Investment Approach
Three buckets,
one job each
Every CrossPoint portfolio is built from the same three components — equity, alternatives and fixed income. Each one is there for a specific reason. How much of each you hold is set by your risk tolerance and your objectives, which translate into a model portfolio design.
EQUITY
FIXED INCOME
ALTERNATIVES
Proportions vary by model. The full range is set out below
The Architecture
What each bucket is for
Most portfolios are described by what they hold. We would rather describe ours by what each part is supposed to do — because that is what tells you whether it is still earning its place.
Equity
The growth engine. This is where long-term purchasing power comes from, and where most of the portfolio's volatility lives.
WHAT'S IN IT
- Passive global core — broad, low-cost market exposure
- CrossPoint Stock Model — quality businesses held directly, Canadian and U.S.
- Active international manager — outside North America, where selection still pays
Active and passive are intentionally weighted equally in every model. Expect the widest range of outcomes here; double-digit drawdowns are a normal feature, not a failure.
Alternatives
The diversifier. Return streams that do not move in lockstep with public markets, so the whole portfolio does not turn on one outcome.
WHAT'S IN IT
- Private debt
- Private equity
- Liquid alternatives — long/short hedge funds, options strategies, arbitrage strategies
- Real estate & infrastructure
Measured against an absolute return target rather than a market index. Part of the return here is payment for accepting less liquidity — redemptions can take up to three months.
Fixed Income
The ballast — the weight that keeps the portfolio steady. It funds near-term spending, dampens the ride, and gives us something to sell when equities are down.
WHAT'S IN IT Duration is managed at the model level against rate expectations, credit spreads and relative value. Modest returns, and real value when equities fall: this is the bucket that buys patience.
WHY IT MATTERS
When markets fall, the question is never "should we sell?" — it is "which bucket do we spend from?" Holding three with different jobs is what makes that a planning decision instead of an emotional one.
Target asset allocation by model
Conservative
Limits downside while keeping some long-term growth potential.
Conservative-Balanced
Heavier bias to fixed income, with some room for capital appreciation.
Balanced
A middle-ground mix for higher long-term returns while staying fairly risk-averse.
Balanced-Growth
Broader equity exposure; long-term performance is mostly driven by equities.
Growth
Higher growth potential through Canadian and foreign equities; fixed income reduces volatility.
Aggressive-Growth
Maximum growth potential, with a fixed income component retained for stability.
Figures are target weights and will drift between rebalances. Allocations are reviewed regularly and may change; your own targets are the ones recorded in your Investment Policy Statement.
TARGETS, NOT FIXTURES
Moving down the list, the two blue bands grow and the green band shrinks — the further down you sit, the more of your outcome rests on equity markets. Within whichever model is yours, the mix is actively managed: asset allocation is the largest single driver of long-term return, so we move equity against fixed income inside defined ranges as conditions and valuations change. What stays constant is the process behind the decision, not the weights.
INSIDE THE EQUITY BUCKET
Active and passive, intentionally weighted equally
We do not think the active-versus-passive argument has a single winner, so we do not bet on one. Every model holds a deliberate 50/50 balance — enough of each approach to capture its strengths, and enough of the other to blunt the systemic risks that build up whenever either philosophy dominates a portfolio.
Each side carries a long-term target of 50%, allowed to drift roughly ±10% with market movement before it is brought back. The passive sleeve is a broad, cap-weighted ETF — very low cost, highly transparent, and incapable of drifting from its own strategy. The active sleeve is deliberately limited to where we have insight, proximity and the ability to trade: businesses we underwrite and hold directly in Canada and the U.S., and an external manager internationally.
Country targets apply across both sleeves — 25% Canada · 45% United States · 30% International — with the same ±10% tolerance.
| Sleeve | Measured Against |
|---|---|
| Passive Equity Model | MSCI World Total Return (CAD) |
| Stock Model | 40% S&P/TSX Composite + 60% S&P 500 |
| Fixed Income Model | Bloomberg Global Aggregate Bond Index |
| Alternative Model | Absolute return of 5% per year |
Every sleeve has a benchmark it has to answer to, and we publish how each one did in our monthly commentary.
