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BOSTON - Like gambling addicts who just need one more big win before they cash out, millions of Baby Boomers on the verge of retirement took extremely risky bets with their life savings, hoping to score that big jackpot that would make up for all their past mistakes.
February 16 -
Fidelity Investments continues to do a smart job of marketing in this tough economy with the recommendations in the February edition of its Investors Quarterly magazine.
February 12 -
FINRA has fined two Wachovia units $4.5 million for failing to pass along breakpoint and rollover discounts for mutual fund and unit investment trust purchases, as well as for suitability violations and inadequate supervisory procedures.
February 12 -
PIMCO has launched the PIMCO Unconstrainted Tax Managed Bond Fund, an actively managed fixed income fund that will invest across all investment classes.
February 12 -
ProFunds Group has hired Joanne M. Hill as head of investment strategy. In this new role at the exchange-traded fund shop, Hill is responsible for research, development and execution of investment strategies.
February 12 -
Putnam Investments announced Wednesday it will lay off 260 people, or about 10% of its staff, on Thursday, Dow Jones reports. Most of the people being let go work in distribution or operations, but a few are in sales.
February 11 -
Sens. Tom Harkin (D-Iowa) and Herb Kohl (D-Wis.) have reintroduced legislation, the Harkin/Kohl Defined Contribution Fee Disclosure Act of 2009, that would require 401(k) plan providers to clearly disclose all of the fees they charge. The senators cite AARP research that shows if a 35-year-old invested $20,000 in a 401(k) plan over 30 years that yielded 6.5% a year and cost 0.5% in fees, their remaining balance would be $132,287, but if the fees were 1.5%, they would have only $99,679, or 25% less.
February 11 -
Van Kampen has hired Elizabeth Hughes Eginton as managing director, head of product and marketing. In this new position at the firm, Eginton will report to President and CEO Jerry Miller.
February 11 -
Fidelity Investments is shaking up its stable of portfolio managers who delivered disappointing returns in 2008, The Wall Street Journal reports. In recent weeks, one manager has left the company, two were demoted to analyst and Fidelity is currently trying to reassign two others.
February 9 -
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Mutual fund prospectus provider NewRiver is suing Morningstar for using Internet espionage to steal information from its patent-protected system.
February 9 -
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Financial planners are spending a lot of time these days trying to allay their clients' fears. Anyone who works with a financial adviser most likely has money in the stock market and, therefore, has experienced steep losses in the past year.
February 9 -
Infrastructure funds may have been building interest ever since President Barack Obama announced his commitment to rebuilding America's infrastructure, but the managers of the First American Global Infrastructure fund have been laying the groundwork for years.
February 9 -
Defined contribution plans have been hammered by dropping equity markets, and this chain of losses has caused a ripple effect throughout the fund management industry.
February 9 -
The Investment Company Institute is pushing for improvements to municipal disclosure, which it generally considers limited, non-standardized and stale.
February 9 -
The Securities and Exchange Commission has begun distributing $321 million to the two million Alliance Capital investors who were harmed by market timing. This first installment is a total of $46 million, distributed to 300,000 investors.
February 9 -
John Hancock Retirement Plan Services has expanded its sales team by 18, hiring eight regional vice presidents and 10 professionals to man its new internal sales desk. This is a 15% increase in John Hancocks team supporting advisers selling 401(k)s.
February 9 -
RiverSource Investments, American Century Investments and OppenheimerFunds have received "F" grades from a Morningstar analyst for failing to explain recent changes to shareholders and adding to the paranoia of already shaken investors.
February 6 -
Reports that U.S. Sens. Carl Levin's and Charles Grassley's new bill on hedge fund regulation will force funds to publicize the names of clients are untrue, the senators said.
February 6