Smart decisions are based on more than government statistics, agency reports, news releases, interest rates and stock quotes. We've selected a few fascinating statistics below that illuminate the markets, the world of financial services and big...
Deal making in the wealth-management space has been rampant lately, and some holding companies and individual RIAs are beginning to see opportunities in Europe. Focus Financial Partners, a two-year-old holding company with 15 RIA partners and over...
Registered Rep.: Why has there been so much buzz about actively managed ETFs? Sonya Morris: The ETF market has grown at a torrid pace in recent years, but the vast majority of individual investors' assets (some $9 trillion) are still in mutual...
Something is wrong with this picture. Consider the following: When talking about the state of the financial advisory industry with many veteran advisors today, you often hear one of following three things: I don't want my kids getting into the...
The 97.5 million viewers who tuned into this year's Super Bowl got a little dose of retirement reality from AXA Equitable Life Insurance Company, which spent its entire broadcast advertising budget for 2007 and 2008 on the sports event. In the...
As competition for clients and talent in the financial advisory business intensifies, custody and clearing firms are doing everything they can to help b/ds and RIAs stay on top of their game and navigate the path to growth. That means they're...
Just about everybody and their brother has an opinion about the potential for a recession. Are we headed for one? Are we in one right now? Former Federal Reserve Chairman Alan Greenspan recently weighed in on the matter in a speech, saying that...
Wall Street is shifting loyalties. So far in the 2008 election cycle, the securities and investment industry has showered the Democratic Party with contributions. The balance began to shift in 2006, when the industry gave 53 percent of donations...
RBC Dain Rauscher continued its recent streak of acquisitions in February, announcing plans to acquire Ferris, Baker, Watts (FWB), a full-service broker/dealer in Washington D.C. The acquisition strategy is part of an effort by Canadian parent...
Registered Rep.: What are the biggest hurdles that clearing and custody firms will face in the coming year? Dennis Gallant: Competition for clients. It's still a scale business, and it is highly competitive the demands on the marketplace are...