01
Process over prediction
Selection runs through four defined stages: a universal health screen, a sector-relative score built on the metrics that actually matter in that industry, a shortlist review, and a full re-underwriting of the final candidates before anything is bought. Objective signals first, judgment second, forecasts never.
02
Top-down, then bottom-up
The strategic mix is set first, then refined by geography and sector, and only then by individual security. Asset allocation drives most of the outcome, so it gets decided first and deliberately.
03
Companies you recognize
We hold durable businesses directly where conviction is highest. That is partly a behavioural choice: understandable holdings help clients stay committed through full market cycles, and staying invested is most of the return.
04
Principles-based, not rules-based
We prefer businesses that serve people and make a positive net contribution to the societies they operate in — a judgment made case by case, not a score or an exclusion list. Each shortlisted company gets a one-page assessment of four things: what it sells, how the revenue is earned, how it treats the institutions of society, and the political or social risk it carries. Direction of travel counts as much as where a company stands today.
These considerations apply to the businesses we hold directly. A broad-market index fund will necessarily hold companies we would not select ourselves, so the passive sleeve is not screened — and we do not represent the portfolio as a values-aligned one at the total-portfolio level.
The CrossPoint Equity White Paper
The full framework: screening methodology, model construction, risk controls, geographic allocation and the evidence behind it. No form required.
Discipline
What keeps it from drifting
A good allocation decays quietly. Markets move it, and so does inertia. These are the four things that keep the portfolio the one we designed.
Scheduled
Rebalancing
Allocations are brought back toward target when market movement pushes them outside their intended ranges — which mechanically trims what has run and adds to what has not.
Continuous
Model review
Holdings, cash, asset mix and risk exposures are reviewed on an ongoing basis. Every position is re-screened against the same rules that got it in.
Ongoing
Tax awareness
Gains are realized deliberately — staged across tax years where it helps, matched against losses where they exist. Moderate turnover is part of the design, not an accident.
Annual
Plan check
Liquidity needs, withdrawals, income requirements and life changes are revisited before adjustments are made. When your circumstances change, the model changes with them — a change in the weather is not a change of plan.
WHAT YOU SEE
Monthly statements of holdings, performance and transactions; online portal access; written notice with the reasoning behind any major portfolio change; and a monthly commentary that shows how each sleeve performed against its benchmark. Reporting is something you should be able to read, not decode.
Discretionary Portfolio Management
Decisions get made when
they need to be made
Most clients work with us through our Discretionary Portfolio Management program. You set the mandate with us in writing; our Portfolio Managers execute inside it.
The alternative — calling every client for approval before every trade — sounds like control. In practice it means the portfolio moves last, after the opportunity or the risk has already passed. Discretion is what lets a rebalance happen on the day it should, for every client at once.
- Portfolio Managers with advanced training, working with fewer clients each
- Portfolios built in-house rather than outsourced to third-party managers
- Your mandate is documented in an Investment Policy Statement — the boundaries are yours, not ours
- Transparent, fee-based compensation that declines as your portfolio grows. No commissions on trades
- Funds and ETFs used selectively, only where they add diversification, stability or access we cannot build directly
Ready to Invest With Purpose?
Let's talk about how your portfolio is built
A first conversation is a review of what you hold now and why — no obligation, and no pitch.
Target allocations shown are current model targets and are subject to change. They are not a recommendation or a representation of any individual client's portfolio, and they do not predict or guarantee future results. Actual allocations drift between rebalances and are documented in each client's Investment Policy Statement.
Alternative investments are less liquid than publicly traded securities and conventional mutual funds. Redemption may be subject to notice periods, settlement delays or gates, and proceeds can take up to three months. This portion of a portfolio is not intended to serve as a source of short-term cash.
CrossPoint Financial is part of iA Private Wealth Inc., a member of the Canadian Investor Protection Fund and the Canadian Investment Regulatory Organization. Information is general in nature and does not constitute investment, tax or legal advice.