Punk'd: The NYSE and the states of New Jersey and Connecticut fined Merrill Lynch a total of $13.5 million for failing to supervise a group of Fort Lee, N.J., brokers that market-timed mutual funds. During the first four months of 2002, the...

An NASD arbitration panel ordered Merrill Lynch to pay more than $1 million to investors Gary and Lisa Friedman last month for hiding conflicts of interest and issuing fraudulent research. According to the award, the panel found Merrill guilty of...

Rick Peterson, a Houston recruiter, places about 75 clients a year. But when firms come to him to scout out branch office managers (BOMs), those who'd make the best prospects are increasingly loath to step up. I'm asked by many firms to come up...

Martha Stewart's stay in a federal lockup apparently has not diminished her status as an arbiter of taste. The crocheted poncho Stewart wore on her way out of the Big House has inspired the Web site sew-beautiful.us to begin selling knockoffs of...

Small-business owners are typically a self-reliant lot, and this fact cuts two ways for financial advisors who would serve them. On the positive side, the advisor who gains access to a small-business owner has reached the decision maker, the...

A recent clarification from the Internal Revenue Service could change the way clients fund their individual retirement accounts and may eventually cut into a rep's IRA-related fees. In a recently released response to a financial firm's inquiry ...

When qualified college savings accounts burst on the scene in the late 1990s, the initial growth exceeded most expectations. Assets in state-sponsored plans continue to soar rising 49 percent last year, according to the Financial Research Corp. At...

If you're a fiduciary and don't want to get sued and fined pay close attention to litigation expert Dominic J. Campisi. Campisi, a partner in the San Francisco law firm of Evans Latham and Campisi, has been defending fiduciaries for about three...

Mr. Whimsy feels he has theworld's best job to doHe thinks up rhymes and stories,then shares them all with you. He loves to open up his mind,see what flies in and out.His thoughts and dreams are alwayskind, for that's what he's about. He roams the...

Finding a good plan administrator for a small-business 401(k) program is a process fraught with peril. Putting clients in a plan with limited portfolio choices, poor customer service and high fees could lead to early retirement of the financial...