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Investment research analyst Ian Jacobs, who has worked at Warren Buffett's Berkshire Hathaway Inc. since 2003, is reportedly planning to launch his own fund on March 1.

Sixty percent of Americans surveyed by TD Ameritrade said their No. 1 resolution for 2009 was saving more money, not losing weight or eating better. Forty-three percent said there are more likely to have personal finance-related resolutions for 2009 than they were two years ago.

The Department of Labor has ruled that financial advisers affiliated with the mutual fund companies administering 401(k) plans can offer advice. However, they must reveal the source of their fees, which will remain constant, regardless of their recommendations. If they use computer models, they must also disclose that.

BlackRock, the world’s largest publicly traded asset manager, reported a 84% decline in fourth-quarter income, to $53 million, for full-year 2008 net income of $786 million, a 21% decline.

Janus reported fourth-quarter net income of $7.8 million, or $0.05 per diluted share, down 85% from $51.6 million net income, or $0.30 per diluted share, in the fourth quarter of 2007. For the full year, net income was $138.4 million, or $0.86 per diluted share, down 28% from $192 million, or $1.07 per diluted share, for 2007.

In a survey of 1,445 finance executives online, Deloitte found that 58.4% expect the recession could last until 2011. Yet two-thirds are not in support of any additional bailouts beyond what has been done to prop up the finance and automotive industries.

Investors withdrew $399 billion from hedge funds, or about 20% of assets, in 2008, according to data from Hennessee Group. On top of an average 18.3% market decline, or $382 billion in investment losses, the total $781 billion hit that hedge funds took was severe.

RAB Capital reported its assets under management were $1.9 billion as of Dec. 31, down 76% from $7.2 billion a year earlier. This includes $570 million in lock-ups.

State Street Global Markets’ Global Investor Confidence Index rose from 48.2 to 60.3 in January.

Banks may have seen the worst of the financial crisis, but the economy will slog through more difficult times. That was the assessment that Pimco Manager Bill Gross gave to Reuters.

Fidelity Investments, Franklin Resources and Legg Mason were hit with the biggest redemptions in 2008, losing $40 billion, $21.5 billion and $21 billion, respectively. Collectively, the three companies were hit with 43% of the $194 billion in total withdrawal requests during the year.

Galvin Charges Reserve, Bent With Fraud

American Century Hires Former Lehman Veterans

Reflecting current financial turmoil, most investors are more attuned to whether a company is viable than to its performance, according to the 2009 Investor Brandscape report from Cogent Research.

If mutual fund executives needed a reason to reexamine their fund offerings, retirement calculators and the way they communicate with investors, there were a number of disturbing reports and news last week that should absolutely prod them to do so. And if fund executives aren't rethinking their entire sales and marketing strategies for 2009 and 2010, they should bet their bottom dollar that investors are painfully aware that they need to conduct reality checks on their retirement pictures.

The events that occurred in the financial services industry over the past year were once thought inconceivable. At this point, regulators are chomping at the bit to reverse how Wall Street does business, and investors are downright spooked. The editors of SourceMedia's business publications offer their views on how these dramatic shifts on Wall Street and in corporate America will impact businesses and investors this year.

NEW YORK - The whole world will be in a recession throughout 2009, economists say, but it will be the U.S. and its strong dollar that lead the world to recovery sometime in 2010.

Millionaires and affluent investors suffered steep losses in 2008, and most, particularly Baby Boomers, are rolling their remaining assets into cash and stable-value investments for the foreseeable future.

Institutions continued to seek safety in money market mutual funds in the latest week, and total assets of the funds grew by $27.13 billion to reach $3.922 trillion for the week ending Jan. 13, according to the Investment Company Institute.

Christopher Wilson, who ran the Columbia Funds unit at Bank of America, has left the company and been replaced by J. Kevin Connaughton.