Financial planning, at essence, is “helping people make smart financial decisions,” according to Marc Schindler, a founding partner of Pivot Point Advisors in Bellaire, Texas. His firm helps clients by following a quantitative approach that uses computer modeling and takes the long-view on investments.

Canada’s securities commissions have proposed to require transaction data on over-the-counter derivatives to be reported to trade repositories.

While mutual fund companies in general are not embracing mobile technologies to the degree that banks, credit cards and self-directed brokerages are, Vanguard and TIAA-CREF stand out in terms of its offering research and trades via mobile devices, according to Corporate Insight.

As banks search for their place in the fast evolving world of social media, they are increasingly looking to technology to help them cope with a tangle of potential regulatory and legal challenges.

Endace, a network monitoring infrastructure firm, has teamed up with Verizon to help financial firms prevent losing critical market data from trading venues.

European clearinghouse LCH.Clearnet confirmed market talk that it wants to enter the market and service alternative trading platforms.

It’s official. Senior ranking Wall Street operations executives must be licensed as operations professionals. The Securities and Exchange Commission has approved the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority’s request to do so, albeit with some minor changes.

Fiserv's upgrades to key processing software could remove another roadblock in the way of the many banks that want to speed up their ACH payments.

Lightspeed Financial said it acquired the Irish operations of Lime Brokerage International.

Broadridge Financial Solutions said it is beginning to supply post-trade processing services to prime brokers and investment banks.

The Securities Investor Protection Corporation (SIPC) is warning investors that a scammer -- or perhaps a group of scammers -- is preying on people who have already been victimized by previous investment scams, calling them or sending them unsolicited emails in an attempt to steal their money and their most sensitive personal and financial information.

Citigroup has completed an "extensive upgrade" of its electronic trading infrastructure and now says it is providing institutional clients with continuous, 24-hour access to global markets.

John Hancock Retirement Plan Services has introduced a second generation of its PRIME Elements iPad application for retirement plan advisers and consultants.

Moody's has launched a mobile-optimized version of Moodys.com that allows market participants to see Moody’s credit ratings and research on smartphones and other mobile devices.

USAA Federal Savings Bank plans to unveil an overhauled website this month that can provide the kinds of conversations online that typically only happen face-to-face in branches.

A report conducted by the Economist Intelligence Unit and released this week by SAS, the big business analytics software firm, warns that financial institutions, particularly in the U.S., are “feeling too comfortable” about their risk management systems and suggests they may be unprepared for the next crisis.

Huntington Bancshares this week rolled out mobile banking applications for customers' iPhones and Android-powered smartphones that will allow them to check balances, pay bills and transfer funds on the fly.

Portware said it is working with Thomson Reuters to create a broad range of trading services, available globally on-demand.

Orange Business Services said it launched an online store for selling applications that can run on its intelligent trading turret devices. The apps will run on its Open Trade smart turret, introduced in 2010 and intended to be used as a “personal trading assistant.''

As an advisor, your website is your most important piece of Internet real estate. It’s the first stop for people who want to learn more about you. In fact, it's likely that your website now makes more first impressions than you do. As such, it plays a significant role in shaping people’s opinion of your practice and your services so it's crucial to do it right.