Practice

After a heated debate, the regulatory reform conference committee agreed late Thursday to scale back a provision of the bill that would eliminate the use of trust-preferred securities as Tier 1 capital.

Surveys of wealthy investors show common themes of concern, optimism and a need for guidance from financial advisors.

Schwab Charitable is hopping on the Roth IRA conversion bandwagon, urging wealthy investors to take advantage of lifted income caps to lower their subsequent tax exposure through charitable donations.

The Securities and Exchange Commission is stepping up its enforcement efforts in the municipal securities market for the first time in more than a decade, with a staff of roughly 30 attorneys charged with investigating and trying muni and public pension fund cases.

The Securities and Exchange Commission Wednesday accused the former owner of Taylor Bean & Whitaker with orchestrating a massive equity and MBS fraud tied to his firm's warehouse borrowings from Colonial Bank, a depository it tried to take control of last summer using Troubled Asset Relief Program (TARP) money.

Regulatory reform conferees tussled Wednesday over provisions that would allow the Government Accountability Office more power to audit the Federal Reserve Board, give shareholders a nonbinding vote on compensation and strengthen investor protections.

France raised its pension retirement age by a mere two years, from 60 to 62, and people took great umbrage to that. Protests broke out in the street, and union leaders said they'll strike. One-third of the nation's TVG fast trains were expected to be canceled.

Proponents of the fiduciary standard for all financial advisors will be watching the House-Senate conference committee very closely Wednesday, when the group will begin to consider whether to include the requirement in the financial regulatory reform bill.

The SEC will also require glidepath graphics and asset allocation taglines in advertisements—a new twist for funds that really aren’t as easy as they look.

The Senate has the advantage in conference committee, but advocates have allies there, too.