LLC (“Clarfeld”) being named to Financial Advisor Magazine’s (“Financial Advisor’s”) RIA Survey and Ranking in 2022, which Clarfeld is providing to the best of its knowledge: The Financial Advisor Magazine is a monthly news publication that delivers market information and strategies to help advisors better serve their affluent clients, as well as practice management ideas to help advisors build their firms. Clarfeld is not affiliated with Financial Advisor Magazine. Eligible candidates must be registered investment advisers and provide financial planning and related services to individual clients. Corporate RIA firms (typically affiliated with a broker-dealer) and investment adviser representatives are not eligible to participate. Candidates must complete an online survey that contains approximately 26 to thirty 30 questions (the number of questions may vary year to year) concerning such items as the candidate firm’s: client base composition, size, assets under management, billing methods, custodial relationships, industry experience, registration status, personnel, services, techniques employed affiliations, and growth efforts. Clarfeld applied for consideration, and the result was independently granted.

Candidates with at least $500 million in assets under management are included in the national ranking published in the August 2022 issues of Financial Advisor magazine, in which Clarfeld is ranked 82 among a stated 331 candidates in the “$ Billion and Over” Asset Category. Financial Advisor Magazine does not publish, nor is Clarfeld aware of the number of participants that applied to be on the RIA Survey and Ranking. By virtue of disclosing this ranking, Clarfeld is disclosing favorable ratings (to the extent that Clarfeld is ranked above other advisors) and unfavorable ratings (to the extent that Clarfeld is ranked below other advisors). Clarfeld believes that the methodology used to evaluate inclusion on the RIA Survey and Ranking is quantifiable and objective, and that participating candidates do not appear to have subjective input in the analysis. Financial Advisor does not appear to include candidates on the RIA Ranking and Survey if the ratings are not statistically valid with respect to any candidate; and Clarfeld is not aware of any facts that would call into question the validity of the inclusion on the RIA Survey and Ranking or the appropriateness of Clarfeld’s advertising its inclusion. Clarfeld has reviewed the surveys used in the preparation of these ratings and has determined that they are structured to make it equally easy for a participant to provide favorable and unfavorable responses, and they are not designed or prepared to produce any predetermined result. Neither the participating candidates nor their employees pay a fee to Financial Advisor in exchange for inclusion on the RIA Survey and Ranking. This ranking may not be representative of any one client’s experience because of the way in which it is calculated. The ranking does not guarantee Clarfeld’s and its advisors’ future performance, or any future performance pertaining to its clients’ investments. The ranking should not be construed by a client or prospective client as a guarantee that they will experience a certain level of results if Clarfeld is engaged, or continues to be engaged, to provide investment advisory services; and should not be construed as a current or past endorsement of Clarfeld by any of its clients. The RIA Survey and Ranking have differing methodology in other years than the methodology described above.

⁴With respect to references on this Website or in other Clarfeld publications to the 2022 "America's Top RIA Firms", which is provided to the best of Clarfeld’s knowledge: “Forbes” is a registered mark of Forbes, LLC. Clarfeld is not affiliated with Forbes. Data for the Forbes “Top Wealth Advisors” and “Best-In-State Wealth Advisors” are developed by “SHOOK Research.” Each advisor considered for the award was nominated by their respective firm, then vetted and ranked by SHOOK Research. Clarfeld applied for consideration, and the result was independently granted. The Forbes “America’s Top Wealth Advisors,” “Best-In-State Wealth Advisors,” and “Top RIA Firms” rankings are based on an algorithm of qualitative criteria mostly gained through telephone and in-person due diligence interviews, and quantitative data. An advisor would meet basic requirements for consideration based on having a minimum of seven years’ experience, a minimum of one year at the current firm (with exceptions based on acquisitions, etc.) being nominated and recommended by a firm, completion of an online survey, over 50% of revenue / production must be with individuals, and an acceptable compliance record. The algorithm weights factors like revenue trends, assets under management, compliance record, industry experience and those that encompass best practices in their practices and approach to working with clients. Portfolio performance is not a criterion due to varying client objectives and lack of audited data. In developing its applicant pools for “Top RIA Firms,” SHOOK set thresholds to limit nominations for consideration. For “Top RIA Firms” as of October 2022, Forbes and SHOOK received 36,535 nominations (based on SHOOK thresholds), invited 21,116 firms to complete the online survey, conducted 15,342 telephone interviews, 3, 250 in-person interviews, and 1,357 virtual interviews. Forbes recognized a total of 100 firms in 2022 in which Clarfeld Financial Advisors was ranked #85.

