Dec 29, 2011
By Jerry Gleeson
A year after its launch, a New York-based services provider for high-end wealth managers hopes to draw more advisors to its platform by offering access to the kind of research that’s usually available only to institutional players. Dynasty Financial Partners expects to unveil its new program by the end of the first quarter of 2012. ...
Dec 23, 2011
By Diana Britton
Following the twin market implosions of the past decade—first tech, then real estate—many retail financial advisors are looking for more tactical, meaning active, asset allocation solutions for client portfolios to dampen volatility, improve total returns and avoid market catastrophes. ...
Dec 21, 2011
By Stephen Boswell and Kevin Nichols
Los Angeles: “I’m excited about meeting with this new prospect tomorrow,” started John. He continued with, “I know there needs to be some rapport building before I jump into any business, do you have a list of questions I can ask as conversation starters?”...
Dec 21, 2011
By Diana Britton
Study after study has documented how financial advisors are using social media these days, and webinar after webinar purports to show them how to use social media tools to reel in new assets. Really financial advisors are just getting started, and already, the bloom seems to be coming off the rose, Aite Group says....
Dec 21, 2011
By Charles Paikert
The giving season is here, but what’s being given, at least by philanthropic-minded high-net-worth clients, is changing.
The standard gift to a charity or foundation has traditionally been a highly-appreciated, publicly-traded security. But increasingly, wealthy clients are donating non-cash assets such as diverse as private property, businesses to even commodities such as soybeans or timber. ...
Dec 19, 2011
By Alan Lavine
Financial advisors are increasingly concerned about the financial strength of the insurance companies whose products they sell. They cite low interest rates and exposure to the stock market via product principal guarantees as grounds for their concern, according to a fall study by LIMRA....
Dec 16, 2011
By Diana Britton
Erado, which provides social media compliance and archiving software for broker/dealers, plans to expand its operations into Western Europe, Canada and possibly Japan next year, and expects to add at least 30 new employees in 2012. ...
Dec 15, 2011
By Diana Britton
The fastest-growing advisors in 2012 are likely going to be those who can become more calculated and deliberate about the types of clients they do business with. According to a PriceMetrix report, “outperformers,” or those advisors from PriceMetrix’s database who saw the most growth in either assets, revenues or both in 2011, are adding more productive relationships to their books and dropping less productive ones. ...
Dec 14, 2011
By Matt Oechsli
The mantra for any type of social prospecting is strategic intent, and holiday schmoozing is tailored made for this. In simple terms, this means that you approach every social activity during the holidays with a game plan. You know who will be attending, whom you will know, whom you want to meet, and whom you’re targeting to romance into your pipeline....
Dec 12, 2011
By Susan Konig
A confluence of factors has shrunk the pool of potential recruits for wirehouse firms, and that means competition for the best advisors is fierce. ...
Dec 8, 2011
By Mark Miller
Lenders hope to convince financial planners who reverse loans can be a safe, flexible financial tool for seniors. Many planners are skeptical of reverse loans due to their high fees; the industry also has been dogged lately by headlines about litigation focused on foreclosure risks facing seniors, and market exits by several major lenders....
Dec 7, 2011
By Philip Palaveev
You may be pessimistic about the economy, the markets or the dollar but there is little reason whatsoever to be concerned about the state of the financial advisory industry. Results of Registered Rep.’s 2011 Compensation Survey suggest that financial advisors continue to expand their practices, work with more clients and receive ample compensation for their efforts. ...
Dec 7, 2011
By Stephen Boswell and Kevin Nichols
Greensboro: “Can you offer me some suggestions for holiday prospecting?” asked Tina, a new advisor on a recent coaching call. “I have a couple holiday gatherings coming up and I know I need to send some holiday cards, but what else do you suggest?”...
Dec 6, 2011
By Charles Paikert
Driven by client demand, technology advances and increasing advisor interest, 2011 has been a banner year for account aggregation, but wealth managers are divided on how to price the service....
Dec 2, 2011
By Diana Britton
Tampa, Fla.-based Calton & Associates, an independent broker/dealer with over $2 billion in assets, has recently ramped up its marketing and recruiting efforts after flying under the radar for the last 25 years. The firm plans to build itself up through mergers and acquisitions with smaller b/ds as well as by bringing on new reps and RIAs....
Dec 1, 2011
By Jerry Gleeson
When Frank Maiorano took over in January 2010 as chief executive at Trust Company of America, he told Registered Rep. shortly afterward that company Chairman Stephen A. Finn wanted him to be “the face of the company,” to get out in the field and meet with the advisors who were clients of the Colorado-based custodian. ...
