Money Management Executive Latest News

There were merger talks earlier this year between FleetBoston Financial Corp. and John Hancock Financial Services, according to the Associated Press. However, the talks were called off, as each side reportedly feared a hostile takeover.

AIM Management Group’s separately managed account subsidiary, AIM Private Asset Management, has reached an agreement with FundQuest to sell two of its platforms.

According to Reuters, Fidelity Investments faces a probe by the Securities and Exchange Commission and the New York Stock Exchange to see if employees in the brokerage unit have broken securities laws.

The House of Representatives Wednesday passed a bill that would allow 401(k) plan administrators to also offer investment advice, The New York Times reports. The bill would also allow employees who hold company stock in a 401(k) plan after three years.

A recently released survey is showing the large majority of U.S. investors as being optimistic about the stock market’s long-term investment opportunities.

Plan sponsors continue to expand the number of investment options available through their retirement plans, but a new study shows that too much choice adversely affects plan participation.

WASHINGTON – The Securities and Exchange Commission hearings on hedge funds here yesterday focused on suitability, the definition of hedge funds and whether a regulation crackdown is needed.

Putnam Investments has posted its proxy voting guidelines on its Web site, Reuters reports.

Schoolhouse Capital, a division of State Street Corp., is teaming up with asset management giant Federated Investors and the state of Oregon to launch a state-sponsored 529-college savings program.

SEI Investments announced Tuesday that Barclays Global Investors has selected the firm to serve as distributor for Barclays’ $12 billion fund complex. Under the deal, SEI will distribute Barclays funds, which are primarily sold to institutional retirement plans. SEI will also take an expanded role with respect to Barclays’ exchange traded iShares by providing a wholesaling sales force to target regional broker/dealers.