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Articles published 4/2013


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Chet Helck: We're confident, but this is one that we can't give up being vigilant about.
April 30, 2013 at 7:34 AM

Mark Hurley: The middle ground [of tweeners] is going to go away and there's a staggering amount of opportunity.

Mark Hurley drops a new wealth management prognosis on the industry with a zero-sum flavor

With the best clients aging, RIA business will be shaped by how about 2,000 'tweener' firms react to fast-deteriorating business conditions

April 29, 2013 at 6:06 PM

Philip Palaveev: Client service expectations are ... more difficult to manage profitably.

Round 2 in Vegas: Finance Logix advisor conference ponders simplicity as sophistication

As the RIA industry matures, first-time buyers are gone and differentiation is the name of the game

April 29, 2013 at 6:04 PM

Mark Casady: When our same-store sales are up, then recruiting is typically down.

LPL, Raymond James and TD data -- and Walt Bettinger, Mike Durbin comments -- reveal rotten first quarter for breakaways

Mark Casady's explanation is hard to swallow for Danny Sarch, Mindy Diamond; Bettinger inveighs against 'rat trap' of checkbook recruiting; Ryan Shanks says advisors are "numb to the chaos"

April 26, 2013 at 5:17 PM

Dale Brown: The SEC recognizes that working to harmonize standards is a good PR effort to improve its standing among consumer groups.

Dale Brown tells RIAs why SEC's fiduciary standard is too costly for their clients

Invoking his own parents' small nest egg, the FSI chief projects a 2015 Finra takeover of SEC duties for RIAs

April 26, 2013 at 4:26 AM

Rex Whiteside: Wealthy people are also craving coordination among their own advisors.

Two Raymond James advisors relate details on how they segmented clients to get big and successful

At the broker's annual event in Dallas, two advisors told their stories with generous details

April 25, 2013 at 7:23 PM

Bill Dwyer plans to again work for a company that has the same sense of mission and vision that LPL has had over the years.

Bill Dwyer tells RIAs to advise more -- albeit with heavy use of products -- and tips his hand about his for-profit future

In Philly, the former LPL super-exec talks a very RIA game but seems to hint at FINRA-as-king and getting advisors out of investment advice

April 25, 2013 at 6:35 PM

Walter Bettinger: There was a period late yesterday in which wait times were excessive.

Schwab CEO issues 'sincere' apology, reassures on data security and calls attacks a 'fact of life' after website goes down

Walt Bettinger also declares mea culpa surrounding long wait times for telephone service late on Tuesday

April 25, 2013 at 3:08 AM

When websites go down, however briefly, it rocks our world.

Schwab's website went down twice after two 'denial of service' attacks -- so what was up?

The San Francisco-based broker showed that even it's not immune to web fritz; RIAs take it in stride though not without administering a healthy dose of schadenfreude

April 24, 2013 at 5:10 PM

Adri Miller-Heckman: This was one of the few times my mother was willing to defy my father's wishes and make a change not to his liking.

Why you won't know your female clients are unhappy until they're out the door

By 2020, women will control $22 trillion -- 25% more than today's national debt; that's not a segment you can afford to lose

April 24, 2013 at 5:08 PM

When you're young with big assets and not much earning power, you're really a retired person with a long horizon.

How a suddenly wealthy, young Bay Area widow found her RIA after months of fruitless efforts

With a big life insurance settlement augmenting a considerable estate, this young mother had literally dozens of sit-down meetings and a hard-fought happy ending

April 23, 2013 at 4:26 AM

Michael Collins: Only the fittest roll out.

8 reasons why the hedge fund industry deserves a second look in 2013 and why RIAs are so well positioned to capitalize

It's a buyers market for investors who will need an advisor's help to sort the hedge fund manager sheep from the goats

April 23, 2013 at 4:14 AM

Joan Warner: It's an incredibly crowded field. FA IQ is not going to do everything.

Why Financial Times is starting an online publication for financial advisors and what to make of it

FA IQ, with REP. vet Sydney LeBlanc aboard, joins Ignites and FundFire in publishing for niches in the financial advisory business

April 22, 2013 at 5:24 PM

Skip Schweiss: This bill is the best path we've seen thus far.

An advisor fee bill hits Congress again, this time gaining qualified support from RIA groups

Rep. Maxine Waters' bill, which would require fees from advisors for the SEC, is unlikely to pass, but groups say it will push off FINRA efforts for now

April 22, 2013 at 5:36 AM

Roger Hewins: What the heck are they doing for clients to earn this?