In developing its applicant pools for “Top RIA Firms,” “America’s Top Wealth Advisors,” and “Best-In-State Wealth Advisors,” SHOOK set thresholds to limit nominations for consideration. For “Top RIA Firms” as of October 2022, Forbes and SHOOK received 36,535 nominations (based on SHOOK thresholds), invited 21,116 firms to complete the online survey, conducted 15,342 telephone interviews, 3, 250 in-person interviews, and 1,357 virtual interviews. Forbes recognized a total of 100 firms in 2022 in which Clarfeld Financial Advisors was ranked #85. For “America’s Top Wealth Advisors” as of August 2021, Forbes and SHOOK received 33,567 nominations (based on SHOOK thresholds), invited 16,620 candidates to complete the online survey, conducted 12,736 telephone interviews, and 2,565 in-person interviews at the Advisors’ location and 1,004 virtual interviews. Forbes recognized a total of 250 wealth advisors in 2021 in which Rob Clarfeld was ranked #31. As of August 2020, Forbes and SHOOK received 32,325 nominations (based on SHOOK thresholds), invited 15,577 candidates to complete the online survey, and conducted 12,456 telephone interviews and 2,646 in-person interviews at the Advisors’ location. Forbes recognized a total of 250 wealth advisors in 2020 in which Rob Clarfeld was ranked #28. For “America’s Top Wealth Advisors” as of August 2018, Forbes and SHOOK received 25,732 nominations (based on SHOOK thresholds), invited 9,596 candidates to complete the online survey, conducted 7,174 telephone interviews, and conducted 1,503 in-person interviews at the Advisors’ location. Forbes recognized a total of 250 wealth advisors in 2018 in which Rob Clarfeld was ranked #20. For “Best-In-State Wealth Advisors” as of August 2018, Forbes and SHOOK received 29,334 nominations (based on SHOOK thresholds), invited 5,961 candidates to complete the online survey, conducted 9,230 telephone interviews, and conducted 1,757 in-person interviews at the Advisors’ location. Forbes recognized a total of 100 wealth advisors from New York (excluding New York City) in 2019, from which Rob Clarfeld was ranked #1.

Neither Forbes nor SHOOK receive a fee or require membership in exchange for rankings. Accordingly, neither Clarfeld, Rob Clarfeld, nor any other participating advisors paid a fee to be eligible for the “America’s Top Wealth Advisors,” and “Best-In-State Wealth Advisors” rankings*. Based on its stated methodology, SHOOK does not name advisors if the ratings are not statistically valid; and there are no facts that would call into question the validity of the inclusion on the “America’s Top Wealth Advisors,” and “Best-In-State Wealth Advisors” rankings or the appropriateness of Clarfeld advertising the same. By considering the compliance record, eligibility to appear on the rankings seeks to ensure that a participating advisor has an established and significant history and record free from regulatory sanctions. Clarfeld is unaware of any undisclosed facts that could potentially invalidate the appropriateness of the above rankings. By virtue of disclosing the rankings, Clarfeld is disclosing favorable ratings (to the extent that Rob Clarfeld is ranked above other advisors) and unfavorable ratings (to the extent that Rob Clarfeld is ranked below other advisors). The ranking may not be representative of any one client’s experience because of the way in which it is calculated. The ranking is not indicative of Clarfeld’s and its advisors’ future performance, or any future performance pertaining to its clients’ investments, nor should it be construed as a current or past endorsement by any of its clients.

Citizens provides Wealth and Investment services in the United States: AL, AK, AR, AZ, CA, CO, CT, DC, DE, FL, GA, HI, IA, ID, IL, IN, KS, KY, LA, MA, MD, ME, MI, MN, MO, MS, MT, NC, ND, NE, NH, NJ, NM, NV, NY, OH, OK, OR, PA, RI, SC, SD, TN, TX, UT, VA, VT, WA, WI, WV, WY.

Citizens Wealth Management: Citizens Wealth Management (in certain instances DBA Citizens Private Wealth) is a division of Citizens Bank, N.A. (“Citizens”). Securities, insurance, brokerage services, and investment advisory services offered by Citizens Securities, Inc. (“CSI”), a registered broker-dealer and SEC registered investment adviser - Member FINRA / SIPC. Investment advisory services may also be offered by Clarfeld Financial Advisors, LLC (“CFA”), an SEC registered investment adviser, or by unaffiliated members of FINRA and SIPC providing brokerage and custody services to CFA clients (see Form ADV for details). Insurance products may also be offered by Estate Preservation Services, LLC (“EPS”) or an unaffiliated party. CSI, CFA and EPS are affiliates of Citizens. Banking products and trust services offered by Citizens.

SECURITIES, INVESTMENTS AND INSURANCE PRODUCTS ARE SUBJECT TO RISK, INCLUDING PRINCIPAL AMOUNT INVESTED, AND ARE:
· NOT FDIC INSURED · NOT BANK GUARANTEED · NOT A DEPOSIT · NOT INSURED BY ANY FEDERAL GOVERNMENT AGENCY · MAY LOSE VALUE