Regulation

Should small and midsize RIAs be required to have a succession plan in place for their firms? State securities regulators are asking for input from practitioners as they wrap up the rulemaking process.

The SEC has initiated an administrative proceeding against an advisor who allegedly misappropriated around $2 million of investors' funds in a scheme dating to 2008.

Consumer and industry advocates are criticizing FINRA over its alternative to a proposal that would have required recruiting firms to disclose advisor compensation incentives to clients when moving between brokerages.

The Securities and Exchange Commission will probably use emergency court action to stop state and local governments from selling municipal bonds if it thinks their offerings are fraudulent, an enforcement division official told bond lawyers meeting here.

"Any effort to put broker-dealers and advisors into the same box is probably not going to work," says a former deputy director of the SEC's Division of Investment Management.

Ane S. Plate was banned for allegedly looting more than $140,000 from a customer account.

Sales and advice should be separated by law, because there’s a clear difference between true "fiduciary" practices and those of the brokerage industry, Fiduciary Institute says.

"We want to focus on what advisors can do to prepare for the next generation or two," says NAPFA chair Robert Gerstemeier.

TD Ameritrade's online hub will offer information and action alerts to advisors as lawmakers and regulators weigh hot-button issues.

An ex-Morgan Stanley advisor represented himself in a contract dispute with the firm before FINRA, and the arbitration panel assessed him over $200,000 in fees.