Industry leaders puzzled by RIAs' being paid by Schwab and Fidelity for investing in funds

Some RIAs see it as an unacceptable conflict, but the custodians are unabashed about the arrangements

April 19, 2013 at 5:11 AM

Felipe Luna: We're moving beyond advisors who just need turnkey.

With LPL as its new BFF, CONCERT seeks bigger game and more RIAs

San Jose-based firm wirehouse-lite is up to $3 billion of AUA but was hitting roadblocks with some bigger candidates that it believes LPL technology and RBC big-boy services can remove

April 18, 2013 at 6:36 AM

Loren Starr: It really was not something that we were out looking for -- to sell the business.

What's up with Invesco offloading its $20-billion RIA/trust firm to a Canadian bank -- and at a bargain price?

Post-Morgan Stanley deal, the institutionally-minded fund company is becoming a player in retail asset management -- making Atlantic Trust less of a core holding

April 17, 2013 at 5:19 PM

Alex Potts: In the end, I hope for one idea, or concept, to arise and challenge my thinking.

What three consumer-investors told CEOs at the Tiburon conference in New York

It's not, not, not the products and the returns that keep them coming back

April 17, 2013 at 6:41 AM

Michael Kitces: We've sparred back and forth on a couple of things over the past few years.

Two firms that have love-hate relationships with RIAs draft their harshest critics to serve as consiglieres

Advisor-rater BrightScope and tech startup Riskalyze draw two smack-talking industry observers into their inner circle

April 16, 2013 at 1:36 PM

Kelly O'Mara:  I should have been long gone.

What RIABiz reporter Kelly O'Mara experienced running the Boston Marathon yesterday

The bombs going off brought back childhood recollections of the 1996 Olympics in Atlanta

April 16, 2013 at 4:29 AM

Matt Sonnen: I made a lot of mistakes along the way, and I hope I can help others avoid those.

Focus Financial goes after $100-million wirehouse brokers after hiring five employees suited to the task

The big New York aggregator will put the brokers through a one-year seasoning process before placing them in RIA foster homes

April 15, 2013 at 5:16 AM

Jud Bergman: I think institutions are seeing this as a way go participate in large trends.

As Envestnet shares soar, the firm extends its offerings further beyond RIAs with $33-million deal

With the Chicago-based outsourcer's stock now up about 75% in the past year, it picks up a Prudential unit that has sweet ties to trust companies

April 15, 2013 at 5:16 AM

Mike Alfred: We're showing sensitivity here.

How BrightScope plans to publicize RIA advisory fees fairly amid all those onion layers

One competitor is convinced the Alfreds are merely rewarding fee obfuscation but the San Diego iconoclasts refuse to be discouraged

April 12, 2013 at 5:11 AM

Rush Benton: I was really blown away by the size and scope of the business and the successful private-wealth business hidden within it.

Rush 'Rusty' Benton is back in the deal game -- wielding the checkbook and credibility of $85-billion CAPTRUST

The godfather of RIA roll-ups is heading up CAPTRUST's little-known $2.5-billion private-wealth division with plans for hoovering advisors into a non-autonomous framework

April 11, 2013 at 5:30 PM

Paul Pagnato: They love to block off a day, off-site, out of their business, out of their home, no distractions.

$2-billion HighTower practice hosts UHNW event relating to financial -- and personal -- security

When to tell kids how rich they are and how to unmask sketchy construction workers are two topics covered

April 11, 2013 at 4:36 PM

Scott Pritchard: Wall Street lawyers had plenty of time between 2007 and last July to create slight-of-hand ways to "disclose" these fees without providing meaningful transparency.

Why 408(b)(2) is a flop for the 401(k) business and how RIAs can turn it around

The disclosure requirement sat around so long that workarounds got developed and employers got comfortable in the boiling water

April 10, 2013 at 5:23 PM

Like the almost-completed Freedom Tower, as seen from the Ritz-Carlton at Battery Park, the RIA channel continues to grow in Wall Street's backyard.

From a Wall Street perch, Chip Roame imparts wry skepticism anaerobically at Tiburon CEO Summit of 2013, spring edition

The independent channel is booming -- but objects in the mirror may still be in front of you, the Tiburon guru warns

April 10, 2013 at 4:51 AM

Jesse Mark: The RIA channel is probably the most sophisticated of the distribution channels. [Wholesalers] need to be able to speak at the level of that RIA.

How RIAs are forcing mutual fund wholesalers to lead or get out of the way

Numbers of internal salespeople are fast on the rise as the old-model external forces hit a plateau, according to Ignites research

April 9, 2013 at 4:47 AM

Brian Hamburger: We're now prepared to receive a call from a customer at 10 a.m. and have them up and running at the end of the day.

