Articles published 6/2012
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A Harvard MBA takes her team from a $3-billion Boston RIA to join a $29-billion RIA based in Baltimore
June 29, 2012 at 5:04 AMDune Thorne walked out the Silver Bridge doors with clients with $500 million of assets to take a partner role at Brown Advisory
Schwab finally hops on the iPhone app bandwagon -- to the iTune of 30,000 potential RIA employees
June 29, 2012 at 4:37 AMThe big custodian went live on Thursday morning after a pilot with 15 advisors -- and about 18 months after Fidelity
Dynasty Financial Partners launches a branding and marketing subsidiary peopled by ex-Citi execs
June 28, 2012 at 5:07 PMThe New York-based virtual corner office provider now has wirehouse talent at virtually every level -- from advisors to PR folks to CEO
What LPL's pick of a new CFO says about how strategic -- and RIA oriented -- the company plans to be
June 28, 2012 at 4:55 AMDan Arnold is not a central-casting pick, but the company is betting he is the guy who can find the judicious RIA-brokerage mix
Walt Bettinger's comments on threats facing RIAs clinched success at Schwab's EXPLORE 2012
June 27, 2012 at 3:48 PM150 top RIA execs with $150 billion-plus in combined firm AUM gathered in Dana Point, Calif., last week
Three MSSB brokers gravitate to a $4.5 billion LPL hybrid with a hefty RIA platform -- and a sub-channel appears to be nearing critical mass
June 27, 2012 at 6:10 AMOhio-based Stratos offers cozy and profitable setup that stands between the biggest IBD and the advisors who ultimately consume its services
Why the Moody's downgrades of big banks may say more about Moody's than the banks
June 27, 2012 at 4:16 AMThe risk of default remains fairly negligible; the same can't be said for Moody's brand risk in the wake of its misses in 2008
RIAs are set to capture chunks of the $26 billion that GM is spinning out of its pension plan
June 26, 2012 at 3:56 PMRetirees are looking to RIAs to help them make a once-in-a-lifetime decision -- and experience shows advisors get richly rewarded
SEI makes its play for big RIAs by doing some un-SEI things
June 26, 2012 at 2:26 PMThe Oaks, Pa. TAMP, long doctrinaire about its closed approach, is taking big steps to open up but it still may not be enough, say some advisors and competitors
How WilmerHale is positioning its $3.3B-AUA RIA as outsourcer and owner in a $750-billion market
June 25, 2012 at 4:55 AMSilver Bridge, backed by the high-power law firm and headed by a former JPMorgan Chase division president, is exploiting the need of single-family offices to gain scale without merging to become multifamily offices
5 ways financial advisors can serve the growing market of unwed couples
June 25, 2012 at 3:56 AMRIAs have much to offer the 7 million unhitched couples in the U.S. - including members of the LGBT community who can't get married and baby boomers who don't want to
Schwab escalates the RIA custody arms race by releasing more plug-in business practices called workflows
June 22, 2012 at 3:36 PMTD Ameritrade, Schwab and others have designs on inserting neural pathways into advisor practices but one expert questions the workability of automated workflows
Seeing her small clients take Morgan Stanley's brunt, a 12-year Smith Barney vet decamps with $100 million after meeting with Schwab
June 22, 2012 at 5:13 AMRene' Nourse joins CONCERT to avoid telling smaller clients that MSSB benefits were being taken away and to create a brand aimed at middle class urbanites
How one firm is supposedly cracking the lead generation code to the tune of 50,000 advisors supplied -- by, for now, not trying to create referrals
June 21, 2012 at 4:39 AMInvestor Watchdog, FreeRetirementReport and Vestorly are among the firms seeing growth but are grappling with vetting issues -- of both advisors and clients
What happened when two advisors traveled to D.C. to be heard
June 21, 2012 at 4:15 AMNeal Hokanson and Chris Cannon, separately but with the same mission, felt like they created 'aha' moments for presumed FINRA advocates
New DOL rule effectively kills off open-architecture option favored by some big plan participants -- and sets off the 401(k) industry
June 20, 2012 at 5:44 AMThe wrinkle aimed at self-directed accounts is seen as an unnecessary eleventh hour blindsiding by Fidelity, TD and the CFDD among a broad constituency
Beware: RIA privacy breaches aren’t always high-tech
June 20, 2012 at 3:48 AMBellowing that reaches the waiting room is one example of potential confidentiality-breaching behavior
Schwab moves to keep 3,500 desktop-bound RIAs from walking onto somebody else's cloud
June 19, 2012 at 4:02 AMAdvisors with PortfolioCenter housed on a closet-based server can get on Schwab's titanic servers without giving up years of customization -- and, finally, get data through Schwab from multiple custodians
Three RIA items of interest
June 19, 2012 at 4:00 AMBHWM hires Morgan Stanley, RW Baird vet; FallLine brings on third partner to focus on tech; preliminary injunction filed against Matthew Hutcheson
After years of DOL bluster, new 401(k) rules appear to make RIAs' low expenses look higher than those of brokers
June 18, 2012 at 3:28 AMIt's the same old problem of mutual fund-paid fees arriving by tunnel and therefore getting a pass in disclosures; DOL no-comments the issue
Ten questions for Tom Nally as he gets going filling Tom Bradley's shoes
June 15, 2012 at 3:23 PMTD's new RIA chief is drawing a target on the IBD back and he challenges the 'rollups' to better define their value
TD Ameritrade's 2012 Elite Advisor Summit gathers $89 billion of RIA assets under one Laguna Beach umbrella
June 15, 2012 at 2:45 AMFresh off a week of D.C. intensity, the annual event crackled with strong opinions and offensive strategies
Why the Yale endowment model may still be fundamentally flawed
June 15, 2012 at 2:44 AMAfter the 2008-2009 crash, many concluded that liquidity was the problem -- but what if it's old-fashioned diversification?
