In today’s volatile market, financial advisors face the dual challenge of managing client portfolios and calming emotional responses to market fluctuations. When fear is driving investment decisions, data-driven approaches might offer a path to more rational portfolio construction.
In an interview with The Wealth Advisor’s Scott Martin, Eric Pachman, Chief Analytics Officer at Bancreek Capital Advisors, discussed how the firm’s data-centric methodology shapes its exchange-traded fund (ETF) offerings and market analysis tools, providing advisors with resources to navigate uncertainty with confidence rather than fear.
A Systematic Approach to Active Management
Bancreek currently offers two strategies for investing in a diversified portfolio of companies with structurally advantaged business models: the Bancreek U.S. Large Cap ETF (ticker: BCUS) and the Bancreek International Large Cap ETF (ticker: BCIL). Both funds stand out for their truly active management approach within concentrated portfolios.
Pachman describes the firm’s investment philosophy as centered on “investment endurance,” a concept that applies technological measurement principles to stock evaluation. Much like a smartwatch tracks physical vitality, Bancreek’s systematic method measures a stock’s endurance potential.
What distinguishes Bancreek’s strategies from those of its competitors is a concentrated approach. While many active managers carry hundreds of positions, Bancreek’s ETFs focus on 30 stocks. This selectivity allows for greater impact from each high-conviction position without sacrificing risk management principles. Pachman emphasizes, “I don’t think there’s really much portfolio diversification math that tells you that 300 is better than 30.”
The concentrated yet actively managed approach allows Bancreek to focus on quality rather than quantity, potentially offering advisors a distinctive option for clients seeking active management without excessive diversification diluting returns.
Data over Emotion: Building Confidence amid Uncertainty
At its core, Bancreek is committed to data-driven decision-making, particularly valuable during times of market turbulence. Extensive research underpins this investment approach, with “10 years of research and billions of model iterations” supporting its methodologies, Pachman says. “We have a tremendous amount of confidence in the quality of the product.”
The firm’s disciplined, repeatable process aims to deliver consistent results regardless of market conditions or sentiment. For advisors helping clients navigate concerns about inflation, tariffs, and other macroeconomic factors, Pachman recommends the same evidence-based strategy: “My prescription for this, if I were a doctor, would be to push the emotional headlines aside and lean into the data.”
This data-centric methodology doesn’t just apply to portfolio construction but extends to macroeconomic analysis as well. By replacing fear-based reactions with factual analysis, advisors might develop more nuanced perspectives on economic indicators and potentially make more informed allocation decisions during uncertain times.
Free Resources for Advisor Education
Beyond its ETF offerings, Bancreek provides tools on its website designed to help advisors analyze key economic data points such as employment figures and inflation metrics. These complimentary resources don’t require ETF purchases or even signing up for emails—they simply aim to enhance advisor understanding of market dynamics.
Among these tools are interactive visualizations that allow advisors to explore economic data independently. The visualizations work to cut through media narratives that may oversimplify complex economic situations. For example, regarding inflation concerns, Pachman notes, “When you get into the data, you’ll see that it is not black and white—and the outcome may not be as dire as we are led to believe.”
He highlights how the resources can reveal surprising insights, which may assuage media-driven fears regarding Consumer Price Index (CPI) inflation. “Yes, there almost certainly will be upward pressure due to tariffs,” Pachman acknowledges. “We have no way to quantify this at the moment. But what we do know is that we got the best shelter print in a long time last month, and shelter is over a third of the entire CPI measure.”
As a result, “Even if you have a tremendous amount of inflation that comes due to tariffs on food, on autos, and so on, that could be almost fully offset by subdued shelter inflation, simply because shelter’s weight within CPI is roughly three times larger than the entire food component,” but does not receive comparable media attention.
With access to key data visualization tools, advisors may gain the confidence to guide client conversations beyond headline fears, providing a measured perspective that acknowledges market complexities without amplifying anxiety.
The International Opportunity with BCIL
While the US market has dominated global returns for years, Bancreek identified an opportunity in international developed markets before recent shifts in market sentiment made such allocations more popular.
“Our approach has always been pretty simple—we build products that we would want to invest in,” Pachman explains regarding BCIL. “When we applied our framework to developed international equity markets, the results were incredibly compelling.”
The timing appears prescient as international markets gain attention. “We’re sitting here in a thin actively managed international ETF marketplace,” Pachman observes, noting that international equities “have been under-owned for the better part of half a decade now.”
For advisors considering portfolio diversification beyond US equities, BCIL offers an actively managed option designed with the same data-driven approach as its US counterpart, potentially providing a tactical allocation tool during periods of US market uncertainty.
The Advisor as “Debugger” of Client Emotions
A significant value proposition for advisors lies in helping clients interpret market data rationally rather than emotionally. Financial professionals often serve as filters or what Pachman dubs “debuggers” for client anxiety, helping them process market information more efficiently.
“I think that’s what the best advisors do,” Pachman responds. “They’re part advisor, part therapist, part financial coach. You wear so many different hats.”
Bancreek’s resources aim to support advisors in their multifaceted roles by providing educational tools that differentiate them from competitors and aim to strengthen client relationships. “What are advisors looking for? They’re looking for education that differentiates them from their competitor, and we provide that,” says Pachman.
By equipping advisors with deeper insights, Bancreek’s approach might enable more substantive client conversations during turbulent markets, potentially strengthening advisor-client relationships when they matter most.
Data-Driven Decisions in an Emotion-Driven Market
As market uncertainty persists, the contrast between emotional reactions and data-driven decisions becomes increasingly important for portfolio outcomes. Bancreek Capital’s dual offering of concentrated ETFs and educational resources represents an integrated methodology for investment management.
For advisors seeking to differentiate their practice while helping clients navigate volatile markets, Bancreek’s emphasis on systematic processes offers portfolio solutions through BCUS and BCIL along with communication tools that strengthen client relationships. The ability to adjust allocations between domestic and international exposure using the same disciplined methodology provides flexibility in responding to changing market conditions. Bancreek’s philosophy suggests that embracing data isn’t just about performance optimization—it’s about building client confidence through transparency and education.
In a marketplace where fear can often drive decision-making, Bancreek’s methodology reminds advisors that sometimes the most valuable service they can provide is helping clients see beyond emotional reactions to discover opportunities hidden within market data.
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Additional Resources
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Disclosures
Investors should consider the investment objectives, risks, charges and expenses carefully before investing. For a prospectus or summary prospectus with this and other information about the Fund, please call (855) 973-7880 or visit our website at www.bancreeketfs.com. Read the prospectus or summary prospectus carefully before investing.
The Funds are distributed by Foreside Fund Services, LLC.
Investing involves risk, including loss of principal. A new or smaller fund’s performance may not represent how the fund is expected to or may perform in the long term if and when it becomes larger and has fully implemented its investment strategies. The Fund relies heavily on proprietary quantitative investment selection models as well as data and information supplied by third parties that are utilized by such models. To the extent the models do not perform as designed or as intended, the Fund’s strategy may not be successfully implemented, and the Fund may lose value. If the models or data are incorrect or incomplete, any decisions made in reliance thereon may lead to the inclusion or exclusion of securities that would have been excluded or included had the models or data been correct and complete. Read the prospectus for additional details regarding risks.
Please visit https://bancreeketfs.com/bcus and https://bancreeketfs.com/bcil for more information on the funds and associated risks.
