Subject Root Tag

Confluence, NICSA, Genworth Financial

Flexibility. Tactical allocation. Macroeconomic analysis.

About a week ago, Prudential released preliminary survey results indicating that when shopping for retirement plans, consumers between the ages of 18 and 36 were more interested than those over age 45 in guaranteed income features. The company is leveraging these results with additional features, including security, to certain plans offered by Prudential Retirement.

Morgan Stanley Smith Barney has defined tweets as “static content” it is widely watch pilot test of Twitter and Linked In involving 600 of its 18,000 financial advisors. Here's a look at what you and your firm need to know to drive a successful social media plan.

Wirehouses have lost headcount and asset share even as the average assets under management per advisor in the channel has risen, according to a new report released Friday from Cerulli Associates.

Barclays Wealth announced the hiring of six advisors in its Boston, New York, Dallas and Miami offices. The new hires all have backgrounds serving high net worth clients, Barclays said in a press release Friday.

The Mutual Fund Directors Forum has named Susan Ferris Wyderko as president and chief executive officer, replacing Forum founding President Allan Mostoff, who will retire on Dec. 31.

The Dow Jones Credit Suisse Hedge Fund Index fell for a second straight month, finishing down 3.2% in September, but beating the Dow Jones Global Index’s 9.88% decline.

Former Wasatch Portfolio Managers Robert Gardiner and Blake Walker, who formed Grandeur Peak Global Advisors, have launched their first two mutual funds: the Grandeur Peak Global Opportunities Fund and the Grandeur Peak International Opportunities Fund.

The SEC is now requiring alternative investment fund managers to provide a lot more details on their operations.

Tax-exempt yields soared as demand for safe-haven assets fell on positive news coming from Europe.

Blue Chips jumped 339.51 points to end at 12208.55, boosted by economic news from Europe and the U.S. All 30 component stocks ended higher.

The SEC has ordered FINRA to improve the way it handles documents submitted during SEC inspections. The order, issued Thursday as part of an administrative settlement between the two organizations, comes after the disclosure that the director of FINRA’s Kansas City Office in 2008 ordered the minutes of three meetings dating back to 2006 and 2007 to be altered hours before they were they were provided to the SEC’s Chicago Regional Office.

U.S. firms were the most active acquirers of emerging markets companies in the first half of 2011, according to KPMG International, closing 144 deals. This was nearly twice the 82 acquisitions by Canada. The U.K. made 62 deals, followed by Japan, with 61.

The Dow Jones Credit Suisse Hedge Fund Index fell for a second straight month, finishing down 3.2% in September, but beating the Dow Jones Global Index’s 9.88% decline.

The Mutual Fund Directors Forum has named Susan Ferris Wyderko as president and chief executive officer, replacing Forum founding President Allan Mostoff, who will retire on Dec. 31.

In light of the continued market volatility, Russell Indexes is expanding its Defensive and Dynamic Indexes to cover all 10,000 stocks that it tracks around the world.

Vanguard has filed with the SEC to offer the Vanguard Target 2060 Retirement Fund for those currently 18 to 20 years old, and early next year will merge the Vanguard Target Retirement 2005 Fund and the Vanguard Target Retirement Income Fund, as their allocations have become nearly identical.

Investors contributed $748 million to Fidelity Charitable, the largest donor-advised fund in the U.S., in the first nine months of 2011, a 23% increase from the first three quarters of 2010. Thus, the fund is on course to receive the largest amount of contributions in its 20-year history, Fidelity said.

Former Wasatch Portfolio Managers Robert Gardiner and Blake Walker, who formed Grandeur Peak Global Advisors, have launched their first two mutual funds: the Grandeur Peak Global Opportunities Fund and the Grandeur Peak International Opportunities Fund.