Wealth management

When doing their Christmas shopping this year, advisors didn't forget their clients. And some are coming up with unique ways of rewarding the loyalty of their closest accounts. It starts with a card and gets more involved (and more pricey) from there. See what some clients are finding under their tree this season.

From social media’s growing influence in wealth management firms, to a look at the top 40 advisors under 40, Wall Street has undergone some rapid changes in 2012.

From the Top 50 bank advisors of the year to major acquisitions in the banking space, 2012 has been a roller-coaster ride for advisors in the the bank channel.

Envestnet-Tamarac, a Chicago-based provider of integrated web-based portfolio and client management software for independent advisors, has entered into a strategic alliance with Salentica Inc., a provider of client relationship management and client reporting technology solutions for wealth managers

The San Diego-based firm plans to open three new offices in “key” California markets over the next 12 to 18 months.

From veteran advisors battling to keep clients away from financial danger, to some of the top schools grooming the next generation of advisors, 2012 has been a year of both growth and opportunity for the financial advisory sector.

After a round of changes this year in the financial advice industry, some big players found themselves in diminished circumstances by year’s end. Here’s a look at some of the people, organizations and ideas that ended the year in a downturn.

With the financial advice industry going through a period of change, we took a look at the past year to see how the players shook out. Here’s a look at some of the people, organizations and ideas that ended the year in a sweeter position than they began it.

Regardless of gender, advisors are always looking for ways to find new clients, manage their pratice, improve their technology, meet special sets of client needs, and more. On Monday, more than 100 advisors descended on the Women Advisors Forum in Boston Monday to hear speakers from throughout the profession offer important advice. Check out six smart things we heard.

As clients get into the holiday spirit, too many are not making smart decisions about the gifts they purchase. Many clients see gift-giving as a chore, and as a result, are hasty in making purchases. While this may be natural in a task-oriented society, clients should consider transforming their giving from just stuff – opened today, forgotten tomorrow – to gifts that benefit the recipients and themselves long after the tinsel and bows have been swept away.

Potential tax increases influence timing and structure of gifts but not so much the amount, according to Bank of America’s study of High Net Worth Philanthropy

Abraham Lincoln is one of the most notable examples of someone dying without a will. This begs the question, what happened to Lincoln’s estate after he died?

With the impending fiscal cliff only weeks away, Washington still has not reached a compromise. Yet a recent Gallup survey found that eight in 10 Americans consider achieving resolution to avoid the fiscal cliff extremely or very important. For businesses and individuals, this means a difficult task in year-end tax planning.

Billionaire investors Warren Buffett and George Soros are calling on Congress to increase the estate tax as lawmakers near a decision on tax policies that expire Dec. 31.

The end of the year is a time that is dominated by goal setting and making projections. While this is an important process for advisors and clients alike as they head into the New Year, many plan and set goals the wrong way.

Gen Y clients may have high standards and a different way of doing business, but they may also very well become the clients who will sustain an advisor’s company. For one, these younger consumers have more capital invested in the stock market through retirement savings plans than any prior generation did at the same age, according to Vanguard Investment Counseling & Research Group.

Armed with new executives and a new partnership with an RIA, the online wealth advisory and lead generation firm for advisors, is thinking expansion.

Determined to keep its 48-year-old firm’s “small, hometown feel,” Investors Security of Suffolk, Va., has decided to drop its own broker-dealer and affiliate with Securities America.

Starting Dec. 31, U.K. advisors will be required to make changes in their practice based on new regulations. These rules, which deal with the advice given and the way advisors charge, have not been implemented in the U.S. yet, but leading advisors should consider applying the changes to their own businesses.

Baird's director of estate planning reminds clients that just because they can make large tax-free gifts this year, doesn’t mean they should.