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Genworth releases asset allocation offering aimed at tamping down volatility

New product was created with diversification across asset classes — and alternatives — in mind

Genworth Financial Wealth Management this week released Genworth Portfolio Solutions, a program that gives advisers access to four asset allocation strategies, plus alternative investments, in one package.
The strategies, which operate as funds of funds, include Guidepath Strategic Allocation, Guidepath Tactical Constrained, Guidepath Tactical Unconstrained and Guidepath Absolute Return.
Under the arrangement, asset managers are acting as research providers to Genworth on the strategies. Meanwhile, the insurer will be the adviser to the funds, said Mike Abelson, senior vice president of investment and product management at Genworth Financial Wealth Management.
Firms teaming with Genworth to provide research include portfolio strategists Litman/Gregory Asset Management LLC and Avatar Associates, as well as institutional firms such as Eaton Vance Investment Managers.
Clients also can access alternative investments through Altegris Advisors LLC, an alternative investment platform Genworth acquired last October.
Genworth came up with the idea for Portfolio Solutions while working with independent advisers following the financial crisis, helping them think about how they approach diversification across asset classes.
Although advisers required broader diversification, it was a challenge to deal with multiple accounts to find the right asset mix for clients’ profiles, Mr. Abelson said. That led to creating a packaged solution with multiple strategies “so the adviser just works with the client and identifies their planning coordinates,” he added.
Investors need a minimum of $25,000 to participate in the program, and they will maintain exposure across the four strategies. The Strategic and Tactical Constrained allow customers to participate in the capital markets, while the Tactical Unconstrained and Absolute Return portfolios are intended to dampen the effect of market volatility on the investments.
Advisers also can match the strategies with clients’ individual investment objectives and create a custom investment mix.
“We’ve shared the re-balancing work with the client, and with these particular portfolios we’ll take a broader role,” Mr. Abelson said. “The spirit of solving the problem isn’t just helping to simplify the process, but to manage the emotional roller coaster people go through when they plan. This will help advisers manage that cycle,” he added.