Investment products

In an effort to help educate investors, the Municipal Securities Rulemaking Board yesterday issued a “fact sheet” containing seven questions they can ask their financial professionals when considering investing in municipal bonds.

While 64% of life insurance producers say they are “very likely” to stay with their current company, almost 20% would consider switching firms if the company culture, style and support more closely matched their own, according to a new study entitled “It’s All About Me,” published by LIMRA, a worldwide research, consulting and professional development organization.

While Bank of New York Mellon Corp. waits for interest rates to rise, the banking company plans to continue to look for ways to control costs this year as it expands its asset management and asset servicing businesses overseas.

Analysts had expected more companies to bid for Alico, but worries have arisen about how liquid AIG’s units are and how likely it would be to find a buyer.

Aided by a surge in assets under management, State Street Corp. reported strong growth in profits in the fourth quarter, but executives remained conservative for 2011.

American consumer confidence rose sharply earlier this month to the highest level it has been at since September 2008, according to the RBC Consumer Attitudes and Spending by Household Index. In fact, the index was boosted by the largest single month gain in job expectations since the index was created eight years ago.

After investing conservatively for the past four years, investors are beginning to put their cash reserves to work in equity investments, according to the Bank of America Merrill Lynch survey of fund managers in January.

As earnings season gets into full swing, the market hits a wall of worry … comments from JP Morgan, Gluskin Sheff, T. Rowe Price. Plus: the week’s most important numbers.

The company attracted $9 billion in net new assets in its fiscal first quarter as both retail investors and registered investment advisors increased their investments.

In an effort to accelerate the development of its activities in emerging countries, notably Central and Eastern Europe, AXA acquired Omniasig Life. Created in 1997, Omniasig Life sells protection products, representing premiums of Euro 12 million in 2008, through a network of 1,400 agents, of which a quarter is proprietary channel.

The American Securitization Forum and the Securities Industry and Financial Markets Association have ended their six-year relationship.

The banking company's fourth-quarter earnings quadrupled as it continued to see strong growth from its asset management business.

Investors who put money into a real estate investment trust at the beginning of 2000 earned higher returns by the end of the decade than from their investments in any other equity sector.

As investors became more cautious in 2009 they moved their money away from U.S. equity funds and into bond funds.

Long-term mutual funds took in inflows for the 43rd straight week, netting $10.61 billion in the week ended Jan. 6, according to the Investment Company Institute. Over the past nearly 11 months, beginning at the nadir for the markets on March 9, funds have taken in a total of $427 billion.

Axa Distributors, the annuity wholesale distribution unit of Axa Equitable, has created a comprehensive retirement income planning curriculum for financial professionals it is calling “Cracking the Code.”

Estimate Higher Than Last Year

After spending the second half of last year exchanging its long-term expansion plans for extra capital, Boston Private Financial Holdings Inc. announced it received approval from the Treasury Department to begin repaying the $154 million in outstanding Series C preferred stock that was issued to the Treasury as part of its Capital Purchase Program.

Assets held in hedge funds increased in 2009, but it was a small victory in the grand scheme of things for an industry that is losing top talent and had more funds continue to liquidate last year.

The recession has sent even the wealthiest Americans running for cover, as affluent investors worry about their financial security.