Practice management

The Securities and Exchange Commission would like to hear from advisors. That was the resounding message of a speech delivered Tuesday by Norm Champ, the director of the SEC's Division of Investment Management, the unit of the commission that oversees federally registered investment advisors.

When the Department of Labor produces its controversial proposal to extend fiduciary responsibilities to certain advisors to retirement plans later this year, the plan will come with a robust economic analysis making the case for new regulations, along with targeted exemptions to the rules, the senior official who is leading the effort said on Tuesday.

Rising markets boosted the number and wealth of high net worth individuals to new highs, according to the World Wealth Report 2013.

More than 60% of high-net-worth clients expressed a high degree of trust in both their wealth managers and their firms, according the World Wealth Report 2013, but a majority prefer to work with a single firm to “manage all of their financial needs."

You’ve set up a Twitter account and you know how to tweet, but how can you convert Twitter followers into prospects and then clients? Marie Swift, the Marketing Maven offers tips for Twitter power users.

The looming stats are everywhere when it comes to the future of the advisory business, despite being a fast-growing industry. Here's how one advisor is trying to ensure a brighter outlook.

Like professional football players, most financial advisors maintain an external persona of confidence, but if advisors are honest with themselves, many insecurities –including avoiding contacting aggressive clients during market collapses, or fearing that they will look weak if they can’t think quickly on their feet when challenged by their clients—linger beneath the surface.

The process of switching to independence does not happen overnight. Here are 10 steps to consider when making the move to the RIA segment from Schwab Advisor Services.

In a keynote address kicking off the Insured Retirement Institute's Government, Legal and Regulatory conference, Atkins, now the CEO of Patomak Global Partners, offered a round critique of the Dodd-Frank Act and the myriad rulemaking proceedings that it set in motion.

Less than a week after landing another Morgan Stanley advisor, Raymond James has lured a Midwestern group with over $240 million in assets under management from Morgan Stanley to its independent-broker dealer.

The executive of Sacramento County in California recently attributed the increase in his county’s pension costs to “investment losses during the recession.”

Advisors may soon see lower fees for liquid alternative asset funds – hedge fund mutual funds – thanks to the push by hedge fund managers to market these plans more aggressively into the defined contribution space, according to panelists at last week's 25th annual Morningstar Investment Conference.

A top official for the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority resigned after the agency was informed he was indicted for felony theft and charitable bingo fraud in 1993, the year he joined the agency.

Networking and a hands-on approach to learning about investing, running the family business and entrepreneurship are the best ways to attract and retain next generation clients, according to the head of one of the industry’s most successful and longest-running Next Gen programs.

The most common question from advisors about social media used to be “Should I bother?” Now that regulators and compliance departments have provided at least some guidance, the more common questions from advisors involve how to use social media effectively without it becoming a huge time vortex.

Following lunch with a prospect, Dave Grant turns to an abundance of tech tools to turn the referral into a client.

The Securities and Exchange Commission has approved new FINRA rules that prevent mutual fund and hedge fund industry personnel from serving as public arbitrators, effective July 1.

Advisors might want to consider brushing up on their foreign language skills if they want to pursue the highly prized millionaire market.

John David “J.D.” Joyce and his team moved to Wells Fargo Advisors Financial Network in Houston on May 23.

Want to boost your clients’ retirement income by 29%? There are five things advisors can do to help clients meet their retirement goals