Dec 1, 2011
By John Aidan Byrne
Robert J. McCann’s responsibilities at Swiss bank giant UBS dramatically expanded with a new appointment Thursday. CEO since October 2009 of UBS Wealth Management Americas (WMA), McCann was appointed to the additional role of CEO of the entire Americas Group today as part of a larger management shuffle instituted by the new CEO Sergio Ermotti. ...
Dec 1, 2011
By Joshua Brown
A list of the top 10, and how to cope with them. ...
Dec 1, 2011
By Mindy Diamond
The landscape of the business has changed, so do your homework about what options are available to you, including organic growth, acquisitions and switching channels....
Dec 1, 2011
By Bill Singer
I typically advise my clients to undertake a serious “cold review” of all previously cited problem areas and deficiencies when preparing for their next regulatory exam. ...
Dec 1, 2011
By Pat Huddleston
FAs can be vulnerable. ...
Dec 1, 2011
By Diana Britton
Dec 1, 2011
By Kristen French
Distance from the crisis and improved asset flows gave a little kick to advisor satisfaction this year, according to Registered Rep's Broker Report Card. But the ratings are mixed. ...
Dec 1, 2011
By Diana Britton
Founder and managing principal, SageView Advisory Group, Irvine, Calif....
Nov 30, 2011
By Matt Oechsli
Philadelphia—“I just spent an hour solving a problem for a very low-revenue client, embarrassingly low, especially when I discovered he no longer worked for the company whose owner is a good client,” mused Michael. He confessed, “I know what I should do, but these people need my help.”...
Nov 30, 2011
By John Aidan Byrne
Financial advisors at UBS Wealth Management Americas (WMA) are about to go more mobile -- in a far-reaching pilot program that enables them to use an extensive array of UBS tools and other applications. At the heart of the technology is an application engineered by a Silicon Valley startup. ...
Nov 29, 2011
By Charles Paikert
During bad times advisors usually pay more attention to practice management gurus. And with gyrating global markets wreaking havoc on investors’ portfolios and confidence, wealth managers need all the help they can get....
Nov 28, 2011
By Matthew T. McClintock and Jonathan A. Mintz
WealthCounsel and Trusts & Estates unveiled the preliminary results of their annual electronic survey to identify trends in the industry and to probe the mindset of professional advisors regarding the impact of the economy on their clients. The results indicate that estate-planning professionals aren’t optimistic about the nation’s economy and cite partisan gridlock on Capitol Hill. ...
Nov 25, 2011
By Diana Britton
In May, Ron Carson, long the No. 1 on Registered Rep.'s Top 100 IBD advisor list, announced plans to leave LPL Financial (Nasdaq: LPLA) to become an independent registered investment advisor and start his own broker/dealer. The firm made the RIA conversion in July, but days before Carson’s b/d was to be approved, he pulled the plug and decided to keep his 5 percent of brokerage assets with LPL. Carson sat down with Registered Rep. to talk about the move. ...
Nov 22, 2011
By Charles Paikert
In addition to wealth managers’ concerns about retaining the children of their clients as customers, evidence continues to pile up that parents remain highly concerned that their children won’t even be able to hold on to their inheritance in the first place....
Nov 17, 2011
By Joshua Brown
I am very fortunate as a financial advisor to have an amazing group of clients I work with each day. I consider it an honor to have been given this responsibility by the households I am responsible for; helping people invest for the future is my life’s work and the relationships I have now with clients mean a lot to me both professionally and personally. But it was not always thus....
Nov 17, 2011
By Jerry Gleeson
In the managed account market, what difference can fees make? This week Wealthcare Capital Management, an RIA and provider of wealth management advisory services in Richmond, Va., announced its new Unified Managed Household program will charge about 50 basis points less than other managed account platforms. ...
Nov 16, 2011
By Matt Oechsli
Chicago—“I just finished listening to a panel of our top producers talk about their service models, and it sounds wonderful. But then I find myself wondering, ‘Is this realistic?’ ” mused John. “I’m not even sure these advisors really do everything they’re saying.”
By the tone of John’s comments, it was obvious that he’d just exposed his Achilles’ heel—he wasn’t able to listen to this “best practices” discussion and make the connection between his professional world and these top producers. I got the sense that he’d rather complain than try to identify a handful of items applicable to his situation.
...
Nov 15, 2011
By Charles Paikert
An outspoken fixture in the wealth management industry for over two decades, Convergent Wealth Advisors chief executive Steve Lockshin is in the headlines again, embracing a new role as a contrarian...
Nov 15, 2011
By David Trainer
As one financial scandal follows another, it seems the good guys are having a tougher time catching the bad guys. Recent revelations about MF Global’s bankruptcy are reminders of how our regulatory and oversight systems seem to let whales pass through their nets...
