In this issue of InvestmentNews, we celebrate those members of our industry who have dedicated themselves to making the financial advice industry more representative. The progress on this area is tangible, which is reinforced when you look at our annual 40 Under 40 issue. Absent the efforts of the firms and individuals highlighted in these profiles today, that group of young professionals may not have gotten where they are.
Shundrawn Thomas, our Lifetime Achievement Award winner, represents much of what is good about this progress. I’ve had the good fortune to meet Shundrawn a time or two, and look forward to our Sept. 16 webcast. He brings a unique grace and style that we all can learn from. Jeff Benjamin elucidates this grace in a profile on page 8.
“The 2021 winner of the InvestmentNews Excellence in Diversity, Equity & Inclusion Lifetime Achievement Award is not the kind of person who seeks recognition for his success nor status as an African American in an industry where women and minorities in leadership are still rare,” Benjamin writes. “But Thomas appreciates and enthusiastically shoulders the opportunity to challenge the status quo, and to help make success stories like his more common.”
But even as we celebrate these accomplishments, the fight for equality is not over. News broke last week, as reported on page 3, that leaves no question that challenges remain.
Fortunately, this is an industry that’s primarily focused on serving all communities.
The "Crypto Mom" departure would leave the SEC commission with just two members and no Democratic commissioners on the panel.
IFP Securities’ owner, Bill Hamm, has a long-term plan for the firm and its 279 financial advisors.
Meanwhile, a Osaic and Envestnet ink a new adaptive wealthtech partnership to better support the firm's 10,000-plus advisors, and RIA-focused VastAdvisor unveils native integrations with leading CRMs.
A former Alabama investment advisor and ex-Kestra rep has been permanently barred and penalized after clients he promised to protect got caught in a $2.6 million fraud.
As more active strategies get packaged into the ETF wrapper, advisors and investors have to look beyond expense ratios as the benchmark for value.
Wellington explores how multi strategy hedge funds may enhance diversification
As technical expertise becomes increasingly commoditized, advisors who can integrate strategy, relationships, and specialized expertise into a cohesive client experience will define the next era of wealth management
