Portfolio

Professor John Grable touched a nerve when he suggested in Financial Planning’s current issue that a mandatory AUM tax on advisors could help make financial planning available to all American families. Actually, he touched a lot of nerves.

The Republican chairman of the tax-writing House Ways and Means Committee, Dave Camp, R-Mich., released a draft document Thursday proposing a series of tax reforms for various types of financial derivatives and other financial products, building on work done by his committee over the past two years.

Tax-exempt money market funds continued their downward as they reported $2.44 billion of outflows, for the second week in a row of net outflows.

Inflows to municipal bond mutual funds, while still robust, have fallen for a second straight week, to $871 million from funds that report their flows weekly.

What makes an online trader successful? Fidelity Investments surveyed its top trading customers, those with a 12-month portfolio performance of at least 20%, to find out the secrets to their investing success.

Houston-based Salient Partners earlier this month added the Pure Trend Fund, a managed futures offering, to its growing list of alternative mutual funds.

Northern Trust Corporation is expanding its middle office outsourcing service with a brand new position.

Aspiriant, the industry’s third largest RIA, promoted Michael Kossman, the firm’s chief finance officer, to chief operating officer and hired Bret Magpiong as CFO.

BMO Global Asset Management has one more milestone to help establish its presence in the U.S.

Where would a successful trader invest a hypothetical $100,000 windfall? In energy, information technology and utilities, according to Fidelity Investments’ inaugural survey of its top online traders. The survey polled customers who made at least 36 trades over the past 12 months and whose total portfolio performance during this time was at least 20%. …