Practice

Just three years ago, the very idea of a consumer protection agency was dismissed by most bankers and industry representatives as a pipe dream. But after a brutal legislative fight this year, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau may prove to be the most important agency to watch in 2011.

The social media landscape is still a jungle for many financial institutions, but a few have cut a clear path for themselves.

Americans are feeling badly about their financial security -- and are giving President Obama reason to worry about his job security, given his work on reviving the economy, according to a new Harris Poll.

Opposing advocacy groups have unleashed new demands on the Securities and Exchange Commission in recent weeks, urging the agency to pay more attention to potential problems associated with new whistleblower rules.

One of the chief goals of the Dodd-Frank Act was to end the notion of "too big to fail," but months after the law's enactment, a debate persists over whether that goal will be met.

Retirees who started saving in their 30s have an average net worth of $1.1 million, while people who started saving in their 40s are worth an average $868,000, a Consumer Reports survey finds.

The $1 million figure that is frequently cited as the silver bullet needed to enjoy a comfortable retirement is actually attainable, Consumer Reports found in a recent survey of 24,270 online subscribers age 55 and up.

Deciding which financial firms beyond banks are systemically important is one of the biggest decisions still to be made by regulators under the Dodd-Frank Act.

Opposing advocacy groups complain that new whistleblower rules could allow too much internal corporate interference or provide whistleblowers with too much financial incentive.

Smaller financial advisors can build relationships and improve communication with this market segment by engaging them online and through their mobile devices with practical content that helps them make better financial decisions.