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REGULATION AND LEGISLATION JUN 28, 2009
Advisers, investors call for reinstating uptick rule

Highlighting investor concern about the market effects of short selling, more than 3,000 comments have been filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission on proposed changes to the short-sale rule.

By Sara Hansard
RIAS JUN 28, 2009
Breakaway brokers still a trickle, not a tide

Even though independence is losing its stigma as a sign of failure among wirehouse brokers, they continue to move at only a moderate pace to independent broker-dealers and registered investment advisory firms, a panel of experts said last week.

By Jed Horowitz
LIFE INSURANCE AND ANNUITIES JUN 28, 2009
Asset-based LTC insurance attracts buyers

Although financial advisers have been leery of life insurance with long term care benefits, the products appear to be generating interest among consumers trying to insure against multiple risks and search for a place to store assets, according to a new study.

By Darla Mercado
INDUSTRY NEWS JUN 28, 2009
529 plans tap third-party consultants

States that operate Section 529 college savings plans are showing an increased interest in hiring third-party investment consultants to monitor their programs in the wake of the stock market downturn and the poor performance of OppenheimerFunds Inc.'s Core Bond Fund.

By Charles Paikert
INDUSTRY NEWS JUN 28, 2009
Equity issues hitting market at record pace

Record levels of stock issuance by public companies over the past several weeks could come back to haunt the market and hurt investors, at least in the near term.

By Jeff Benjamin
LIFE INSURANCE AND ANNUITIES JUN 28, 2009
Insurance-affiliated brokers face major changes under Obama plan

Broker defections, a loss of market share and spinoffs could be on the horizon for insurance-affiliated broker-dealers if the Obama administration's proposed regulatory reforms force them to act as fiduciaries.

By Darla Mercado
INDUSTRY NEWS JUN 28, 2009
Some advisers question future of LPL unit

Tensions have been building for months among financial advisers affiliated with Mutual Service Corp., a subsidiary broker-dealer of LPL Investment Holdings Inc., as they wonder about the future of their firm.

By Bruce Kelly
REGULATION AND LEGISLATION JUN 28, 2009
Big fraud cases put focus on disclosure

The Stanford and Madoff fraud cases have put the brokerage industry's disclosure system under the spotlight.

By Dan Jamieson
INDUSTRY NEWS JUN 28, 2009
Knocking indexing

Despite the widely held view that indexing is the safest way to invest, not everyone is a proponent.

By Sara Hansard
RIAS JUN 28, 2009
Schwab to waive fees for its RIAs' new clients

The Charles Schwab Corp. is dipping into its deep pockets to help independent advisers capture business from full-service brokers.

By Jed Horowitz
RIAS JUN 28, 2009
SEC doesn't need a defibrillator after all

At the beginning of the year, after it missed cues for seemingly everything from the massive Madoff Ponzi scheme to the credit crisis, the Securities and Exchange Commission was being written off as all but dead.

By Sara Hansard
INDUSTRY NEWS JUN 26, 2009
May incomes up 1.4%; savings rate surges to 6.9%

By Bloomberg
REGULATION AND LEGISLATION JUN 26, 2009
Attempt to blame fair-value accounting for AIG’s woes was misleading, FASB chairman says

Former American International Group Inc. Chairman Martin Sullivan misled Congress last year when he told lawmakers AIG’s financial problems were caused by fair-value accounting standards, the chairman of the Financial Accounting Standards Board said today.

By Bloomberg
INDUSTRY NEWS JUN 26, 2009
Stock market declines as savings rate jumps

Investors are nervous about the savings rate outpacing spending.

By Bloomberg
REGULATION AND LEGISLATION JUN 26, 2009
Treasury sets purchase process for bank warrants

After banks make an offer, Treasury will decide whether to make a counteroffer, subject to a private appraisal if the two sides cannot agree on a fair price.

By Bloomberg
EMERGING MARKETS JUN 26, 2009
FSA outlines proposal to ban commissions

The United Kingdom’s Financial Services Authority, in an effort to restore “trust and confidence in the retail-investment market,” has outlined a proposal to ban commission payments by investment management firms.

By Jeff Benjamin
LIFE INSURANCE AND ANNUITIES JUN 26, 2009
Better days seen for life, annuity insurers, A.M. Best says

As life and annuity insurers emerge battered from 2008 and the first quarter this year, there appear to be some hints of recovery amid the wreckage, according to a report from A.M. Best Co.

By Darla Mercado
INDUSTRY NEWS JUN 25, 2009
BlackRock’s Doll: U.S. market will generate hefty returns this year

Equity markets in the United States will wind up posting double-digit percentage gains this year, according to Robert Doll, the vice chairman and chief investment officer of New York-based BlackRock Inc.

By Bloomberg
REGULATION AND LEGISLATION JUN 25, 2009
Antiguan ex-official arrested in Stanford case

Antigua's former chief financial regulator surrendered Thursday to face U.S. charges that he aided an alleged $7 billion swindle by Texas billionaire R. Allen Stanford, government officials said.

By Bloomberg
LIFE INSURANCE AND ANNUITIES JUN 25, 2009
The Hartford closes deal to buy Federal Trust Corp.

The Hartford (Conn.) Financial Services Group Inc. yesterday said that it has closed its deal to purchase Federal Trust Corp. for $10 million.

By Bloomberg