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Bates Financial Advisors, Inc.

Rockford, ILSEC-registered investment adviserCRD 116515

Filed as BATES FINANCIAL ADVISORS, INC.

Bates Financial Advisors, Inc. is an SEC-registered investment advisory firm in Rockford, IL, registered since 2011, reporting $100 million to $500 million in regulatory assets under management in its Form ADV filing dated June 25, 2026.

15 years
registered since 2011
$439,211,752
assets under management
2 arrangements
Percentage of assets, Fixed fees
None
disclosure items (Item 11)

Quick answers

From the filing

How is Bates Financial Advisors, Inc. compensated?

On its Form ADV (Item 5.E, October 2026), Bates Financial Advisors, Inc. reports these compensation arrangements: a percentage of assets under its management; fixed fees (other than subscription fees).

Where is Bates Financial Advisors, Inc. located?

Bates Financial Advisors, Inc.'s principal office is in Rockford, IL, according to its Form ADV.

Is Bates Financial Advisors, Inc. registered with the SEC or a state?

Bates Financial Advisors, Inc. is an SEC-registered investment advisory firm, registered since 2011. Status as filed: Approved. CRD 116515.

How much does Bates Financial Advisors, Inc. manage?

Bates Financial Advisors, Inc. reports $439,211,752 in regulatory assets under management in its Form ADV filing dated June 25, 2026 (100% discretionary).

How have Bates Financial Advisors, Inc.'s assets and staff changed since 2021?

In the Form ADV data for Bates Financial Advisors, Inc.: Regulatory assets under management: $529,249,409 in the October 2021 data and $439,211,752 in the October 2026 data, down 17%. Total employees: 10 in October 2021 and 5 in October 2026. Assets under management move with markets as well as with clients coming and going.

What types of clients does Bates Financial Advisors, Inc. serve?

By number of clients on Form ADV Item 5.D: individuals (other than high net worth individuals) (267); high net worth individuals (130); charitable organizations (2).

Which custodians does Bates Financial Advisors, Inc. use?

Bates Financial Advisors, Inc.'s most recent Form ADV filing (Schedule D, Section 5.K(3)) lists Altruist Financial LLC and Fidelity Brokerage Services LLC as custodians holding 10% or more of its separately managed account assets.

Does Bates Financial Advisors, Inc. report any disciplinary disclosures?

Reports no disclosure items on Form ADV Item 11. The detail of any item is on the firm's SEC record: https://adviserinfo.sec.gov/firm/summary/116515

What changed in Bates Financial Advisors, Inc.'s recent Form ADV filings?

In the July 2026 filing data: Registered or notice-filed in CT.

From the Form ADV filing

Every figure below is as the firm filed it with regulators, as of October 2026.

How the firm is compensated

Item 5.E
  • A percentage of assets under your management
  • Fixed fees (other than subscription fees)

Item 5.E lists how the firm is compensated for its advice; Items 5.B, 6.A, and 7.A show whether its people or related companies can also earn commissions. Percentage of assets, fixed, hourly, subscription, and performance-based fees come from clients (a performance-based fee depends on investment results); commissions come with a sale or a trade, often from the company behind the product. How fees, commissions, and other arrangements differ

Fees and minimums

Form ADV Part 2A

See the firm's brochure (dated April 1, 2026) for its fees and any account minimum, on the SEC's IAPD site.

Regulatory assets under management

Item 5.F
$439,211,752

$439,211,752 as of October 2026, filing dated June 25, 2026.

Discretionary: $438,219,609.Non-discretionary: $992,143.

A measure of scale, not skill or returns. Discretionary means the firm decides trades; non-discretionary means clients approve each one. What assets under management means

Who the firm serves

Item 5.D
Individuals (other than high net worth individuals)
Clients 267 Assets $126,160,775 (29%)
High net worth individuals
Clients 130 Assets $311,843,128 (71%)
Charitable organizations
Clients 2 Assets $1,207,849 (0%)

A firm with no individual clients is an institutional manager even if it manages billions; the mix tells you whom the practice is built around.

Advisory services

Item 5.G
  • Financial planning services
  • Portfolio management for individuals and/or small businesses

Registration and firm details

Items 1, 2, 5
Registration
SEC-registered investment adviser. Status as filed: Approved.
Registered since
2011 (15 years)
Employees
Total: 5. Performing investment advisory functions: 5.
Wrap fee program participation
No.
Custodians (Schedule D, Section 5.K(3))

Custodians holding 10% or more of the firm's separately managed account assets, as filed on Form ADV (Schedule D, Section 5.K(3)). A custodian holds client assets; it does not endorse or supervise the firm. AdvisorCensus has no relationship with any custodian.

States registered or notice-filed
12 states or jurisdictions
AZCACOCTFLIAILINMOTNTXWI

SEC-registered investment advisers are examined by the SEC. SEC, state, and exempt registration

Disclosures

Item 11

None Reports no disclosure items on Form ADV Item 11. View on IAPD.

Item 11 asks about criminal, regulatory, and civil events involving the firm and its advisory personnel. The detail of each yes answer is on the IAPD record. Reading a firm's disclosures

Assets and staff over time

Items 5.A, 5.F
$529M 2021 $551M 2022 $452M 2023 $430M 2024 $396M 2025 $439M 2026
Data periodAssets under managementEmployeesFiling dated
October 2026$439,211,7525June 25, 2026
October 2025$395,625,8477March 31, 2025
October 2024$430,401,7039May 13, 2024
October 2023$451,525,64712June 28, 2023
October 2022$550,506,67810March 10, 2022
October 2021$529,249,40910March 22, 2021

Regulatory assets under management: $529,249,409 in the October 2021 data and $439,211,752 in the October 2026 data, down 17%.

Total employees: 10 in October 2021 and 5 in October 2026.

As filed in each year's data for the same month. Assets under management move with markets as well as with clients coming and going; they measure scale, not skill or returns. Most firms update these figures once a year.

Changes in the filing

Last 12 months
  1. July 2026
    • Registered or notice-filed in CT.
  2. May 2026
    • Employees performing advisory functions went from 7 to 5.
    • Regulatory assets under management went from $395,625,847 to $439,211,752 (+11%).
  3. January 2026
    • No longer registered or notice-filed in MI.
  4. November 2025
    • Updated its list of owners and control persons (Schedule A).

Compared month to month from the SEC's monthly adviser data and the state compilation feed. Owners and control persons are summarized, never named.

Websites listed on Form ADV

Item 1.I
batesfinancialadvisors.com

Source: Form ADV, as of October 2026. Values appear as filed; a value the firm did not report is shown as "Not reported."

Cite this page

AdvisorCensus. Bates Financial Advisors, Inc. (CRD 116515): Form ADV filing data as of October 2026.
https://advisorcensus.com/firm/bates-financial-advisors-inc-rockford-il-116515