Financial planning

The tax and financial advantages of a charitable gift annuity are substantial, but sometimes oversold. Make sure donor clients understand how these annuities work.

Former Convergent Chairman Steve Lockshin offers his take on events and issues surrounding the suicide of his friend, ex-Convergent CEO David Zier.

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Two advisors have been hit with fraud charges for allegedly misleading clients about a hedge fund managed by an investment novice and debt collector.

Three ways your clients can save on taxes; two money moves they should make this year; and what they should do with capital losses before saying goodbye to 2014.

A trio of top custodial executives discussing big trends for the RIA sector downplayed the term -- at least as a marketing advantage -- during a panel this week at the MarketCounsel summit in Las Vegas.

The soaring stock market this year has provided a boon for investors age 65 and over even more than people from other age groups; plus, sales pitches about annuities can distract savers from making an informed investing decision.

Wealth managers called into active duty have a delicate balancing act between serving firm and country.

Each camp offers sound reasoning for focusing on one practice over another, but what's the best strategy for client portfolios? Here's a look at how active and passive funds have fared in 2014.

Lebenthal picked up an RIA that oversees $250 million in assets, as well as a team of two advisors in New York.

The IRS issued the 2015 optional standard mileage rates that are used to calculate the deductible costs of operating an automobile for business, charitable, medical or moving purposes.

Deutsche Bank was accused of using underfunded shell companies to evade U.S. taxes in a government lawsuit seeking $190 million in taxes, penalties and interest.

Clients should estimate the amount of income they will need to support their lifestyle rather than determining the right size of their nest egg; plus, eight tips for people who will retire in 2015 and why 401(k)s are still a problem.

The three founders of Concord Equity Group Advisors, a firm LPL bought in 2011 after the RIA allegedly hid commissions from its institutional clients, settled with the SEC.

This year saw a number of mega teams with outsized AUMs switching firms. Here are the biggest recruiting moves of 2014.

Decreased creditor protection for inherited IRAs will impact retirement planning next year; plus, the hidden pitfalls of collecting Social Security benefits from an ex-spouse and three dividend stocks for retirees to consider.

'It's mayhem' at firm, an ex-advisor says, following CEO David Zier's suicide.

Facing the threat of competition from Google and Amazon.com, UBS has turned to a company that uses artificial intelligence for help delivering personalized advice to the bank's wealthy clients.

HighTower recruited a Merrill Lynch advisor to join a group that broke away from the wirehouse earlier this year.

The resignation comes in the wake of the apparent suicide in October of David Zier, Convergent's chief executive.