What Is a TAMP and Why Some RIAs Outsource Your Portfolio

A TAMP (turnkey asset management platform) is a third-party system some registered investment advisers use to build, trade, and rebalance client portfolios. You may still meet with “your” advisor — while day-to-day investing is handed to a model provider or platform you never interviewed. Outsourcing can be legitimate. Stacking platform fees on top of an advisory AUM fee while marketing “we manage your money” without saying who places trades is not clarity.

Related: Why we manage portfolios in-house · How we’re different · All investor guides

Martino Capital is a Colorado RIA focused on high-net-worth clients. We manage portfolios directly in-house — no TAMPs — under a single transparent AUM fee, with commissions only when that structure is clearer or cheaper for the client and disclosed. Co-founders Tom Martino (CEO / consumer advocate) and Pat Jolliffe (COO / Compliance) treat “who runs the book” as a fiduciary question, not a back-office detail. See managed portfolios and how we’re different.

What does TAMP mean in plain English?

TAMP stands for turnkey asset management platform. In practice it usually means:

• Model portfolios designed by a third party (or a shelf of third-party managers).
• Trading and rebalancing handled by the platform or its custodial integrations.
• Reporting and billing that sit between your household and the people who actually pick investments.

The RIA you hired may still handle the relationship: meetings, planning talk, paperwork, and the “face” of the firm. The investment engine may live elsewhere. That split is the whole point of a TAMP — and the whole point of asking who does what before you transfer assets.

If Form ADV language is fuzzy on discretionary managers or “other advisers,” use our reading guide: How to read Form ADV Part 2A. Martino Capital’s brochure and CRD: Part 2A and IAPD / CRD 329648.

Why do some RIAs outsource portfolios to a TAMP?

Common business reasons — not a judgment that every use is wrong:

• Scale without a full investment team. Building research, trading, and compliance oversight in-house is expensive. A TAMP sells that stack as a subscription.
• Uniform models across many advisors. Home-office or franchise-style firms often want the same sleeve of ETFs or SMAs for every book.
• Faster onboarding. Plug into a custodian-integrated platform and open accounts against a menu of models.
• Marketing “institutional process.” Some firms lean on the platform’s brand more than their own portfolio people.

None of those reasons automatically fails a fiduciary test. What fails the consumer test is when the pitch sounds like personal portfolio management and the operational reality is a shared model you never chose by name — plus fee layers that never made it onto the whiteboard. For how that shows up before you sign, see fiduciary duty in practice.

What fees and conflicts can hide in a TAMP stack?

Illustration of fee layers — not a quote for your household, not advice.

A household can face several cost lines at once:

• Advisory AUM fee paid to the RIA you hired.
• TAMP / platform fee for models, trading, and reporting.
• Underlying manager or SMA fees inside the sleeve.
• Fund expense ratios on ETFs or mutual funds in the model.
• Custodian and account costs that may or may not be waived.

Each line can be “disclosed” somewhere. Fiduciary clarity asks for a fee-layer map in dollars for your account size — not a marketing slide that only shows the advisory wrap. Related vocabulary: fee-only vs fee-based vs AUM and how to spot hidden commissions and conflicts.

Conflicts to surface:

• Does the firm earn more (or keep more margin) when you sit in Platform A vs Platform B?
• Are “preferred” models the ones that pay the platform or an affiliate more?
• Is the advisor incentivized to keep you in the outsourced sleeve even when a simpler, cheaper core would fit?

Disclosure in ADV Item 5 or Item 14 starts the conversation. It does not finish it. Ask for the dollar map and who places the trades.

Who actually manages your money — relationship vs portfolio?

Three roles often get blended in sales language:

• Relationship advisor — meetings, planning narrative, referrals, paperwork
• Portfolio / trading desk — what to buy/sell, when to rebalance, tax-aware trades
• Platform / TAMP — models, trade routing, reporting, sometimes manager selection

You can have an excellent relationship advisor and still have no direct line to the people who change your holdings. That is fine if you know it and accept the fee stack. It is not fine if the website says “we manage portfolios” and the only human you can reach is a relationship manager reading a platform dashboard.

