# Clearstead

Clearstead is an Asset Manager based in Cleveland, United States.

## Overview

- **Organization type:** Asset Manager
- **Headquarters:** Cleveland, United States
- **Region:** North America
- **Address:** Cleveland, OH, United States
- **Founded:** 1988
- **Assets under management:** $30 Bn
- **Website:** clearstead.com

## Regulatory record

- **CRD number:** 105674
- **SEC file number:** 801-33554
- **Registration status:** Registered
- **Latest Form ADV filing:** 2026-03-30T00:00:00.000Z
- **Reports private funds:** Yes
- **Private funds reported:** 0
- **IAPD record:** https://adviserinfo.sec.gov/firm/summary/105674

## About

CLEARSTEAD ADVISORY SOLUTIONS, an SEC-registered investment adviser since 1988, is based in CLEVELAND, OH. The firm manages $33.9 billion in assets, with $25.9 billion on a discretionary basis. It employs 280 staff and 104 investment advisers.

## Sectors

- Real Estate
- Private Credit
- Hedge Funds
- Private Equity

## People

- David M. Fulton — CEO

## Questions

### Is Clearstead a fund manager or an advisor that acts as an OCIO for its clients?

Clearstead operates as an independent advisory and OCIO firm rather than a proprietary fund manager. It constructs and monitors multi-asset portfolios for endowments, foundations, pension funds, and family offices. The firm's advice often extends to full discretionary management of client pools, but it does not manufacture or sell its own commingled investment products.

### How does Clearstead approach private-market allocations given its advisory structure?

The firm accesses private markets almost exclusively through third-party fund commitments and limited co-investment vehicles. Its research teams cover private equity, private credit, real estate, and hedge fund strategies, mapping managers to client-specific illiquidity budgets and vintage-year pacing targets. Direct operating-company control deals are not part of the standard advisory toolkit.

### What type of institutions make up Clearstead's core client base?

Endowments, foundations, and public and corporate pension plans form the historical core. The firm also serves significant family offices, particularly those seeking the governance and asset-allocation discipline that an institutional OCIO model provides.

### Does Clearstead hold a broker-dealer registration or is it exclusively a fiduciary advisor?

The firm's description emphasizes a fully independent, fiduciary-only advisory posture without product-manufacturing or brokerage operations. This structure is designed to align advice with client outcomes by avoiding the revenue incentives present in hybrid advisory and sales organizations.

### Where is the advisory team physically located, and does the firm have reach outside of Ohio?

Clearstead's headquarters is in Cleveland, Ohio, and while it serves institutional clients nationally, it has not widely publicized satellite or regional offices. The advisory model relies on deep in-house research conducted from a single location rather than a large distributed consultant network.

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Last updated: 2026-07-08T23:55:47.135Z

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