Trusts can be wonderful financial tools. They can be used to protect assets and privacy, and can be used as part of comprehensive estate planning strategies. Trust services have traditionally been provided by banks, especially those banks located within local communities. Banking, however, has changed dramatically over the last several decades. We have witnessed an increasing amount of consolidation within the banking industry as smaller local banks are merged into larger money center banks. As a result, banks have become less personal and trust fees are continually increased. In order to boost profitability, banks have been aggressively marketing bank products. Trust Departments have become profit centers, and a lot of pressure is put on trust offices to push bank products to trust clients. Obviously, this has created a conflict of interest issue for banks. (See "The New Paradigm")
At Orion Capital Management, we utilize a client-centered approach. We feel that a team of independent advisors will better serve our clients interests by providing unbiased advice and a system of checks and balance. Therefore, we work with our client's attorneys and CPAs in order to best serve their needs. Our strategic partnership with Capital Trust gives us an independent and unbiased source for trust administration. We hope you will not hesitate to contact us if you would like to explore trust opportunities at Orion Capital Management. We can provide guidance to clients wishing to set up new trust arrangements. If you are unhappy with your current trust situation, we can provide guidance in transferring existing trusts. We believe that you will find our solutions not only better from an administrative and asset management perspective, but also more cost efficient than other alternatives.
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