Mutual funds

AXA Equitable has introduced the Retirement Cornerstone annuity, a dual-track product that offers exposure to both aggressive growth and investment protect.

Long-term mutual funds took in $12.25 billion in the week ended Dec. 23, bringing the sales streak to 41 weeks and a total of $413 billion, according to the Investment Company Institute.

A number of executives at Saturna Capital donated their holiday bonuses to charities, the second year in a row they did so.

While investors have continued to steadily contribute to their 401(k)s throughout the two-year-long financial crisis and have kept 401(k) loans, hardship withdrawals and cash-outs to a minimum, there was, after all, a sudden surge in withdrawals last year, according to Vanguard.

Brokers are continuing to rush for the exits of large brokerage firms to join independent firms, putting as much as $5 trillion in Americans’ retirement savings in play and prompting brokerage giants such as Schwab, Fidelity and TD Ameritrade to offer technological and business enticements.

Besides emerging markets mutual funds, which delivered an average return of 72% in 2009, technology, gold and commodities funds were also winners, according to Lipper.

Emerging markets funds, particularly those focused on the BRIC nations of Brazil, Russia, India and China, were the top gainers in 2009, soaring an average of 72%, according to Morningstar data.

Forefront Advisory, an independent asset management firm, is using the financial crisis as an opportunity to scoop up laid-off and unhappy Wall Street talent, giving them a chance to strike out on their own.

Responding to a spate of scams, the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority has issued an investor alert regarding "green energy" investments.

Since the recession hit two years ago, 80% of mutual fund firms have laid off tens of thousands of people, as total assets under management dropped from $11.999 trillion at the end of 2007 to $10.688 trillion as of October. In line with this 11% decline in assets, fees have undoubtedly plummeted by at least $1 billion a year.

The House Ways and Means Committee has introduced a bill that would streamline and modernize the tax code for mutual funds and their shareholders. For the past 50 years, the code has been adjusted piecemeal, and an entire review of the rules hasn't occurred for more than 20 years.

ING Financial Taps Ford As Chief Executive Officer

As investors begin to regain their confidence in the market, financial advisers and mutual fund executives are beginning to map out changes in investor behavior and give the old rules some new twists.

Since the recession hit two years ago, 80% of mutual fund firms have laid off tens of thousands of people, as total assets under management dropped from $11.999 trillion at the end of 2007 to $10.688 trillion as of October. In line with this 11% decline in assets, fees have undoubtedly plummeted by at least $1 billion a year.

Invesco Investors Get $418M in Fair Funds

As regulators work to converge U.S. Generally Accepted Accounting Principles (GAAP) with International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS), several key differences remain, most notably the different measurement attributes of financial liabilities, the timing and approaches to projects and the difference between fair value and amortized costs.

The Securities and Exchange Commission has approved new rules to significantly enhance the level of information companies are required to provide shareholders in proxy statements, but many leaders worry that these changes will do little more than add to the expenses that shareholders pay.

WASHINGTON — If anyone here is happy to see 2009 in his rearview mirror, it is Treasury Secretary Tim Geithner.

Three mutual fund industry leaders, including Investment Company Institute President Paul Schott Stevens, will release new research showing how 401(k) participants are behaving and faring one year after the market calamity of 2008 and outline ways to improve the nation’s retirement system at the National Press Club in Washington on Friday, Jan. 8 at 10 a.m.

Vanguard was able to stand out this year despite – or perhaps because of – a difficult market environment.