Practice management

Big banks are starting to open the tech-spending spigot, but times are tight for their smaller peers.

It’s important to still remember that retirement planning is much more complex than just having enough income to last through our golden years.

Merrill’s addition indicates how important headcount is in the wirehouse industry.

Despite the ballyhoo about the “breakaway brokers,” the four remaining wirehouses control 48% of advisor-managed assets in the United States. RIAs ranked second with 15%.

Bernie Clark will run Schwab's advisor services unit and Trish Cox its corporate brokerage services division.

Yacht prices, hit hard by the recession, are creating the perfect storm for a buyers’ market.

Many may switch institutions that don’t meet their needs.

The proposal would automatically deduct up to 3% of an employee’s salary straight from their paycheck and invest it in Roth IRAs, unless the employee chose to opt out, or chose to invest in a traditional IRA. This plan would be for employees who don’t have other types of pensions or retirement savings plans, about 80 million workers in all.

Financial companies are trying to make tax season a bit less taxing for people who bank online.

As personal financial management software gains traction at banks, vendors are starting to tinker with its long-established formula.

The team brings a decade of UBS experience.

There is such multiformity among the baby boomers that not everyone even agrees on who exactly belongs in this group.

Ultra-high-net-worth families have given the firm a big cash infusion

Putnam Investments unveiled a new website for its 401(k) plans Monday that keys investors into a monthly retirement income figure, rather than their existing balance or a retirement savings target.

Merrill Lynch is currently offering one of the top compensation deals on the Street.

Playing a role in preparing heirs is a key way for advisors to distinguish their businesses, be more visible among centers of influence, get client referrals and maintain heirs as clients.

BofA will spend up to $20 million over the next three months on its “help2retire” campaign.

Putnam Investments has launched a content-rich Roth IRA Conversion Resource Center, Putnam.com/roth2010, aimed a financial advisers.

The agreement with the Motley Fool has a clear financial advantage for the Garrett Network, which spends just $10,000 a year marketing its advice to financial advisors who might join the group.

Given the opportunity to approach their retirement savings again, 51% of affluent Americans who have retired said they would have preferred to have focused on life goals rather than a retirement number, Merrill Lynch found in a survey. However, the remaining 49% still believe in zeroing in on the numbers.