Displaying 119 results
Why Merrill Lynch’s small-account penalty is a big mistake
New policy could sour relationships in a business built on relationships; from small acorns ...
Why this is a golden age of opportunity for financial advisers
If you are a successful financial adviser, of whatever type or channel, in terms of opportunities available, this…
Does corporate loyalty still exist among advisers?
So the Giants won the Super Bowl. Again. And it got me thinking about the nature of loyalty.
A holiday poem — from a headhunter?
Twas the week after Christmas, with most of Wall Street away – Except perhaps Regions bank – Who is buying Morgan Keegan today?
About the Merrill Lynch Reorg
Merrill Lynch, in the wake of the Sallie departure, announced a reorganization this week. John Thiel, widely respected…
‘Sallie, Sallie, Sallie!’
The Headhunter wonders why Sallie Krawcheck's departure registered as an earth shattering day in the history of the retail brokerage business.
Regions Bank: The Morgan Keegan conundrum
When Big News hits the trade press and the newswires about a particular firm, I’m often asked about…
Sarch: Are Merrill Lynch advisers nervous about Bank of America?
Three years after Bank of America rescued Merrill Lynch, BofA has hit a serious rough patch. Concerns about the bank's mortgage portfolio have welled up again. This week, those concerns drove the bank's stock price below $11. In 2006, it was at $55. The question: what do Merrill brokers make of all this?
Is there really a flight to independence?
Newer models could offer attractive alternatives to wirehouses, but they're not making a huge dent in headcounts.
Aging advisers: The challenge and the opportunity
Recently there have been articles in the mainstream press as well as in trade publications about the aging…
Branch managers, time to stop living in the past: Sarch
It seems like it’s every business day that I get a call from an unhappy wirehouse Branch Manager:…
<b>From the Headhunter:</b> The offer advisers can’t refuse
Remember this scene from The Godfather? Michael and Kate (played by Al Pacino and Diane Keaton) are…
Why doesn’t Wells Fargo expand its ‘Profit Formula’ — and why haven’t other firms copied it?
Are you familiar with the Wells Fargo Profit Formula program? It was designed and originally launched by Wheat First, the Richmond, VA based regional broker dealer bought out by First Union in 1997. Wachovia and First Union merged in 2001, and Wells saved Wachovia from collapse in 2009.
More wirehouse blues?
Once, big firms battled other big firms for the best advisory talent. Now, smaller firms are nipping at their heels as well.
Danny Sarch: Bonus plan at MSSB has employees in an uproar
On Wednesday and Thursday of this week, Complex Managers at Morgan Stanley Smith Barney were told to participate in a conference call (the Wednesday call was repeated on Thursday) which was entitled: Compensation Communication Day Training. The slides, delivered by Human Resources, detailed how 2010 bonuses were being structured.
How will the wirehouses continue to make money?
Then: Brokerage commissions for trades were high with a client routinely paying more than $1,000 for a large equity transaction.
A headhunter’s dinner with three unhappy advisers, Part 5: Wrapping it all up
Three Financial Advisers and a Headhunter walk into a bar…..I know, I know, it sounds like the beginning…
A headhunter’s dinner with three unhappy advisers, Part 4
A Wirehouse Adviser, Regional Firm Broker, and a Boutique Firm Adviser are sitting with me for dinner. None of them are particularly happy with their current firms.
A headhunter’s dinner with three unhappy advisers, Part 3
Of the three buddies (Wirehouse Adviser, Regional Firm Broker, Boutique Adviser) who are sitting with me this night…
A headunter’s dinner with three unhappy advisers, Part 2
“There is no simple or perfect solution. And the best place for one of you will not necessarily…
