Global investing

Finally, insiders launched candid criticism at the mutual fund industry last week, to help it respond sensibly to the economic meltdown and reposition itself to regain investor trust.

Finally, insiders launched candid criticism at the mutual fund industry last week, to help it respond sensibly to the economic meltdown and reposition itself to regain investor trust.

Separately managed accounts were the hardest hit of all types of brokerage accounts, The Wall Street Journal reports. Assets fell 39%, from $750 billion at the end of 2007 to $460 billion at the end of last year, according to Cerulli Associates.

The Depository Trust & Clearing Corp. has created a web portal for its Managed Accounts Service, to make connectivity to the platform convenient and immediately accessible. The portal will be available in the third quarter.

Fidelity Investments, Bank of America and Goldman Sachs manage wealth for the largest percentage of U.S. millionaires, according to a survey by Fidelity.

Recognizing the need for asset management executives to receive timely insights from financial intermediaries on changing investor tastes, kasina and Hoursesmouth have launched Advisor Vision. Through surveys conducted among Horsesmouth’s 70,000 members, the service provides insight into advisers’ behaviors, preferences for working with asset managers and opinions on specific firms and investment choices.

The top wealth management executive at Beneficial Bank in Philadelphia said his unit aims to take advantage of its rivals' "distractions."

Bank of America is merging its premier banking into Merrill Lynch Global Wealth Management, and as a result, several hundred people will lose their jobs.

With mutual fund investors burned by negative returns of 30% to 50% over the past year, they are unlikely to remain confident about their investments, Celent predicts. As a result, the universe of 7,000 funds could shrink by as much as 70% over the next five years, leaving only 2,000 funds in existence.

Citi has created the first web-based platform to handle all of the various types of investment products inclued in a unified managed household account, with TIAA-CREF coming on board the first asset manager to sign on. TIAA-CREF will be using the platform, OpenWealth, in its fee-based wealth management division.

Invesco's Atlantic Trust Private Wealth Management plans to take advantage of the "chaos" in the financial services industry to add assets and customers, according to its new chief executive officer.

Since the onset of the credit crisis in August 2007, the financial services industry has lost 325,000 jobs around the world, according to the International Labor Organization.

Mutual funds' 2009 sales outlook is modest, according to Keefe, Bruyette & Woods.

Separately managed accounts’ claim that they pick only the cream of the crop to manage investors’ money appears to have dogged it in the fourth quarter, The Wall Street Journal reports. Disappointed in less-than-stellar returns, investors withdrew assets from SMA accounts held at brokerage firms at a far more rapid pace than they did from mutual funds.

Kimberly Mustin has joined Legg Mason as managing director and head of institutional business, Americas.

Genworth Financial Wealth Management has selected State Street Global Advisors to run six of its tactical asset allocation portfolios using exchange-traded funds.

Due to the tremendous amount of money that high-net-worth and 401(k) investors have that needs to be put to work, the asset management industry will survive and thrive, despite the current gravitation to conservative investments amid the market turmoil.

Here's a word to the wise for any executives of publicly traded companies who may be about to be visited by Portfolio Manager Roger Vogel: Don't roll out the red carpet and offer him a slick, well-rehearsed tour of a spotless and smoothly humming facility.

NEW YORK - Despite the terrible news about most stocks and mutual funds, investors should heed Sophocles' warning and "don't kill the messenger."

Ellyn McColgan is leaving her post as head of Morgan Stanley's global wealth management unit after less than a year on the job. The news comes in the wake of the announcement of Morgan Stanley's planned joint venture with Smith Barney.