Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos surpassed Bill Gates to become the richest man in the world for a few hours on Thursday, according to Bloomberg. Bezos’ personal net worth inched past $90 billion, powered by his company’s strong recent market performance, before settling back down below Gates' $90 billion net worth. The achievement should probably come with an asterisk, however, as Bezos’ two closest competitors for the title, Microsoft’s Gates and Berkshire Hathaway’s Warren Buffett, have both made consistent and massive charitable donations, significantly depleting their massive wealth, while Bezos has not. He’s come under fire recently for his lack of philanthropic activity and has taken to the Internet for advice, tweeting a request for help last month.
Millennials Are Not Killing the Retirement Industry
Millennials have been blamed for killing dozens of industries—most recently, it’s beer and casual-dining restaurant chains—but you cannot make the same claim about retirement. According to Bank of America Merrill Lynch’s 2017 “Plan Wellness Scorecard,” 82 percent of the generation is contributing to 401(k) plans, beating out both Gen X'ers and baby boomers. The report found that employee engagement with 401(k)'s were up across the board due to more employers offering auto-enrollment and auto-increase features. Bank of America Merrill Lynch also noted that usage of Health Savings Accounts and Roth 401(k)'s are also on the rise.
RBC Wealth Management Hires Ameriprise Executive
RBC Wealth Management announced Thursday it hired an Ameriprise executive to head its marketing in the U.S. The Canadian bank's wealth management business in the states, which has almost double the revenue of the domestic unit, tapped Sean Kellenberger to be the head of marketing strategy. He's been tasked with improving the brand's awareness and accelerating its digital marketing strategy, according to a statement from the bank. RBC Wealth Management is making a concerted effort to grow its business in the states, in part by continuing to recruit top brokers, while other traditional brokerages have pulled back on that strategy.
