Mutual funds

At 84 basis points, the average expense ratio is over 40 basis points pricier than what investors paid on average last year.

The annual “evolution revolution” report and an analyst’s overview show how fiduciary advice is reshaping wealth management.

Some accuse index funds of promoting monopolies and distorting markets, among other horrors, but nothing has stemmed the wave of inflows to passive.

Narrowly focused investment strategies are a recipe for “feast or famine,” an analyst says.

Investment in technology and data management is becoming increasingly critical to distribution, and to managing regulation, reporting and operations.

The IBD trade group launched a public campaign after more than 80 cases this year alleging inadequate disclosure of mutual fund fees and compensation.

When pitted against the broader market, the top 20 outperformed both the Dow and S&P 500 by more than 5 percentage points.

The IBD failed to adequately disclose conflicts of interest to clients related to receiving $10.8 million from mutual funds and its clearing broker, the SEC says.

Nearly all bested the broader market at roughly a third the price of the average fixed income product.

As much as $18 billion of inflows to money market funds last week were partly driven by the desire to “take some chips off the table,” an expert says.