Questions that cut through the blur (more in questions to ask any advisor):

• Who places trades and rebalances in my accounts — name the firm or team?
• If that team left tomorrow, what happens to my models?
• Show me advisory + platform + underlying costs in dollars at my asset level.
• Can I speak with someone who actually runs the book — or is that outsourced?

How is Martino Capital different — no TAMPs?

Martino Capital’s posture is ADV-aligned and deliberate:

• Colorado RIA, high-net-worth focus — Denver / Colorado; CRD 329648
• Direct in-house portfolio management — we do not hand your book to a TAMP
• Single transparent AUM fee: Martino Capital charges a single, transparent fee based on assets under management. No product kickbacks. No layered third-party manager fees on top of ours.
• Commissions only when clearer/cheaper for the client, with plain disclosure — including insurance/annuity products when a transparent commission costs less than wrapping the same fit under multi-year AUM
• Leadership: Tom Martino (CEO / consumer advocate) and Pat Jolliffe (COO / Compliance)
• Research: proprietary S.W.E.L.L. AI research tool inside a human-led fiduciary process — a research aid, not a substitute for advisory judgment
• Public pages: how we’re different, managed portfolios, fiduciary duty, fiduciary duty in practice

In-house does not mean “we never use funds or ETFs.” It means we are accountable for selection, sizing, rebalancing, and explaining the book — not a turnkey platform sitting between our name and your trades.

Why we made that choice — accountability, fee clarity, and ADV alignment — is in why Martino Capital manages portfolios in-house.

Soft dollars, revenue sharing, and other costs outside the advisory line: invisible costs guide.

Phone-first: 303.771.4357 or the contact page. Email: tom@martinocapital.com. No online schedulers.

When might outsourcing still make sense for a client?

Education only — not a recommendation for your situation.

Outsourcing can be a reasonable firm design when the RIA is transparent about roles and total cost, the models fit the client, and the client prefers a standardized sleeve over a custom book. Some households care more about planning and relationship than about who clicks the rebalance button — as long as fees are plain and the ADV matches the hallway story.

Red flags are different: opaque stacks, “we manage your money” when a TAMP runs the book, inability to name the trading party, or resistance to a written fee-layer map. Fiduciary duty in practice is what happens when incentives and clarity collide — not the adjective on the homepage.

FAQ

Is a TAMP the same as a robo-advisor?

Not exactly. A robo-advisor is usually a direct-to-consumer automated account. A TAMP is typically a B2B platform an RIA plugs into so its clients sit in turnkey models. You may never see the TAMP brand on your login screen even when it runs the engine.

Does every RIA that uses a TAMP break fiduciary duty?

No. Outsourcing can be disclosed and operated carefully. The issues for clients are opacity, stacked fees without a dollar map, and marketing that implies in-house management when it is not.

How do I see TAMP use in Form ADV?

Look for language about other investment advisers, model providers, turnkey platforms, or discretionary managers in Part 2A (often fees, advisory business, and other financial industry activities). Cross-check with how to read Form ADV Part 2A and the firm’s IAPD filing for Martino Capital as a comparison point — we manage in-house and do not use TAMPs.

If my advisor uses a TAMP, should I leave?

Not automatically. Ask the four questions above, get costs in dollars, and decide whether the service and clarity match what you thought you bought. Switching firms is a separate decision from understanding the stack you are in.

Does Martino Capital use a TAMP?

No. Portfolios are managed directly in-house. That is a firm rule aligned with our Form ADV Part 2A, not a slogan. More on the rationale: why we manage portfolios in-house.

Where do I start if I am comparing firms?

Work through questions to ask any advisor, verify answers in ADV, and compare fee structures with fee-only vs fee-based vs AUM. Then call 303.771.4357 or use the contact page.

Disclaimer: This article is general education, not personalized investment, tax, or legal advice, and not a substitute for reading a firm’s current Form ADV or consulting your own counsel. It does not create an attorney-client or adviser-client relationship. Advisory services are offered only where Martino Capital is appropriately registered or exempt. Past performance does not guarantee future results. For current disclosures, see our Form ADV on IAPD.

Page reviewed September 2026 for clarity. This is educational information, not personalized investment advice.