Fidelity Institutional released quarterly M&A figures this week that revealed RIA deals slowed in the first three months of 2024—down 6% from the previous quarter and down 29% from the same period last year. At the same time, the average amount of transacted assets increased by 27% compared to the first quarter of 2023, according…

JP Morgan is losing two multibillion-dollar teams bought by the firm in its acquisition of First Republic after last year's regional banking crisis. Merrill Lynch is recruiting a 12-person team in Florida from JP Morgan Wealth Management that manages $3.5 billion in client assets, while Citizens Bank announced it was acquiring a similarly-sized team with…

A former registered representative faces up to 20 years in prison for defrauding the families of dead servicemen by persuading them to invest in firms he worked for while earning more than $1 million in kickbacks in the process. New Jersey-based agent Caz Craffy pleaded guilty in federal court this week to six counts of…

SEC examiners continue to find violations of its amended marketing rule, including advisers falsely claiming to be “free from all conflicts,” according to a new risk alert. Warning of danger posted by the Commission's Examinations Division this week is the third related to the marketing rule and the second since firms were required to comply…

Large transfer of wealth, during which baby boomers are projected to pass trillions to their heirs has been a hot topic for some time now, but will finally come to fruition over the next few decades. According to Cerulli Associates, between now and 2045, Generation X and millennials will inherit $84 trillion. Consequently, many are…

I am one of the founding partners of the organization, which we started in 1999. I have worked my way up and performed every role in the firm over the years. I have worked with clients as a consultant. I still work with some of our top tier clients. Now I'm acting as president, working…

The financial services industry is outraged by Fidelity's recent decision to impose an annual fee on ETF issuers or charge investors a $100 service fee for buying shares of some of the ETFs on its platform. However, industry sources say the ruling is unlikely to change if RIAs are working with the custodian. Earlier this…

About four dozen new ETFs were launched in March. Most are based on stocks with a small portion of bonds or other types of assets. Source link

The popularity of direct indexing has rose up, with assets invested in direct indexes exceeding $260 billion at the end of 2022. This approach, which involves investing in the individual securities that make up an index rather than the index fund itself, offers a unique combination of benefits. Not only is it intended to allow…

Mariner Wealth Advisors is still waging legal battles on several fronts, with numerous cases pending in federal and state court. In one, Edelman Financial Engines is trying to stop Mariner's efforts to dismiss the case, arguing that the firm “has created a business model that drives away the investment and success of its competitors.” Connected:…