> For the complete documentation index, see [llms.txt](https://advisorhub.syntheticfi.com/llms.txt). Markdown versions of documentation pages are available by appending `.md` to page URLs; this page is available as [Markdown](https://advisorhub.syntheticfi.com/working-with-prospects-deep-dive/handling-too-good-to-be-true.md). # Handling "Too Good to Be True" {% hint style="info" %} ## Healthy skepticism, not a deal breaker Acknowledge that there are real risks, then explain why the rate is genuinely lower: open-market pricing instead of a bank markup. Prospects accept it once they see where the savings come from. {% endhint %} When a prospect says "this sounds too good to be true," they're being smart. Cheap, tax-deductible borrowing against a portfolio sounds like it shouldn't exist. The honest answer: it's not a trick, it's simply better pricing because of a different market structure. ### The two-part response * **Acknowledge the real risks.** Don't dodge. There are three: margin call, interest rate, and execution, and they're worth walking through. Acknowledging them builds more trust than promising there's no catch. See ["What's the catch? Risks?"](/product-learn-more/whats-the-catch-risks.md) * **Explain where the savings come from.** The rate isn't cheap because of a trick. The loan is priced on an open market where large institutions compete to fund it, market makers, hedge funds, the BOXX ETF. A bank builds in a markup; the open market doesn't. That's the entire reason the rate is lower. See ["How Cheap?"](/product-learn-more/how-cheap.md) ### Why the strategy is legitimate * **It's not new.** This financing approach has been used by hedge funds, family offices, and prop shops for decades. CME Group reports hundreds of millions in daily volume. SyntheticFi didn't invent it, it made it accessible to advisors and their clients. * **It's exchange-cleared.** Every trade is cleared by the Options Clearing Corporation (OCC), the AA-rated central clearinghouse for listed US options, which has continued to clear through past market crises.\* * **It's well known.** he strategy has been covered by Bloomberg, Kitces, CBOE, CME Group, and the OCC. If the prospect wants third-party validation, it's easy to find. ### How to handle it in the prospect meeting * **Send the third-party coverage.** The Bloomberg article and the CBOE explainer from credible institutional sources usually settle the question on their own. * **Frame it as "different pricing, not a different product."** The prospect assumes the bank rate is the "real" rate. The honest framing: a bank loan is marked up; SyntheticFi is priced at the wholesale rate banks pay each other. Same product, no markup. * **Bring in SyntheticFi to go deeper.** Our team can join a follow-up call to walk through the mechanics, the OCC clearing process, and the risks. It usually closes the objection. {% file src="/files/BvE8n17cT2Jpv3Z7tVcH" %} {% file src="/files/Be8X6YiNstm8AmQAELKx" %} *** [\* Important Disclosures](/disclosures.md) --- # Agent Instructions This documentation is published with GitBook. GitBook is the documentation platform designed so that both humans and AI agents can read, navigate, and reason over technical content effectively. Learn more at gitbook.com. ## Querying This Documentation If you need additional information that is not directly available in this page, you can query the documentation dynamically by asking a question. Perform an HTTP GET request on the current page URL with the `ask` query parameter, and the optional `goal` query parameter: ``` GET https://advisorhub.syntheticfi.com/working-with-prospects-deep-dive/handling-too-good-to-be-true.md?ask=&goal= ``` `ask` is the immediate question: it should be specific, self-contained, and written in natural language. `goal` is optional and describes the broader end goal you are ultimately trying to accomplish on behalf of the user. GitBook uses it to tailor the answer towards what is most useful for that goal. The response will contain a direct answer to the question and relevant excerpts and sources from the documentation. Use this mechanism when the answer is not explicitly present in the current page, you need clarification or additional context, or you want to retrieve related documentation sections.