A giant San Francisco RIA is poaching a Northern Trust talent to create a Chicago duchy
June 14, 2012 at 6:26 AMPresidio Group is banking on Tom Smith being able to replicate his business building track record on its behalf -- a lot to live up to
RIAs don't get rich clients’ surprising altruism says Fidelity Charitable study -- and it's costing them
June 13, 2012 at 11:52 PMSchwab people harbor some doubts about Fidelity's findings but agree that so much more can be done with donor-advised funds
Eduardo Repetto tips Dimensional Fund Advisors' hand on long-term succession -- which likely involves an IPO
June 13, 2012 at 4:24 AMDFA's co-CEO says that any IPO talk is purely precautionary but that the board has vetted the possibility thoroughly -- and largely ruled out the possibility of a merger
United Capital looks to attract divorcees with new acquisition
June 13, 2012 at 3:58 AMThe $14-billion RIA aggregator has identified a niche that represents a crying need for advice and a place where money is in motion
Fidelity tries out new DOL-influenced 401(k) fee disclosures on clients -- and gets plenty of response
June 12, 2012 at 3:23 PMThe retirement king is putting it out there ahead of most competitors, but there is some resentment that Fidelity failed to warn advisors
Frank Campanale's E.F. Hutton reboot starts to take shape as ex-Hutton executives sign on
June 12, 2012 at 4:48 AMThe revived brand is very much a work in progress, says its once and future steward Jamie Price
Addepar means to be the only technology platform RIAs will ever need -- and has MIT minds and PayPal money to back it up
June 11, 2012 at 3:16 AMThe Silicon Valley fast-riser already won over Mark Zuckerberg's advisor and aims to serve the complex, high-end advisory offices
Loring Ward tells a focus group to let loose on advisors -- and it does
June 11, 2012 at 3:00 AMA tony Monterey RIA event becomes blood sport as 15 private investors unleash frustration on professionals
Why the LinkedIn password theft is a big deal and how advisors can avoid falling victim
June 8, 2012 at 6:18 PMThe bad news: This was possibly a major breach; The good news: You can fix the problem in a few minutes
How Sheryl Rowling and Cheryll Lurtz turned a blistering walk-a-thon into Total Rebalance Expert
June 8, 2012 at 5:05 AM100-degree temps and company of an old friend with a knack for software coding blossomed into a business that has competitors on their toes
Cheat sheet on Wednesday's Bachus fracas
June 8, 2012 at 3:51 AMNot all Republicans were thrilled with the plan that would make FINRA king
Schwab shifts its strategy on its massive Intelligent Integration
June 7, 2012 at 4:56 AMSchwab evolves to a platform-of-platforms strategy for technology rather than hand-picking best-of-breed applications
Pershing draws a record crowd to steamy Miami but many hearts are in D.C.
June 7, 2012 at 4:46 AMINSITE produced bipartisan cheers for Bill Clinton and a split view on the FINRA battle up North
In a pivot, Dale Brown tells Committee that 'SRO' is a 'misnomer'
June 6, 2012 at 6:06 PMFINRA is not self-regulating after all because its governing board is mostly made up of non-industry public members
RIAs flood Capitol Hill with protests against a SRO-FINRA future on the day of the Bachus Bill hearing
June 6, 2012 at 5:24 AMSchwab's Clark and TD's Schweiss lead the charge, arriving in D.C. with impassioned advisor missives predicting an 'avalanche of costly regulation'
Black Diamond is setting its sights on smaller advisors and other things I learned over breakfast with Reed Colley
June 6, 2012 at 2:44 AMAdvent Custodial Data and Moxy are now part of the Black Diamond arsenal and pricing may become attainable for small RIAs with moxie
Brian Hamburger hammers the FINRA SRO proposal in a letter
June 5, 2012 at 10:53 PMIn his muscular style as a lawyer and insider in the regulatory realm, the MarketCounsel principal pulls no punches
What led to Vanguard allowing its 401(k) plan sponsors to shop around for non-Vanguard target-date funds
June 5, 2012 at 5:29 AMDespite the new choices available to plan sponsors, Vanguard believes clients won't stray -- but industry observers are not so sure
At FPA's Norcal event, wary advisors are told how to stop worrying and love the cloud
June 5, 2012 at 4:03 AMRIABiz' editor storms The Palace at the San Fran conference, listens in on tech chiefs soothing mobile angst and checks out the after-party in an old-time saloon
Barbara Roper sends stern letter to Rep. Bachus raising new FINRA-as-SRO issues
June 4, 2012 at 8:28 PMConsumer Federation of America: Smaller firms would bear the brunt of costs and broker/advisor confusion may only increase under the contemplated bill
Advizent hits $100-billion asset target in a matter of weeks triggering hires
June 4, 2012 at 5:23 AMThe RIA grand brand and co-op gains momentum as Charles Goldman goes all-in
Wall Street's big retention problem: RIA compensation is nearing parity with wirehouse brokers
June 3, 2012 at 11:03 PMThe ultimate justification of Wall Street-style fees -- that people happily pay them -- may be crumbling
Bernie Clark and Skip Schweiss head to Washington next week to fight on behalf of RIAs in Bachus bill showdown
June 1, 2012 at 4:13 AMWith FINRA threat looking real, the Schwab and TD Ameritrade executives are urging letters and Tweets
Dynasty Financial hires an expert to help it build an alternative-investments inventory
June 1, 2012 at 4:12 AMMonique Miller brings her Caxton expertise and Dynasty is also poaching Austin Philbin, overseer of 100-plus MSSB advisors,
