Practice management

According to Spectrem Group, its Millionaire Investor Confidence Index fell nine points in April to minus-one, a neutral reading and the index’s lowest level since September. This marks the second-consecutive monthly decline for the index, following an identical nine-point decline in March.

BB&T became the latest bank to roll out a new mobile banking application, giving business and consumer customers the ability to check balances and pay bills from their Android-powered smartphones and tablet PCs.

Market participants slammed the Municipal Securities Rulemaking Board’s new draft Rule G-43 for broker’s brokers, calling it everything from irresponsible to anti-competitive.

Bank executives are sounding considerably less positive about Basel III than they did when global regulators announced final international capital and liquidity standards last year.

Independent broker-dealers and consulting firms can provide hints for what to say and omit from your posts and other social media communiqués.

The Securities and Exchange Commission said it has started enforcement proceedings against a St. Louis-based registered investment advisor and its president for using a broker-dealer to artificially inflating the prices of thinly executed stocks to report inflated performance to clients.

Workers used the money for emergencies, a Bankrate survey found.

The Great Recession significantly widened states’ pension and retiree health care funding shortfalls, the Pew Center on the States concluded in a report released Tuesday.

Obama has two options: Nominate a candidate who sparks little debate (no easy task), or make a recess appointment, a move that will further infuriate GOP opponents.

When you start putting pen to paper (or fingers to keyboard), think carefully about the words and the style you use. Every communication is an opportunity to reinforce your positioning, market your firm and your build your brand. Sometimes, dear mild-mannered financial planners, it’s okay to be bold – and even a bit (gulp!) bossy. It’s a noisy world out there. Your ads, flyers and other marketing promotions must stand out and grab attention. …

While the banking industry clearly has momentum on its side in the fight to delay a rule that would limit debit interchange fees, time for Congress to act is rapidly running out.

Over the next few weeks B of A plans to roll out revised versions of smartphone apps, with more of a focus on under-the-hood improvements than on flashy new features.

Financial advisors Ian Jones and Peter Jones will focus on the Taft-Hartley market.

I have a very simple question to ask all of you. Suppose, by some miracle, that you were given an extra two hours a week to spend in your office. How would you spend that time?

Forget reinventing the wheel. Just copy what other top producers are doing. Better yet, hire a coach who has already identified those “best practices” and then pay them a fee to share the ideas and hold you accountable for implementing them. Is that really the key to success as an advisor?

49% of respondents to the PricewaterhouseCoopers study said they find it difficult to meet their household expenses on time, up from 43% a year earlier.

There are rumors the administration is working on a "package" and will present a slate of nominees for financial services jobs soon. Let's hope so. But what's taking so long?

According to the FINRA survey, in addition to these worries, fewer than half of current retirees said they were working with a financial professional to handle their retirement assets. Only one in five reported having a written plan for retirement.

A decade after its launch, Bank of America Merrill Lynch's 401(k) platform for small businesses is approaching 1 million participants — and it's expanding beyond its signature 401(k) focus.

The combination of extortion and the use of threats to air an alleged extramarital affair against a state official is probably not the best way to win an investment contract at the New York State Common Retirement Fund.