Practice

Despite some bright spots, the bank channel has some surprising areas in need of improvement, according survey findings unveiled at the annual review-and-preview at this week's BISA conference.

While many HNW individuals can count on a fairly steady income from an ongoing business or a successful professional practice, entertainers and athletes can have highly variable incomes. Here’s how advisors can help.

Now that financial regulators have finalized rules on social media interaction, firms like ING are, slowly and cautiously, beginning to let advisors experiment with social networks.

Bank executives expect to boost revenue from their wealth management practices 25% or more in the next five years, with some anticipating a 35% contribution to total bank revenue.

HNW clients face steep income and estate tax in some states, so a legal move to tax-friendlier territory can pay off.

Five years after Citigroup became a symbol of all that was wrong with big banks, the country's third-largest bank appears to be bracing for a new round of scrutiny into its ethics.

Detroit agreed to pay $77.6 million to UBS and Bank of America's Merrill Lynch unit to end interest-rate swaps that have cost taxpayers more than $200 million since 2009, according to a court filing in the city's bankruptcy.

“Executives today don’t want a higher position so much as a broader position," says Kathy Freeman. "They want to be stretched and challenged, and they want an opportunity to grow."

Prenups can help HNW clients and heirs in case of divorce or death, but advisors must avoid offending these spouses-to-be.

In 2013, they produced an average of $381,411 in revenue for their financial institutions, up 31% from the previous year.