Jul 9, 2010
By Jerry Gleeson
Will a broader application of the fiduciary standard be accompanied by higher insurance costs? Some broker/dealers are bracing for the possibility. ...
Jul 8, 2010
By Michael Stillman
New regulation under ERISA section 408(b)(2) is expected to be released in the fall of 2010 and take effect in 2011. One key consequence of these regulations is level pricing for financial advisers (FAs) who provide services to 401(k) plans. ...
Jul 7, 2010
By David A. Geracioti
Though 2009 comp was way off from 2008, on average, financial advisors' compensation has, for the most part, returned to pre-crash levels. Expectations are high for a resumption of growth for 2010....
Jul 6, 2010
By Stan Luxenberg
Socially responsible funds all seek to invest in businesses that are good corporate citizens. But the funds rarely agree on which stocks pass the test. The Gulf oil spill has served to highlight the differences in strategies. ...
Jul 2, 2010
By Jerry Gleeson
It’s the unanswerable question every investor eyeing retirement, and his financial advisor, seek an answer to—How many years do I have to live? New genetic research may narrow the variety of possible answers to that question significantly. ...
Jun 30, 2010
By Jerry Gleeson
MetLife is making new inroads with what some call the “mass retail” investor segment. Six months after launching a platform that welcomes clients with as little as $10,000 to invest, the MetLife Broker-Dealer Group has accumulated $160 million in AUM on that platform, says Jeffrey Wilk, vice president of Investment and Advisory Product Management. ...
Jun 30, 2010
By Christina Mucciolo
“Most brokers want to do right by their client, but there is a difference between doing right by their client and acting in their best interest.” ...
Jun 29, 2010
By Halah Touryalai
Under reform legislation, RIAs with less than $100 million in assets will no longer be regulated by the SEC. State regulators will step in. Will states be more successful than the SEC?...
Jun 28, 2010
By Stan Luxenberg
In recent years, shareholders have become smarter fund shoppers. But too many still buy and sell at the wrong times, says Don Phillips, Morningstar’s managing director....
Jun 25, 2010
By Kristen French
Updated Sunday, June 27. The full bill is now available.
After a herculean 20-hours straight of negotiations, Congressional committee members agreed Friday morning to a Wall Street reform package that will be much tougher on the country’s banks....
Jun 25, 2010
By Jerry Gleeson
Considered by some to be a latecomer to the ETF party, Vanguard yesterday beefed up its exchange traded fund and mutual fund offerings. In keeping with its philosophy of shaving costs for investors, the expense ratio on the 500 Index Fund ETF is a niggling 0.06 percent. ...
Jun 24, 2010
By Kristen French
Senator Tim Johnson accepted a final counter-offer from the House this afternoon on the subject of fiduciary duty in Wall Street reform. ...
Jun 23, 2010
By Halah Touryalai
The nervous-client-syndrome has yet to wear off. That’s according to a new survey that says most advisors are still spending the majority of their time with existing clients rather then generating new business....
Jun 21, 2010
By Jerry Gleeson
Is Boston Private Financial Holdings making a comeback? After a string of unsuccessful RIA acquisitions, soured loans at its private bank division, and a drawdown of $154 million in federal TARP aid, the RIA consolidator’s outlook was glum. Now there are signs that things are turning around....
Jun 18, 2010
By Bill Singer
The SEC is a gas-guzzling dinosaur of a vehicle whose engine warning-light went on years ago. It is a wheezing, dyspeptic boiler in our basement. Nothing good will come of this....
Jun 17, 2010
By Jerry Gleeson
With a rocky economic recovery, millions of gallons of oil spilling into the Gulf of Mexico, and sovereign debt crises in Europe, what is there to be happy about? Plenty, if you were one of the value managers at Wednesday’s panel discussion on investment opportunities, sponsored by American Beacon Advisors in New York City. ...
Jun 15, 2010
By Kristen French
In a media conference call Tuesday morning, NASAA President Denise Voigt Crawford outlined the biggest investor protection issues in Wall Street reform legislation supported by NASAA. Investor protection is one of the issues legislators plan to vote on during Tuesday’s conference session. ...
Jun 15, 2010
By Kristen French
After months and months of public debate and back-room deal-making, a final outcome on fiduciary duty—the biggest issue for financial advisors, stockbrokers and wealth managers in the Wall Street reform bill—may be decided Wednesday, and depends heavily on how Senator Tim Johnson (D., S.D.) votes in conference debate. ...
Jun 10, 2010
By John Aidan Byrne
“We are really the only major relevant firm that actually went into the 2008 and 2009 abyss and came out the same firm,” Mulholland told Registered Rep., in an exclusive interview at his office in Weehawken, N.J. “We went in as UBS and we came out as UBS. The others, they came out entirely different.” ...
Jun 9, 2010
By Jerry Gleeson
If you worked as a financial advisor last year, you are well aware that securities industry compensation was one of the many victims of the financial collapse. But new data from David Belkin, senior economist at the nonpartisan New York City Independent Budget Office, suggests that a more game-changing dynamic was at work, at least as far as securities companies based in New York City are concerned....
Jun 7, 2010
By Halah Touryalai
As one advisor puts it, “[The private equity firms] didn’t invest in LPL to hang out. It was a business decision and they’re ready to monetize their investment.” The PE firms’ 2005 investment valued LPL at $2.5 billion, or 2.5x gross revenue—a multiple analysts said was the highest ever for an independent b/d/. ...
Jun 7, 2010
By Jerry Gleeson
Americans will be feeling more generous this year, according to a projection from the Center on Wealth and Philanthropy at Boston College. After falling off in 2009, charitable giving by individuals in the United States is expected to increase this year by 3 to 4.5 percent, the center estimates. ...
Jun 3, 2010
By Jerry Gleeson
Some attorneys are working feverishly to get clients’ assets into a specialized trust before proposed federal legislation eliminates the provisions that have made it so popular as a means of significantly reducing taxes....
Jun 3, 2010
By Kristen French
A big part of being a fiduciary has always been knowing exactly what your clients are paying for their investments, and making sure they’re getting the best deal. But today, advisors who act as fiduciaries have to keep a closer watch over fees and expenses than ever before, said Fi360, a group that provides consulting to financial advisors on fiduciary issues. ...
Jun 1, 2010
By John Aidan Byrne
Bank of America is making a push into electronic brokerage services, a menu that includes free online trading and a new platform called Merrill Edge, set to debut in late June. Some say the new services will steal business from Merrill advisors. ...
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