Bob Veres

Here's what I've realized since I penned my original missive to the commission.

I’ve been watching, with increasing dismay, the trend of outside investors taking ownership of advisory firms.

Most advisory firms are not systematically spreading public awareness of their services. That’s a big mistake.

The trickle of brokers leaving wirehouses for greater independence is quietly becoming a flood.

The CFP Board’s new code of ethics should be celebrated for embracing the fiduciary concept — will the standards be strengthened even more in the future?

It appears the regulator bought into the investor choice argument of sales reps right from the beginning.

Instead of thinking about fiduciary purely as an obligation or regulation, advisors should envision it as something much bigger: a way of life.

As the financial planning industry nears a fee-only, fiduciary world, independent broker-dealers will face some important choices about their future business models.

What do they bring to the table? Lobbying clout, alternative fee structures and technical expertise are just part of the equation.

It is not the fiduciary rule or whether robo technology is friend or foe.