Practice

Only 11% of households cite referrals as the reason for beginning relationships with advisors, according to Cerulli Associates.

Mary Jo White, President Barack Obama’s nominee to lead the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, said she will avoid some matters involving firms including JPMorgan Chase & Co., General Electric Co. and Deloitte & Touche LLP if confirmed by the Senate.

Unlike the soon-to-be-discontinued Facebook Credits, the new Amazon Coins have a ready marketplace with consumers and merchants.

Total HSA accounts rose by 22% last year, to more than 8.2 million, while assets picked up by 27%, to $15.5 billion.

The outlook for the asset management industry in 2013 is strikingly more positive than it has been in years.

Fidelity Financial Advisor Solutions, the Defined Contribution Investment Only unit of Fidelity Investments, is looking to grow its team of wholesalers.

Target maturity funds picked up more than $13 billion in the fourth quarter of 2012, bringing the industry’s total assets to some $485 billion, a 29% increase from a year ago, according to data from Ibbotson.

As we head into the 2013 tax season, advisors should tell clients to be sure they won’t be hit with a Durden-style disallowance

FINRA appears to be pulling back from its campaign to regulate RIAs -- and advisors couldn’t be happier.

“Firms have to commit to planning," says Mike Durbin, president of Fidelity Institutional Wealth Services. "The firms on a path to high performance are on a fast course to planning.”