MarketCounsel launches legal hyperspace button for breakaways who get fired by Merrill Lynch (and friends) before the 'go' date

Brian Hamburger's novel service to become an RIA in a day is a response to stepped-up electronic snooping at broker-dealers and nettlesome questions asked by state regulators

April 8, 2013 at 8:25 AM

With MetLife playing an air game, Cetera was happy to buy up Snoopy's ground game.

Cetera raises its strategic profile to 'baby LPL' status with MetLife deal

The size of the insurance-IBD roll-up has moved it into a realm between boutique and biggie

April 8, 2013 at 4:15 AM

Barnaby Grist: I do hope to come back to this industry and even to Cetera if the timing is right.

In the wake of an unusual HR event, Cetera is seeking its new Barnaby Grist

Donald Marron has worked to bring class to the IBD business ands Grist captured that in human form

April 8, 2013 at 4:14 AM

Margaret Towle had stops at Russell Investments, Northern Trust, a hedge fund, an asset manager and Greycourt before coming to HighTower, and leaving it.

HighTower loses RIA with $1 billion of assets and Northern Trust street cred

Margaret Towle broke the HighTower mold somewhat for having an RIA, not coming from a wirehouse, and serving only 10 clients

April 5, 2013 at 10:54 PM

Savneet Singh: With RIAs we had to build our own platform since we weren't integrating into someone else's. As you can imagine that is a big tech build.

How a TAMP, a New York startup, a $14-billion hedge fund and Brinks are part of bringing cold, hard gold closer to RIAs

Merrill Lynch was first to put Gold Bullion International at advisor fingertips, but now Envestnet will make it easier for independents

April 5, 2013 at 4:37 AM

Bo Dong: We actually are helping Advent, not so much taking business away. Otherwise, you probably would have jumped.

How two ex-myCFO guys are winning big RIA clients by using a pilot fish strategy to win Advent clients without harming the host

WealthSite is a no-name, but its customers are not, and it's winning by skimming the performance reporting off the top of Advent and PortfolioCenter accounts

April 4, 2013 at 7:02 PM

Terence Hong: I can confirm that these technical challenges are not insignificant given a large readership.

What to make of Orion's efforts to expand RIAs non-renewable resource -- advisor face time

RIABiz technologist Terence Hong gives his first impressions of Orion Connect and Orion Mail

April 4, 2013 at 7:00 PM

Darin Pastor: I don't think anybody's going to offer what we have.

Why exactly a $1-billion LPL advisor thinks he's the guy to buy and turn around the Phoenix Coyotes?

Hockey lover Darin Pastor's plan revolves around making Glendale, Ariz. people happy -- and applying managerial smarts that produced serial business successes

April 3, 2013 at 5:33 PM

Barney Frank and Chris Dodd are now aware of how persuasive Brian Hamburger can be as they put Vegas on their pre-Christmas calendar.

In a major 'get' MarketCounsel books Dodd and Frank to play Vegas

How Brian Hamburger booked the Martin and Lewis of financial legislators to his -- formerly -- bare-bones conference

April 3, 2013 at 5:32 PM

James Maher: From a conflict standpoint, it was very awkward.

Merrill Lynch team breaks away from Bank of America (yes, ironically) to get better access to bankers

James Maher is forming Archford Capital Strategies as a wealth manager that needs capital galore to unlock his clients' billions in assets from illiquidity

April 2, 2013 at 6:33 AM

James Combs: [Open architecture is] the key to growth and expanding the shareholder base moving forward.

National Advisors Trust appoints former SEI exec as its new chief -- and hands him a big to-do list

The trust company hopes to give its RIA owners the ability to put their trust assets at the custodian of their choice

April 2, 2013 at 4:42 AM

Levi McMellian:  These guys had it pounded in their head to never sell UPS and we had to coach them to get more diversified.

Wielding its Texas six-shooter, TD Ameritrade wins a $500-million rep in the Dallas area from LPL

Modeling itself after local juggernaut, Neiman Marcus -- and dissing WalMart of Arkansas, CFO4Life signs on with locally-based Tom Nally

April 1, 2013 at 5:52 PM

Karl Thunemann: I realized that it is a lot easier to be dispassionately critical of a financial company you've just left than of one you've just connected with.

How I'm doing after my advisor left Schwab Private Client to join a $2 billion RIA

I pay a higher fee, visit a higher-rise building and may end up with a new level of advice

April 1, 2013 at 5:24 AM

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