Money Management Executive Latest News

Ask your average mutual fund investor what impact the scandal has had on them, and what do you think you will hear?

The National Association of Securities Dealers has formed a mutual fund task force to recommend ways to make fund costs and distribution agreements more transparent to investors. Members of the mutual fund and broker/dealer communities will sit on the task force, which is being formed as a result of talks between the NASD and the SEC.

Invesco Funds confirmed this week that the U.S. attorney for the Southern District of New York has launched an investigation into possible misconduct, Dow Jones Newswires reports.

American Express is attempting to head off an investigation into its revenue-sharing agreements with mutual funds by the National Association of Securities Dealers, The Associated Press reports.

Strong Capital Management, its transfer agent and broker/dealer, along with founder Richard Strong and two executives, agreed to pay more than $175 million to settle with the SEC and the attorneys general of New York and Wisconsin Wednesday for market-timing abuses. As part of the deal, Strong and the two executives are permanently barred from the fund industry.

WASHINGTON – There is no guarantee that another scandal could not plague the fund industry, said ICI President Matthew Fink at the General Membership Meeting here. That’s why fund companies must work to ensure that breaches of fiduciary responsibility never occur again, Fink and other executives said.

Mutual fund executives participating in a forum at the Investment Company Institute’s General Membership Meeting in Washington protested a proposal by the Security and Exchange Commission to seat independent chairmen on fund boards, Reuters reports.

Allstate Insurance Co. is telling Spanish-speaking customers, "Asi Piensa Allstate," or "That’s What Allstate Believes" in an ad campaign that includes 30 different television spots that will air on Telemundo and Univision. Actor Esai Morales from "NYPD Blue" and "American Family" is Allstate’s spokesman.

The merger between the MONY Group and AXA Financial has finally been approved. A vigorous campaign encouraged shareholders to vote against the planned merger, on the basis that AXA’s offering price was too low. A little over half, which amounted to 67% of shares voted, were for the proposed merger.

Investment Company Institute Chairman Paul Haaga told mutual fund executives at the General Membership Meeting in Washington Wednesday that they must always consider investors' interests first, and that the recent scandal should serve as a constant reminder about those investors' well-being.