Finance

Bank of America Corp.’s Merrill Lynch unit agreed to pay $160 million to settle a discrimination lawsuit filed by black financial advisors, a lawyer for the plaintiffs said.

As the U.S. bond market suffers its worst rout since 2009, the gauge that historically signals more pain for fixed-income investors is instead suggesting yields are near their peak.

We have all heard that the best way to have loyal clients and get referrals is to consistently exceed your clients' expectations.

Federal Reserve policy makers have wrung out some risk in financial markets by signaling plans to wind down $85 billion in monthly bond purchases, buying time to press on with record stimulus should the economy need it.

David Blain, a financial adviser in New Bern, North Carolina, likes exchange-traded funds so much he’s put all his clients’ money in them. He also thinks individual investors trading ETFs on their own may be in for surprises when markets come under stress.

Barclays Plc’s investment-banking chief Rich Ricci and wealth-management head Tom Kalaris, two of the last remaining members of former Chief Executive Officer Robert Diamond’s management team, will step down.

Will Rogers has been quoted as saying, “The only difference between death and taxes is that death doesn’t get worse every time Congress meets.” Earlier this year, Congress passed the American Taxpayer Relief Act of 2012, which may have prevented us from falling off the fiscal cliff, but further complicated the already complex world of income taxation of estates and trusts.

House Republicans, rejecting President Obama’s demand for higher tax rates, countered with a $2.2 trillion deficit-cutting plan that would trim Medicare and Social Security and cap tax deductions for top earners.

Stocks advanced as U.S. equity markets resumed trading for the first time this week after Hurricane Sandy. Most European shares rose as airlines reported better-than-estimate earnings, the euro strengthened and gasoline climbed to a two-week high.

U.S. equity markets will reopen today after the longest weather-related shutdown in more than a century, resuming after the New York Stock Exchange was spared by Hurricane Sandy as it swept through New York Oct. 29.

ING Groep NV, facing a regulatory deadline to sell its insurance business, is pressing prospective buyers of operations in Southeast Asia and Hong Kong to also acquire part of its Japanese unit, three people with knowledge of the matter said.

Prudential Financial Inc. has emerged as the lead bidder for Hartford Financial Services Group Inc.'s individual life insurance business, which may sell for about $1 billion, said two people with knowledge of the matter.

Knight Capital Group Inc. received a $400 million cash infusion through the sale of convertible securities after trading losses spurred by a software failure drove the market maker to the brink of bankruptcy.

The Supreme Court’s decision to uphold the health care overhaul could have a broad impact on wealthy investors’ wallets with a new 3.8% increase on investment income.

The surprisingly weak U.S. jobs report in March showed that the U.S. has not fully turned the corner on job growth. Non-farm payrolls rose by 120,000, the worst performance in more than a year. This slow recovery is not unexpected after a financial crisis, and there are many other bright spots in the economy. However, some argue that the unemployment numbers are actually worse than reported—an ongoing controversy not likely to be resolved in the near future.

Shoe leather isn’t always enough to build a book of business, particularly for young advisors starting out. Doug Leonzi, No. 22 on BIC’s Top 50 Bank Rep list, reflects on the importance of a senior advisor who crossed his path.

Whether or not you work for a best practice firm, it pays to manage your book to maximize its value.

The graying of the workforce is a problem for banks, but an opportunity for bank advisors, young and old, if they think ahead. Enterprising bank advisors planning to retire can buddy up with younger advisors and put them in place as potential successors. Both senior and junior advisors will win from teaming up.

Organization wants to dispel 'conventional wisdom that it's a solution in search of a problem.'


Sharing select personal details can help advisors win over prospects, one planner says at TD Ameritrade conference.