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Requiring hedge funds to register with the Securities and Exchange Commission, beginning in February, will protect investors to some degree, as they will be required to divulge any history of disciplinary action and the SEC will begin to randomly audit these investment firms, The New York Times suggests.

Lawyers in the case against former Bank of America broker Theodore C. Sihpol will meet Oct. 20 to discuss whether or not he will be retried on the four counts for which Justice James A. Yates declared a mistrial, Dow Jones reports.

Paul Schott Stevens, president of the Investment Company Institute, applauded Senators Michael Crapo (R-Idaho), Tim Johnson (D-S.D.) and Jim Bunning (R-Ky.) for introducing companion legislation for the GROWTH Act in the Senate. Representatives Paul Ryan (R-Wis.) and William Jefferson (D-La.) first introduced the legislation in the House in May.

If asset management firms hope to break through the marketing clutter of an increasingly complex and competitive financial services industry, experts say they must start with a consistent, compelling message.

The mutual fund industry is pushing to make a relatively obscure, short-term capital gains tax exemption, broadly known as the American Jobs Creation Act of 2004, a permanent rule in accounting books before it expires in 2008.

John Hancock Retirement Plan Services, a full service provider to 401(k) plans headquartered in Boston, announced that it has created the retirement industry's first fiduciary standards warranty.

Commerce Capital Recruits Loukas as Managing Dir.

The NASD last week fined three brokerage firms a total of $3.1 million for permitting improper market timing and ordered them to repay the affected mutual funds $2.7 million in restitution. All three firms, Janney Montgomery Scott, ING Funds Distributor and First Allied Securities, accepted the penalties without admitting or denying the charges.

Think back to 1985 and remember the John Fogerty song, "Centerfield": "Put me in, coach. I'm ready to play today. Look at me. I can be centerfield."

Charles Schwab of San Francisco has launched a new, multimedia national advertising campaign called "Talk to Chuck." The campaign, which debuted this month and is budgeted for $30 million in the fourth quarter, is an attempt to emphasize that the firm is willing to listen to the needs of investors and that investors can safely place their trust in Schwab for help with their retirement needs.

Evergreen Investments, the investment management arm of Wachovia, said Wednesday that it had agreed Oct. 1 to buy a minority stake in Golden Capital Management.

Seligman Advisors has just launched three mutual funds that unite the cost-effectiveness and diversification of ETFs with the simplicity and convenience of target-date funds.

With the help of the U.S. Secret Service, the Securities and Exchange Commission has brought forth charges against four hedge fund managers from Boston-based Global Time Capital Management for insider trading on the $10.5 billion acquisition of Charter One by Royal Bank of Scotland.

Teachers Insurance and Annuity Association-College received a blow from their shareholders in late August, when a "no" vote rejected its proposed fee increase on nine of its funds. But TIAA-CREF is not giving up. On the contrary the company is considering holding a second vote on the matter, The Wall Street Journal reports.

Hedge funds have been placed under an investigation by international securities regulators, the Financial Times reports. The aim of the investigation is to expose potential risks to hedge-fund investors.

The Hartford has launched three new target retirement funds, along with a retirement income fund, specifically aimed at the 77 million Baby Boomers. They are The Hartford Target Retirement 2010 Fund, The Hartford Target Retirement 2020 Fund, The Hartford Target Retirement 2030 Fund and The Hartford Retirement Income Fund. While The Hartford will act as sub-advisor to these funds-of-funds, Ibbotson Associates will act as consultant.

Paul Schott Stevens, president of the Investment Company Institute, applauded Senators Michael Crapo (R-IDdaho, Tim Johnson (D-S.D.) and Jim Bunning (R-Ky.) for introducing companion legislation for the GROWTH Act in the upper house. Representatives Paul Ryan (R-Wis.) and William Jefferson (D-La.) introduced the original bill in the House in May.

Retirement plan providers are issuing personal 401(k) statements projecting how much monthly income investors can expect to have in retirement to encourage higher contributions. Vanguard, T.Rowe Price, Principal Financial, Fidelity Investments, Putnam Investments and New York Life Investment Management are among those that are providing the customized statements, The Wall Street Journal reports.

Mutual fund companies' new anti-timing rules are creating quite a bit of confusion among investors, Dow Jones reports.

Despite high oil prices, rising interest rates and doubt over the economy due to catastrophic hurricanes, U.S. asset management companies are likely to report high quarterly earnings reports, Dow Jones reports.