How we work
How we work with plan sponsors
For 401(k) plans, we take on fiduciary responsibility for choosing and monitoring the investments (an ERISA 3(38) investment manager role). Your adviser, a CFA® charterholder, designs your retirement plan and is accountable for those investment decisions. Here is how that works, and where plan assets are held.
Four commitments
You work with your adviser directly.
Your adviser, a CFA® charterholder, leads your review meetings, answers your questions and makes your plan’s investment decisions.
- Direct email to your adviser
- Meetings at your office or by video
- A named adviser on your file, not a service desk
Context that stays with your adviser.
We keep a written record of what you share: your business, your payroll, your CPA’s strategy and the reason behind each plan decision. Your adviser has it at every review.
- Clear responsibility for every decision
- Coordination with your CPA, payroll provider and plan administrator
- A direct point of contact through market cycles
Simple, transparent fees.
Our fees are simple and transparent: generally based on assets under management (AUM), and always disclosed in writing before you sign.
- No commissions or product revenue
- Fee terms set out in your written advisory agreement
- Form ADV brochure available on request or at adviserinfo.sec.gov (CRD #299123)
Decisions by the adviser who knows your plan.
For 401(k) plans, we serve as a 3(38) investment manager: we choose, monitor and replace the investment menu under a written investment policy, and take fiduciary responsibility for those decisions. Every review is documented, so you can show a prudent process.
- A written investment policy statement for the plan
- Regular, documented reviews of fees, investments and providers
Safeguarding your assets
Plan assets are held by an independent custodian.
For employer 401(k) plans, plan assets are held by the plan’s own custodian and recordkeeper, which you select with our help. Accounts Pleasanton Wealth manages directly are held in the account owner’s name at Charles Schwab & Co., Inc., an independent custodian.
- Separation of duties. We advise on plan design and investments; the custodian holds the assets and processes transactions. We cannot move money to ourselves. The only exception is our advisory fee, which you authorize in writing and which appears on your statement. Because we deduct our advisory fee directly from client accounts, California rules treat us as having custody of those accounts, and we follow the safeguards described in our Form ADV.
- Statements directly from the custodian. The plan’s recordkeeper, or Schwab for accounts held there, sends statements directly, so you can check our reports against them.
- Your access. Employees see their own accounts at any time through the recordkeeper’s website, and you, as plan sponsor, have your own administrative access.
- SIPC membership. Schwab is a member of SIPC, which protects customers of a failed member firm up to $500,000, including $250,000 for cash. This applies to accounts held at Schwab. SIPC does not protect against market losses.
Investing involves risk, including loss of principal.
Fiduciary duty & transparency
Our duty is to you.
As a registered investment adviser, Pleasanton Wealth owes its clients a fiduciary duty: a legal obligation to act in clients’ best interest (for 401(k) plans, the participants and beneficiaries), put those interests ahead of our own and disclose any conflicts.
Being fee-only means the firm is compensated solely by its clients. We are not a broker-dealer, we do not sell insurance or commissioned products, and we receive no payments from fund companies. Because our fee is generally a percentage of the assets we manage, we earn more as those assets grow, whether through market gains or new contributions. This is a conflict of interest, and it is described in our Form ADV.
- Public record on the SEC’s Investment Adviser Public Disclosure site
- Form ADV Part 2 brochure provided before you sign
- Independent custody of plan assets
The engagement
From first conversation to a running plan.
Complimentary plan review
An initial conversation, at no cost, about your business, your employees and your goals as an owner, whether you are starting a plan or reviewing the one you have.
Document analysis
We review your payroll, current plan documents, service agreements and fee disclosures line by line.
Written recommendation
A recommended plan design, or for an existing plan the changes we suggest, with fees disclosed in writing before you sign. There’s no obligation to proceed.
Implementation & review
We set up the plan with its recordkeeper and your payroll, then monitor it and review it with you at least annually.
Common questions
Is Pleasanton Wealth a fiduciary?
Yes. Pleasanton Wealth LLC is a California-registered investment adviser and acts as a fiduciary to its advisory clients, which means we must act in your best interest. The firm is fee-only: it is compensated by its clients, not by commissions on products.
Do you act as a 3(21) or 3(38) fiduciary?
For 401(k) plans, Pleasanton Wealth serves as a 3(38) investment manager. We have discretion to select, monitor and replace the plan’s investments and accept fiduciary responsibility for those decisions. As plan sponsor, you remain responsible for choosing and monitoring us and for the plan’s other duties.
Where are my assets held?
401(k) plan assets are held by the plan’s own custodian and recordkeeper, not by us. Accounts Pleasanton Wealth manages directly are held in the account owner’s name at Charles Schwab & Co., Inc. Statements come directly from the custodian.
How are your fees structured?
Our fees are simple and transparent: generally based on assets under management (AUM), and always disclosed in writing before you sign. Our Form ADV brochure is public.
Does my California business have to offer a retirement plan?
Since January 1, 2026, most California employers with at least one eligible W-2 employee (other than owners) must either offer a qualified retirement plan or register with the state’s CalSavers program. Government, religious and tribal employers are exempt. If you already sponsor a qualified plan, you are exempt; if CalSavers sends you a notice, certify your exemption on the CalSavers employer portal.
Start with a plan review.
Tell us about your business. We aim to reply within one business day.
Request a plan review