WEEK IN REVIEW

Guess who’s not ready for retirement

The retirement market has the biggest potential for growth, believe 57% of 1,083 financial advisers asked in a survey by Fidelity Investments. That’s the good news. The bad news is that less than half those questioned at a conference last fall — 48% — said they were “very prepared” to deliver the goods in retirement investing advice. The involuntary retirement market seems to be growing, too: AT&T announced plans for 18,000 firings, J.C. Penney 4,900, Black & Decker 3,000 and Egghead Software 1,000.

Sunrise for strips?

As you might have guessed from the lurid news out of Washington, yields on government strips are down — and the spread (sorry) is widening. That is to say, the longest-maturity zero coupon Treasury bond declined in yield relative to the 30-year Treasury bond. That’s because the demand for strips is increasing, because people expect interest rates to keep falling, giving strips a bigger capital gain than T-bonds. Zeroes are called strips because their coupons are teasingly removed from the principal; return is all from capital gain.

Insurance war

Cendant Corp. of Stamford, Conn., offered $2.7 billion in a hostile bid for American Bankers Insurance Group Inc., a Miami credit life and warranty insurer. American International Group Inc. had offered $500 million less. The long knives are out on both sides.

$50 million fix

The National Association of Securities Dealers is spending $50 million-plus to keep rogue brokers from slipping through the Boeing 747-size holes in its bad-boy screen. Everything is scheduled to be hunky-dory next year.

Liechtensteiner polka

LGT Asset Management, which Liechtenstein’s ruling family has had on the block for months, finally went to Amvescap PLC for $800 million or so. LGT offers GT Funds, which are strong in Asia, while Amvescap sells as Aim and Invesco.

Auf Wiederseh’n

Asian woes and the impending advent of a single European currency combined to KO Deutsche Morgan Grenfell. Parent Deutsche
Bank AG, the world’s third-biggest bank, is taking a $2.2 billion charge to pay for a shakeup that will cause 6,000 jobs and the Morgan Grenfell name to vanish. Deutsche paid $1.6 billion for the British bank nine years ago. That’s a lot of frankfurters, even in Frankfurt.

No ashes on them

Phoenix Home Mutual Life Co. picked up $1.3 billion in policyholder cash value with 40,000 life and deferred annuity policies from Confederation Life Insurance Co. It’s Phoenix’s biggest buy since it was founded in Hartford, Conn., 147 years ago, and, says actuarially minded CEO Robert W. Fiondella, it “adds significantly to Phoenix’s already strong position in the second-to-die marketplace.”

Songs of Freedom

Freedom Securities Inc. of Boston, parent of brokerages Tucker Anthony Inc. and Sutro & Co., is going public. Officials say they hope to raise just $120 million, which suggests they’re not going to let the public all the way inside.

Another steady job

William R. Owens, acting president of the College for Financial Planning since Apollo Group Inc. bought the Denver school in September, has the job for real. He’ll also stay on as boss of CPEInternet, a cybercorrespondence school, and another for-profit Apollo unit.

Tons of funds

Fidelity Investments’ portfolio advisory services unit plans to let its big-bucks clients buy (gasp!) non-Fidelity funds. . . .Latest aboard the Vanguard Group-powered index fund bandwagon is T. Rowe Price, which is offering funds tracking the Wilshire 5000 and the Wilshire 4500. . . .Scudder Kemper is merging two closed-ends, Growth Fund of Spain and Spain and Portugal Fund. Ole.

Closing Quote

“Egomaniacs.” — Regan Partners LP Managing Director Murat “Hal” Davidson, describing the most important trait of the best hedge fund managers.

Bloomberg News contributed to this report