Law and regulation

May 4, 2012 story: Efficient and effective mutual fund Board meetings are vital to the success of a mutual fund family, no matter their size and/or complexity.

Large retirement plan providers tried to offer California’s teachers and other education workers simpler plan options, but the Financial Services Institute said it should not come at the expense of access to quality personalized investment advice.

Two groups representing mutual fund independent directors and trustees are joining together to voice their concerns about the changes to money market funds currently being considered by the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Every year FINRA sends hundreds of inquiries to firms that are not broker-dealers, including RIA firms, about suspicious trading. How you respond is critical.

The 11th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in Montgomery, Ala., said a federal district judge in Atlanta erred in finding that the alleged misrepresentations made by Morgan Keegan brokers about the debt were not material. It sent the case back to the district court for more proceedings.

Joel Blumenschein, a Wisconsin RIA, has resigned from FINRA after settling a disciplinary case alleging he failed to supervise a broker at his firm.

UBS Financial Services Inc. of Puerto Rico and two of its executives have been charged by the SEC with misleading investors and its own financial advisors about the market risks associated with the sales of 23 closed-end mutual funds.

On May 1, 2012, FINRA fined four firms for unsupervised ETF sales.

The four firms were fine a total of $9.1 million for not having adequate supervisory systems in place for billions of dollars of sales of leveraged and inverse ETFs.

The aim is to maintain consistency in imposing sanctions for similar offenses.

While by law the Federal Reserve Board must worry about price stability and unemployment, Chairman Ben Bernanke appears to have charted a third mandate for the central bank: financial stability.

The brokerage industry wants simpler language and other modifications.

State regulators may frown on discounting fees, if you are tying them to activity level.

Advisors be forewarned: your small business clients are more likely to be audited next year. The IRS is beefing up its ranks of auditors and doing more audits.

To become the industry’s SRO, FINRA estimates it will cost roughly 15 times less in start-up costs than estimates in a study commissioned by the Financial Planning Coalition, which includes CFP Board, FPA and NAPFA.

Is the brokerage industry really the safer advisory alternative for consumers? Bob Veres is dubious.

“I think this would absolutely impact all of our small business owners,” said Karen Nystrom, manager of public policy and advocacy with NAPFA. “We agree that more oversight is needed but where we differ is the most cost effective way to get there.”

The Investment Adviser Oversight Act of 2012 is meant to address what proponents say is a serious gap in investor protection. Sure enough, industry groups from all side are weighing in on whether the idea will help or hinder the profession.

In a move expected to draw the ire of some advisors, House Financial Services Committee Chairman Spencer Bachus (R-Ala) introduced legislation in the house Wednesday that could clear the way for FINRA to become the self-regulatory organization for retail investment advisors.

On April 24, Wells Fargo Advisor's chief executive shared some of his thoughts on the problems plaguing the financial services space,