Practice

Even as Merrill Lynch moved to a $40 million settlement in response to a class action lawsuit this week, some experts ask whether it will be enough to satisfy some several thousand advisors who left the firm following its acquisition by Bank of America.

Merrill Lynch formally agreed to a $40 million settlement to a class action lawsuit brought by two of its former advisors regarding their deferred compensation on Friday, a decision that will potentially impact more than a thousand advisors with production levels of $500,000 and less.

"We have many advisor who are choosing to build their practices around women," says Joan Khoury, LPL's chief marketing officer. "When they do this, we are empowering them to have all this turnkey info for their women investors."

Authenticity is a critical component of being a successful financial advisor. Unfortunately, not all advisors fit that description, according to Steve Sanduski, "The Prosperous Advisor."

Plan participants who pick their own mix of investment options are generally exposed to greater risk due to reduced diversification, according to The Principal.

ICI President and CEO Paul Schott Stevens said the "exhaustive record" before the SEC did not support the changes that it was proposing.

Merrill Lynch is expected to head into a New York court Friday and hammer out a settlement that could potentially affect the deferred compensation of thousands of financial advisors that have left the firm since its 2008 combination with Bank of America.

Trust funds are typically plump with assets to manage. Now, RIAs may be able to keep those asset management fees, after trusts are funded, without having to disrupt back office operations.

The asset-management industry scored a victory when SEC Chairman Mary Schapiro abandoned her quest to impose tougher rules on money-market mutual funds, but some expect the celebration will be brief.

Here is the text of the statement by Securities and Exchange Commission Chairman Mary Schapiro on money market mutual fund reform.