Practice

Investors of all ages and incomes want more online services and features in order to be more informed and involved in their investment activities. And if they don’t get them from their financial advisors, they’ll find someone – if they haven’t already – who will.

"I would first like to fully fund the SEC," Barney Frank (D-Mass.), the ranking member of the Financial Services Committee, said at a hearing this morning considering the Bachus bill. "The very fact that we're considering an SRO argues strongly against the inadequate funding this Congress has given the SEC."

On June 6, 2012, The Securities and Exchange Commission charged OppenheimerFunds Inc. and its sales and distribution arm with making misleading statements about two of its mutual funds struggling in the midst of the credit crisis in late 2008.

The Milwaukee-based company hired Brian Rauscher as a chief portfolio strategiest to run the new group

Fidelity has introduced the “Realizing the Value in Your Firm” program, which includes a series of workshops being conducted nationally to help advisors understand succession planning options.

Genworth Wealth Management has created a proprietary six-step process to help its advisors meet the challenges of a higher level of client service.

Citi Private Bank hired Stephen Baird as director of its Houston branch, where he will provide private banking services to ultra-high-net-worth individuals and families.

Ninety-eight percent of advisers expressed concern that the estimated SRO membership fees would have a financial impact on their ability to run their firm. Of the 98%, 69% said the impact would be categorized as “severe.”

As lawmakers take up legislation that would reshape the regulatory landscape for retail investment advisers, industry groups are poised to present sharply contrasting visions for where expanded oversight authority should be housed.

Morgan Stanley Smith Barney has hired two Wells Fargo financial advisors with $1.49 million in combined production in Syracuse, N.Y.