Ruthie Ackerman

The Securities and Exchange Commission voted on Friday to propose new rules that will require more advisors to register and to file reports about their business activities as part of the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act.

Affluent Americans are so concerned about not having enough money on hand for emergency expenses that they are putting their retirement savings at risk by keeping money in low-yielding products, such as savings accounts, CDs and money market funds.

The ugly truth is that more and more Americans are incurring debt with no plans on paying it back before they pass away.

Only one in five advisors are increasing the amount of time they spend talking to clients in the wake of the economic meltdown, said Gregory Salsbury, in the closing session at the Financial Behavior in Retirement Summit in Chicago on Monday. And that's a mistake.

How an advisor frames the discussion will determine client decision-making, said Brian Gaffney, CEO of Allianz Global Investors Distributors, and luncheon keynote at the Financial Behavior in Retirement Summit in Chicago on Monday.

Helping clients understand who they really are can improve their financial results, said Hugh Massie, founder of Financial DNA, during a talk at the Financial Behavior in Retirement Summit in Chicago on Monday.

Cost, confusion, denial and mistrust of providers are the roadblocks that keep pre-retirees and retirees from planning for their future healthcare needs, said Katy Votava, president and founder of Goodcare, at the Financial Behavior in Retirement Summit in Chicago on Monday.

The wide availability of data in the media and on the Internet has not made the decision of how to plan for retirement any easier, said Timothy Noonan, managing director at Russell Investments, during the keynote address at the Financial Behavior in Retirement Summit in Chicago Monday.

Investors poured over $26.8 billion into long-term mutual funds in October, nearly twice the assets added in September, Morningstar reported on Wednesday.

What will it take for Americans to think of the words “women” and philanthropy” in the same sentence?

The main driver for the global economy is coming from emerging markets, said investment experts at Morgan Stanley Smith Barney (MSSB) at a breakfast in New York City on Wednesday on the firm's outlook for 2011.

With investors still trying to heal from the economic crisis that tore through the global economy, many are pouring their dollars into bond funds. But there are still challenges going forward and many need help navigating their options, said investment experts and fund managers from The Hartford at a luncheon in New York City Tuesday.

Charles Schwab announced on Tuesday that ETF assets exceeded $100 billion, in part because of the success of Schwab’s own ETF products.

Assets in U.S. exchange-traded funds rose to $924.9 billion as of October 31 - its highest level on record - up $39.9 billion or 4.5% during the month.

The economic downturn took a toll on how much money wealthy families donated to charity in 2009, with average gift amounts tumbling by 35% from 2007, according to a Bank of America study released on Tuesday.

Even though Americans know they are responsible for their retirement and are not confident about the future of Social Security they still save less than they know they should.

While older baby boomers are entering retirement, younger boomers are struggling to prepare themselves for life beyond work and are trying to gain control of their financial futures.

Two different interpretations of this week's historic midterm elections emerged, with both sides competing to say how the vote would impact the financial services world.

The biggest change on everyone’s minds seems to be whether the Bush-era tax cuts will be extended at the end of this year. The answer may not be resolved as quickly as investors hope.

Now that the dust has settled after the midterm elections on Tuesday, with Republicans taking control of the U.S. House and the Democratic majority narrowing in the Senate, the burning question is: What does this mean for advisors?