Economy

Merrill Lynch has promoted Mary Ann Bartels to serve as chief investment officer of portfolio strategies within its Investment Management and Guidance group.

Strong recruitment and help from the markets took the firm to new heights.

The Pasadena-Calif.-based bank decided to move its program because of Cetera’s technology platform, product menu, reporting capabilities and the training it provides advisors.

Headhunters say they believe the new plan, which will allow dually registered financial advisors with at least $100 million in discretionary client assets under management to retain 100% of their advisory fees, will help Raymond James retain and attract top hybrid advisors.

UBS’ latest hires come after Morgan Stanley hired several UBS advisors earlier this month.

Wells Fargo has hired 17 advisors to its standalone branches and added nine advisors to its independent brokerage business, Financial Network.

If approved by stockholders in LPL’s annual meeting in May, Mulcahy will also serve on the Board’s Audit Committee.

The firm continues to expand its presence in Florida with the addition of a second Wells Fargo broker.

Raymond James is going after more top advisors -- and it's changing its payout structure to do so.

Morgan Stanley, owner of the world’s biggest brokerage, will buy the remaining 35 percent of its wealth-management venture with Citigroup Inc. after winning Federal Reserve approval in the regulator’s annual stress test.

Other advisory services executives may be targeting advisor growth -- but Raymond James Financial Services president Scott Curtis thinks differently about expansion.

Total stock and bond mutual fund and ETF assets distributed by independent/regional broker-dealers and registered investment advisors grew at more than twice the rate compared to the wirehouse channel during 2012, according to newly released data from Access Data.

When small business owners become successful, they become a magnet for questionable deals and speculative investments.

As baby boomers’ demands change, the industry needs to take a more holistic approach, according to the president of the Ameriprise Personal Advisors Group.

RIAs like to think of themselves as starkly different than their counterparts in the wirehouse channel -- in terms of fee structure, fiduciary responsibility, independence and, often, income. But a new study casts some doubt on the income part of that equation.

The St. Louis firm snapped up a former Morgan Stanley advisor with $114 million in assets.

Kaminsky, who was the cable television network’s capital markets editor, will work with Morgan Stanley’s financial advisors on client development.

Small business owners prefer a Tax Code with low rates and fewer deductions, according to a new survey by the National Federation of Independent Business, but their bottom line is whether their taxes rise or fall.

Raphael Zagury, Bank of America Corp.’s head of creating derivative investments for wealthy clients at Merrill Lynch, said he resigned.

The future of financial planning will be shaped by a dozen key trends. How will these trends affect you and your business?