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DST Retirement Hires Mineweaser as Director

SEC Investor Advisor Committee To Examine Fund Disclosure

The recent drop in financial markets has rekindled the demand for safer, conservative financial products like stable-value funds.

Sometimes we seek out opportunities for change. Other times change is thrust upon us. Market conditions in the past 24 months have produced seismic shifts in the mutual fund industry, and several business drivers have emerged that will shape our industry's future. As asset managers, distributors, suppliers and others evaluate their next steps, these demands will drive strategies and shape new solutions.

Financial advisers have been going independent or switching wirehouses in record numbers since the economic crisis began at the end of 2007, and brokerages are scrambling for ways to get them and their loyal clients to come back.

Perhaps as a testament to investors taking a more proactive interest in their investments rather than inertia, 39% have changed their portfolio allocations since the market began to decline, Schwab found in a survey. Backing that is the fact that 54% say they have become more knowledgeable about investing in that time.

A number of Janus funds are in the top deciles this year, proving that the company’s investment team is a better-oiled machine than it was following the dot-com downturn, The Wall Street Journal reports.

Bond funds are not as reliable as they have historically been, which his creating some headaches for investors, The Wall Street Journal reports.

Of the 132 mutual funds on the market that employ hedging strategies, nearly half have been launched in the past three years, and in light of the 39% average decline in stock funds last year, more are likely on the way, The Wall Street Journal reports.

Retail investors appear to be regaining some nerve, The Washington Times reports.

Christopher Ryan, managing director of Fidelity International, told Bloomberg he is particularly optimistic about China, citing the economy’s diversification and the government’s stimulus plan.

Massachusetts on Friday subpoenaed four brokers to obtain sales, revenue and training records for leveraged exchange-traded funds: Ameriprise, UBS, LPL and Edward Jones.

The Securities and Exchange Commission’s Investor Advisory Committee, which holds its first meeting Monday, has released its agenda for upcoming months.

Milliman’s employee benefits practice has introduced a 401(k) comparison tool for sponsors and participants called Power to Know.

As the International Monetary Fund and The World Bank respectively predict world GDP growth of 2.5% and 2% next year and stock markets around the globe are expected to surge ahead of this growth, mutual fund analysts are beginning to weigh in on which sectors could lead the way out of the recession.

Morgan Stanley Smith Barney is examining how it sells leveraged exchange-traded funds, and Charles Schwab has posted a warning on its website that the products could exacerbate losses for investors who hold them for more than a day.

Asset International has acquired Strategic Insight for an undisclosed sum.

Mutual funds took in $11.05 billion for the week ended July 22, up sharply from the $6.6 billion they netted the previous week, the Investment Company Institute said. The inflows were the highest since the week ended June 17, when long-term mutual funds took in $11.1 billion.

A full 66% of investors do not expect the economy to improve until next year or even later, and only 34% peg improvement for this year, online brokerage TradeKing found in a survey of 3,000 of its customers.

Morningstar has launched a directory of retirement plan service providers that lists assets overseen, fees, top clients, number of plans served and geographic concentration. The company obtains the information on 5,000 investment managers, consultants, recordkeepers and administrators from plan sponsor filings with the Department of Labor.