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Allocation Briefing

How Can a Family Office Find a Fiduciary Investment Adviser for Bitcoin?

Start with registered investment advisers, which owe clients a fiduciary duty under the Investment Advisers Act of 1940, then confirm the adviser has a documented Bitcoin process, a clear custody arrangement with a qualified custodian, disclosed fees and conflicts, and the ability to work alongside the family's existing attorneys, accountants, and advisers.

Eric Runge, Founder, Veritas Bitcoin Strategies Published October 20, 2026

What is the difference between a registered investment adviser and a broker-dealer?

A registered investment adviser owes clients a fiduciary duty that continues over the whole relationship. Under the SEC's 2019 Commission Interpretation Regarding Standard of Conduct for Investment Advisers, that duty comprises a duty of care and a duty of loyalty. The duty of care requires advice in the client's best interest based on the client's objectives, best execution, and monitoring over the course of the relationship. The duty of loyalty requires the adviser to eliminate conflicts of interest or, at a minimum, to fully and fairly disclose them, and disclosure alone does not satisfy the best-interest obligation.

A broker-dealer is held to Regulation Best Interest, which applies at the time of a recommendation to a retail customer. Regulation Best Interest draws on fiduciary principles but is transaction-focused rather than ongoing. It also requires a Form CRS relationship summary, a short disclosure document describing services, fees, and conflicts. For a family office evaluating a long-term Bitcoin allocation, the distinction matters: the question is not only what a recommendation was based on, but who monitors the position, under what standard, and for how long.

Where can a family office look for candidates?

Referrals from the family's attorney, CPA, and existing advisers are usually the most productive starting points, because those professionals have already seen how a candidate works with clients. Industry networks that serve family offices can surface additional names. Every candidate should then be verified independently rather than accepted on referral alone.

The SEC's Investment Adviser Public Disclosure site, adviserinfo.sec.gov, allows anyone to search firms and individuals by name or CRD number and to view a firm's Form ADV. FINRA's BrokerCheck covers broker-dealer firms and their agents. Veritas Bitcoin Strategies can be looked up on adviserinfo.sec.gov under CRD 306768, at its firm record. This is a verification step, not an endorsement.

What should the family review?

The core documents are public and should be read in full before any interview.

  • Form ADV Part 2A, the brochure, which describes services, fees, conflicts, and disciplinary history
  • Form ADV Part 2B, the brochure supplement, which describes the specific people advising the client
  • Form CRS, where the relationship involves a broker-dealer
  • Disciplinary history and disclosures in the public record
  • The scope of services, including what is explicitly outside the engagement
  • How the adviser is paid, including asset-based fees, hourly arrangements, and any compensation connected to products or referrals

What separates a Bitcoin specialist from a generalist adding a product?

A specialist can describe, in writing, how a position is sized and governed: the framework that sets a target and a maximum, the custody arrangement with a qualified custodian, the reporting the client receives, and how the decision survives a severe drawdown. A generalist adding a product can usually describe the product, but not the process around it.

A third marker is coordination. Bitcoin allocation decisions touch tax treatment, estate planning, and entity structure, so the specialist should expect to work alongside the family's CPA and estate counsel rather than around them. A specialist who cannot explain how the position will be documented for those professionals is selling exposure, not advising on an allocation.

What does a screening sequence look like?

A family office can run a short, repeatable sequence.

  1. Initial review of the public record: Form ADV, disciplinary history, registration status, and the firm's published materials
  2. Written questions covering scope, custody, fees, conflicts, sizing process, and coordination with existing advisers
  3. Interviews with the people who would actually serve the account
  4. Reference checks with clients in comparable situations
  5. Engagement terms in writing, including decision authority, reporting cadence, and termination rights

For a detailed question list to use in steps 2 and 3, see the companion briefing, Questions to Ask Before Referring a Client to a Bitcoin Specialist.

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Frequently asked questions

Does registration guarantee an adviser is a good fit?

No. Registration is a threshold check, not an evaluation. The family should still review scope, process, custody, fees, conflicts, and fit.

Where can the family verify Veritas Bitcoin Strategies?

Search the SEC's Investment Adviser Public Disclosure site for Veritas Bitcoin Strategies or CRD 306768, then review the firm's public Form ADV record.

Should the adviser already manage Bitcoin for other families?

Not necessarily, but the adviser should be able to describe a documented sizing and governance process and a custody arrangement regardless of how many clients have implemented it.

What if the family's existing adviser will not consider Bitcoin?

The family can engage a specialist alongside the existing adviser, with the scope, decision rights, and communication between the two documented in writing.

Veritas Bitcoin Strategies works with a limited number of family offices each year. Conversations begin by introduction or through the Schedule a Conversation page.