AssetMark launched a new assessment tool on Tuesday that it says will provide advisors with a comprehensive look at how prepared their firm is to comply with the Department of Labor’s pending fiduciary rule. The tool is composed of a series of questions that test advisors' understanding of the rule and its exemptions, gauge the extent to which they will need to change their compensation structures and determine whether they have begun the process of developing compliance plans. Based on the results, the tool recommends resources and next steps to help advisors make necessary adjustments. Matt Matrisian, a senior vice president of strategic initiatives at AssetMark, said he recently conducted a workshop series across 16 cities and found a need for more DOL compliance help. “We were struck by how thirsty they were for more guidance on the rule, and frankly, how little they were doing at that point,” Matrisian said.
Former Neuberger Berman Executives Launch Matrix Wealth Partners
Two former senior executives at Neuberger Berman have left the firm to launch Matrix Wealth Partners, a multi-family office. Affiliated with Matrix Advisors, Matrix Wealth boasts that it offers a client-centric approach that delivers the appeal of a small boutique with the expertise of a large institution. The executives leading Matrix Wealth are Matthew Rubin and Justin Gaines. Rubin was a managing director at Neuberger Berman, chief investment officer of Neuberger's Trust Company and chairman of its asset allocation committee. Gaines was a vice president at Neuberger, advising clients in New York, New England and the Southeast. "At Matrix, our approach to wealth management is unconstrained, flexible and accountable," Gaines said in a press release. "We are not simply deciding which investments to undertake; we are an integral partner in the clients' overall objectives and success."
A pair of financial advisors recently made a huge gift to encourage archeology in South Jersey. According to Bloomberg, Ric and Jean Edelman, founders of Fairfax, Va.–based Edelman Financial Services, donated $25 million to expand the Rowan University Fossil Park in Mantua Township. The 65-acre tract, located behind a shopping mall a few miles from campus, is a dried ancient seabed and contains thousands of 65 million-year-old fossils from the Cretaceous period. “If astronomy is the world’s oldest science, than paleontology has got to be the most fun,” says Ric (class of 1980). No bones about it.
