Investments

(First of two parts)

CHAPEL HILL, N.C.—Banks expect hybrid annuities that include long-term-care riders to be the next hot product on brokerage platforms as soon as product providers ramp up their offerings in this area, said Scott Stathis, Kehrer-LIMRA’s chief operating officer and managing director, speaking at the company’s Annuity Product Management Roundtable here.

In their attempts to mend the “rattled” investor trust in the alternative space, funds-of-funds managers are planning to utilize transparency and examine their fee structures moving forward, a new study claims.

BALTIMORE—The uncertainty and confusion around the fiduciary standard has jolted the financial services industry leading hundreds to pack the rooms at FINRA’s annual conference in Baltimore.

The Internal Revenue Service has begun mailing out questionnaires to 401(k) plan sponsors to assess compliance with retirement plan regulations.

BOSTON -- Money Management Executive Publisher Michael Stanton presented the 2010 Fund Operations Awards on May 20 at NICSA's General Membership Meeting at the Downtown Harvard Club here.

The volatility in the S&P 500 Index over the past few weeks serves as a reminder of the importance of reviewing portfolio holdings on a regular basis because, as we have just seen, the fundamentals are fluid. Closely monitoring equity holdings is key to ensuring a portfolio continues to meet an investor's goals and tolerance for risk.

ICI: Senate Bill Still Needs Work

The Lansing, Mich., based company said the office in the Nashville suburb would employ 400 people.

Kehrer-LIMRA’s latest annuity forum finds bankers are optimistic about indexed annuities, too.

The Internal Revenue Service plans to ask issuers of negotiated Build America Bond transactions, in a revised “compliance-check questionnaire,” if any investors who bought their bonds in the primary market paid more than the price the bonds were initially offered at.

New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie earlier this week remarked that if the state didn’t clean up its act it could become the next Greece.

First Republic Bank is hiring in a bid to expand its wealth management operation.

BB&T Corp.'s mutual fund family has had a dramatic gain in assets over the past year, and the bank's asset management arm is laying the groundwork for more expansion.

Sales turned positive after their worst year in decades, according to LIMRA.

Total exchange-traded fund assets continue to surge as popularity grows.

The Internal Revenue Service plans to audit one of every two Build America Bond transactions, Steve Chamberlin, a senior manager in the IRS’ tax-exempt bond office, said during a teleconference Tuesday sponsored by the National Association of Bond Lawyers.

Growing up in Honduras, Maria Chrin heard the story of how her grandmother, a widow lacking financial savvy, lost a large amount of money because she could not figure out what to do with the stocks her husband owned in U.S. banks.

WASHINGTON — The Internal Revenue Service, concerned that some Build America Bonds are being sold to investors at prices that are too high, is urging municipal issuers to track the trading of their BABs through the Electronic Municipal Market Access system and to question underwriters about the pricing.

The combined assets of U.S. exchange-traded funds rose 64% from the same time last year, posting an increase of more than $300 billion to reach $830.86 billion for the month ending in April, according to the Investment Company Institute.