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Gilder Gagnon Howe & Co. Review

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This review was produced by SmartAsset based on publicly available information. The named firm and its financial professionals have not reviewed, approved, or endorsed this review and are not responsible for its accuracy. Review content is produced by SmartAsset independently of any business relationships that might exist between SmartAsset and the named firm and its financial professionals, and firms and financial professionals having business relationships with SmartAsset receive no special treatment or consideration in SmartAsset’s reviews. This page contains links to SmartAsset’s financial advisor matching tool, which may or may not match you with the firm mentioned in this review or its financial professionals.

Fee-based advisory firm Gilder Gagnon Howe & Co. (GGHC) has billions of dollars in client assets under management (AUM). The financial advisor primarily offers portfolio management to thousands of individual and institutional clients. The firm is headquartered in New York City.

As a fee-based firm, certain advisors a GGHC can earn compensation beyond just client-paid fees. On the other hand, a fee-only firm earns all of its compensation from what clients pay.

Gilder Gagnon Howe & Co. Background 

Founded in 1968, GGHC operates as a registered investment advisor (RIA) and registered broker-dealer. The independent firm also works with National Financial Services (NFS) to provide clearing brokerage and custodial services.

Co-CEO Shaiza Rizavi is the principal owner of Gilder Gagnon Howe & Co. The firm's other co-CEO is James Deutsch.

Gilder Gagnon Howe & Co. Client Types and Minimum Account Sizes

GGHC extends its advisory services to individuals with and without a high net worth, trusts, estates, charitable organizations, partnerships, limited liability companies (LLCs), corporations and investment clubs. 

The firm generally doesn’t impose a minimum account size requirement, however, to open a margin account then the minimum is $5,000.

Services Offered by Gilder Gagnon Howe & Co.

GGHC primarily provides investment advisory services. These services are entirely offered on a discretionary basis, which means clients give the firm the ability to make investment decisions on its own. The firm also utilizes a wrap fee program that bundles all advisory, custodial and transactional charges into a single rate.

Gilder Gagnon Howe & Co. Investment Philosophy

GGHC's website says its advisors utilize research-based strategies that generate long-term returns on investments. It also touts its belief that there’s no such thing as safe stock and that capital growth can only be achieved through patience. 

The firm’s investment strategies are based on research, and advisors commonly employ technical and fundamental analysis when evaluating securities. GGHC’s investment strategies also include long- and short-term purchases, trading, options transactions, short sales and margin transactions.

Fees Under Gilder Gagnon Howe & Co.

For investment advisory services, GGHC specifies the compensation structure in each client’s investment advisory agreement. The firm charges commissions for non-retirement account transactions, and it charges retirement accounts asset-based wrap fees.

The commission rates for non-retirement accounts are 1.5% for equities, 2.00% on options with a premium of less than $5, $10 on options with a premium over $5, $1 per $1,000 of face value on bonds, 1.5% per ETF trade and $0.05 per share for non-discretionary trades. Asset-based fees for client retirement accounts are 3% on up to $1 million and 2.50% on everything above $1 million.

What to Watch Out For 

Gilder Gagnon Howe & Co. has one disclosure listed on its Form ADV. Within this regulatory disclosure, the SEC levied that GGHC had not adequately conducted excessive trading reviews of client accounts from 2017 through early 2018. The SEC also stated on the ADV that the firm's chief compliance officer at the time "altered documents relating to the reviews, and produced these altered documents to the SEC staff on behalf of the firm." As a result of this situation, the firm paid a $1.7 million fine and submitted to censure and a cease and desist order.

GGHC can earn additional compensation from its brokerage services, creating a potential conflict of interest if advisors become incentivized to recommend commission-based products over client needs. The firm still has a fiduciary duty to serve each client’s best interest though.

Opening an Account With Gilder Gagnon Howe & Co.

The firm offers three options for getting in touch. You can either reach out through the firm's informational email, fill out its website’s contact form or set up an appointment with an advisor by calling (212) 765-2500.

All information was accurate as of the writing of this article.

Tips for Saving for Retirement

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How Long $1mm Lasts in Retirement

SmartAsset's interactive map highlights places where $1 million will last the longest in retirement. Zoom between states and the national map to see the top spots in each region. Also, scroll over any city to learn about the cost of living in retirement for that location.

Least
Most
Rank City Housing Expenses Food Expenses Healthcare Expenses Utilities Expenses Transportation Expenses

Methodology We analyzed data on average expenditures for seniors, cost of living and investment returns to determine how many years of retirement a $1 million nest egg would cover in cities across America.

First, we looked at data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) on the average annual expenditures of seniors. We then applied cost of living data from the Council for Community and Economic Research to adjust those national average spending levels based on the costs of each expense category (housing, food, healthcare, utilities, transportation and other) in each city. Using this data, SmartAsset calculated the average cost of living for retirees in the largest U.S. cities.

We assumed the $1 million would grow at a real return (interest minus inflation) of 2%. Then, we divided $1 million by the sum of each of those annual numbers to determine how long $1 million would cover retirement expenses in each of the cities in our study. Cities where $1 million lasted the longest ranked the highest in the study.

Sources: Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), Council for Community and Economic Research