With the market for listed real estate investment trusts at historic lows, financial advisors may want to dust off the real estate allocation in clients’ portfolios and begin to expand that position. That’s according to Rich Hill, senior vice president and head of real estate strategy and research at...
Replacing the stick with a carrot will be a welcome change for many Merrill Lynch advisors, a prominent industry recruiter said, but the bank’s decision to change its compensation structure drew a mixed response from other experts. On Tuesday, Merrill Lynch Wealth Management announced it was ending two contentious policies...
For the past several decades, platforms for advisors have differentiated themselves by the quality of their technology. The focus on tech was an evolution for the platforms, which originally distinguished themselves by the quality of their proprietary products, the primary way brokerage firms and insurance companies attracted advisors in...
Some of the SEC rule proposals generating the most withering criticism are among those that would have the biggest impact on financial advisors. But the widespread opposition won’t necessarily influence the SEC to revise them substantially before they become final regulations. Financial industry trade associations, bipartisan lawmakers on Capitol Hill...
Affluent investors have been pouring money into separately managed accounts and turning slightly away from mutual funds, a new consumer research report shows. As of 2022, 22% of U.S. households that invest had SMAs, up from 13% in 2020, according to data published Thursday by Hearts & Wallets. Meanwhile, mutual...
Morgan Stanley has made its decision on who should succeed the man who helped the firm recover from the turmoil of the financial crisis and grow into wealth management titan. Current CEO James Gorman announced his decision to step down after 13 years in charge back in May, telling the...
LPL Financial is empowering its advisors to retain tax planning business in-house rather than referring clients to external services – and to leverage an outsourced CFO in their business. The firm’s newest Tax Planning Service links advisors with LPL’s tax planning specialists to enable them to identify clients who would...
Sam Bankman-Fried’s testimony in a New York courtroom Thursday will be the latest must-see moment in the high-profile fraud trial over the collapse of his FTX crypto exchange. The 31-year-old Bankman-Fried’s decision to take the stand was questioned by defense lawyers, but may be his only chance to win over...
Paying for health care is increasingly straining US adults as escalating medical costs converge with rising prices throughout the economy. More than half of working-age Americans said they had difficulty paying for health care in 2023, according to a Commonwealth Fund survey published Thursday. Among people without insurance, more than...
Bitcoin has jumped on bets that the first US exchange-traded funds investing directly in the token are set to be approved. The question now is whether an actual green light for the products would spur some profit-taking. The largest digital asset is up 16% this week and at one point...