Jen Hatch grew up with a mother who was not good with managing her finances.
“She was terrible about money and I swore I would not be like her. I did not want to be dependent like her.’’
So it’s no wonder Hatch took a liking to personal finance planning at an early age. “It was my favorite subject to study. I wanted to learn how to accumulate money and have choices, and to be secure in the world, and give back,’’ she added.
Hatch, who honed her financial skills on Wall Street, working at JP Morgan and Bear Stearns, took hold of Christopher Street Financial in 1997, after the death of owner and founder Robert Casaletto to HIV. Casaletto had left the firm in a charitable remainder trust to the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) for their Gay and Lesbian Project. Hatch took control soon after.
“I was in the right place at the right time when I took over Christopher Street, “ said Hatch, who initially had partnered with two others to buy the firm. She pointed out that the firm was commission-based and focused on investment management.
It now deals with clients with a different set of needs, she said.
“Today, we are fee-based investment advisors who are working with complicated issues,’’ she said, pointing out that the firm focuses on various financial needs such as estate planning, tax management, complex and investment financial planning, cash flow planning.
The firm had 3,000 clients and $150 million in assets, Hatch said. The assets have grown to $500 million and she serves 400 households. “It’s a different demographic,’’ she pointed out.
“But what’s consistent is that we maintain our focus on the LGBT and progressive community,’’ she said. “We basically focus on unique and complex financial issues impacting the LGBT community.’’
Hatch recalls when she took over the firm, the question she always got asked was, “What’s so gay about money?’’ Her response: “Nothing if you are single but everything if you are in a committed relationship and have assets together.’’
“It was complicated for high-earning couples,’’ said Hatch, pointing out that the Christopher Street is 75 percent LGBT client based, not all couples she added. The other 25 percent are referrals from those clients, many asking, “Can you help my mother?’’