Mutual funds

The estimated U.S. mutual fund asset flows for July 2013 were released by Morningstar today. Investors added $15.9 billion to long-term mutual funds in July, driven by inflows of $7.9 billion into international-equity funds.

As risk has dialed up in today's uncertain climate, there has been a growing trend of mutual funds embracing the flexibility and creativity of various options strategies to dampen volatility and garner better returns.

Fidelity Labs, a part of the Fidelity Center for Applied Technology, Fidelity’s unit focused on innovation, previewed the Fidelity Market Monitor for Glass. This is the first investing Glassware widely available for Google Glass.

Nuveen Investments announced the Board of Trustees of the Nuveen New York Dividend Advantage Municipal Fund (NAN), Nuveen New York Performance Plus Municipal Fund, Inc. (NNP) and Nuveen New York Dividend Advantage Municipal Fund 2 (NXK) approved a merger.

What summer doldrums? Focus Financial Partners, one of the country’s largest RIA aggregators, has made its second major deal in two weeks and fifth of the year, boosting its total assets to over $60 billion spread over 27 firms.

Findings from the second quarter 2013 John Hancock Investor Sentiment Survey—a quarterly poll of affluent investors—show a surpriisng lack of knowledge.

Alternatives juggernaut Blackstone joined the likes of other fellow private investment firms The Carlyle Group and Kohlberg Kravis Roberts (KKR) last month as the asset management practice continues its revolutionary switch in business focus out of institutional coffers and into the retail investment space.

As risk has dialed up in today's uncertain climate, there has been a growing trend of mutual funds embracing the flexibility and creativity of various options strategies to dampen volatility and garner better returns.

Individual investors, advisors, and institutions continued to show interest in large-cap equity strategies in the first half of 2013, according to a list of the most-researched investments in Morningstar's platforms. The mid-year snapshot also finds individual investors seeking dividends, financial advisors exploring allocation funds and income investments, and institutions searching for opportunities internationally.

Bloomberg -- Investment-grade corporate bonds are showing signs of life following the biggest losses since 2008 as concern wanes that a Federal Reserve pullback from record stimulus will cause a surge in interest rates.

Wedbush has expanded its operations in Southern California with the addition of a former Morgan Stanley advisor to its Newport Beach, Calif., office.

Bloomberg -- UBS AG, Switzerland’s largest bank, agreed to pay $120 million to settle claims by investors in Lehman Brothers Holdings Inc. securities in a lawsuit tied to the investment bank’s 2008 collapse.

Many wealthy business owners are increasingly confident about their finances despite the slow economic recovery. According to the latest survey from Northern Trust, half of high-net-worth business owners are feeling better off in their personal financial situation than five years ago. The number that are confident they will achieve their personal financial goals reaches 69%.

The Federal Reserve governor leading the central bank’s effort to tighten financial regulation has a decision to make as its governing board is reshaped: Should he stay or should he go?

ING U.S. Investment Management has appointed Bas NieuweWeme as Managing Director and Head of Institutional Distribution. NieuweWeme, will oversee the institutional business, setting strategic direction across U.S. and international sales, consultant relations, RFPs, client service and relationship management. He will report to Shaun Mathews, Executive Vice President and Head of the Client Group.

Fund sponsors have long debated the relative merits of building, buying or outsourcing fund administration technology. As sponsors face more and more data-driven demands from regulators and investors, there is increased pressure to adopt new efficient technologies for fund administration process such as expense payments and budgeting, regulatory reporting and financial reporting.

Morgan Stanley and Co. has agreed to pay $100,000 to the New Jersey Bureau of Securities. This came after Bureau investigators found the company was in violation of state securities laws and regulations in its sale of non-traditional exchange-traded funds to investors.

Schwab is shaking up its ETF lineup. The company announced Thursday that on Aug. 15, Schwab Investment Management would be launching six new ETFs, weighted by fundamental factors instead of traditional market capitalization.

While the use of ETFs continues to surge, their low expense ratios appear to be most prized by multi-millionaires. Spectrem Group, a Chicago-based consulting and research firm, just reported that 28% of investors own ETFs, but 47% of UHNW investors hold them. Those ultra-affluent investors, according to Spectrem, are worth $5 million to $25 million, not counting their main home.

Private Advisor Group, the largest branch of LPL Financial, has hired Abby Salameh as part of the unit’s senior executive team as it expands its advisory services.