Practice management

According to a survey released Thursday by MFS Investment Management investors want advisor contact and education. In turn, those investors who are more knowledgeable tend to be less fearful about investing – good news all around.

The more education a person has is strongly correlated with how confident they are about their retirement and their ability to save and plan for it, according to the 11th Annual Transamerica Retirement Survey, released on Thursday.

Ever since September 2008, clients are asking for more than you can possibly deliver: to keep track of the macro-economic big picture and help them get out of the market as soon as we start moving into another meltdown period. So the question is: How can we possibly respond to these lofty expectations?

More Americans plan to get their finances in order in 2011 while the global economic recovery continues to shake out, Fidelity survey says.

Advisors can also get CFP continuing education credits for their efforts.

Outgoing House Financial Services Committee Chairman Barney Frank sharply criticized incoming chairman Rep. Spencer Bachus on Wednesday, ridiculing the Alabama Republican for reportedly saying "Washington and the regulators are there to serve the banks."

According to a poll conducted in October and released on Wednesday by InCharge Debt Solutions Americans are significantly more concerned about future expenses than paying off existing debt or paying their current bills.

The Financial Industry Regulatory Authority has censured Citigroup Global Markets after finding the financial services firm failed to report transactions promptly to its Trade Reporting and Compliance Engine.

The holidays are a great time to show your clients that you appreciate them and their business. If this is done well, it strengthens client relationships, helping with both retention and referrals.

While wealth management firms have increased communications in the wake of the financial crisis, their clients complain they don’t understand what they’re being given.

According to a survey, nearly half restored matches, increased participation.

From hot air balloons to bagels, 2010 proved to be yet another year in which states and municipalities passed some strange tax laws in a desperate bid to raise revenues and close their budget gaps.

The key takeaway from 2011 will be the gap in economic performance between the developed and emerging economies, said Bank of America Merrill Lynch at its 2011 Year Ahead breakfast in New York City on Tuesday.

While lavish recruitment packages are becoming the norm for Wall Street, all that glitters is not gold.

Anticipated declines range from 5% to as much as 50%.

If Mitchell Glassman visited your town sometime in the past 35 years, it probably wasn't for a good reason. The FDIC veteran has been involved in nearly 1,000 takeovers.

John Bouchard, Saundra F. Albrite-Bouchard and Julie-Anne Lewis represent the first team of financial advisors to join Washington Wealth, which Tony Sirianni and Ross Wilkinson launched earlier this month.

According to a study by ING Retirement Research, investors who work with a a financial professional report saving significantly more for retirement.

The New Jersey consulting firm hopes to hire two more full-time consultants in the next year, as she focuses on growing the consulting services for independent advisors.

The platform, which allows clients to obtain two-way dealable prices and execute trades live or with delta exchange, is a component of BofA Merrill’s overall eFX offering.