Money Management Executive Latest News

While at least one fund group has recently announced it would expand its trustees' retirement plan, most fund groups have put their board retirement plans out to pasture.

BOSTON - Exchange-traded funds are approaching their capacity, and the development of new types of exchange-traded products is going to be necessary to sustain growth, according to industry executives who spoke here earlier this month at the Performance Institute's 2001 Summit: Beyond Mutual Funds (assets have grown at an enormous rate over the past few years. Total ETF assets were less than $10 billion in 1997, but have passed the $80 billion mark this year).

The Department of Labor last week endorsed a proposal in the House of Representatives that would allow 401(k) investors to receive advice from employer-sponsored financial planners, giving the initiative renewed momentum and prompting its proponents to assert that the House will pass it by year end.

The American Stock Exchange has created a new business unit to pursue new opportunities for exchange-traded funds and capitalize off of ETF product development, the company announced last week.

As fall approaches, Thomas Clough, the president of New York Life Benefit Services, is excitedly readying a team of marketers to walk into office buildings and talk to workers of all ages and all incomes about their 401(k) plans.

Robert Tull, vice president of new product development at the American Stock Exchange, has been named head of Amex ETF Services, the company's newly created business unit [see page 2]. Before joining the Amex, Tull was managing director and chief operating officer for global custody market trust and benefit payment business at Deutsche Bank. Tull recently spoke with Mutual Fund News Reporter Andrew Brent about the Amex's new unit. An edited account of their conversation follows:

An icon of the mutual fund industry, Michael Price, has left the fund company he made synonomous with value investing, Mutual Series, which he subsequently sold to Franklin Templeton.

Portfolio manager Michael Sutton has been appointed Chief Investment Officer of Pilgrim Baxter and Associates effective immediately, the company announced last week. Sutton will succeed Gary Pilgrim, the firm's co-founder, who will continue to oversee the firm as its president. Pilgrim will also continue managing certain portfolios, including the PBHG Growth and New Opportunities Funds, as well as overseeing the team managing the PBHG Core Growth Fund.

Larry Zimpleman will assume responsibility for retirement and investor services at The Principal Financial Group, the company announced last week. Zimpleman, an executive VP, will replace Richard Prey, who is expected to retire Jan. 31, 2002 after serving nearly 37 years with the firm. Principal announced Zimpleman's transition in advance to "insure a smooth transition,"it said.

New York Life Investment Management last week named Steven Schneider to the newly created position of senior managing director and CFO.