After strong gains in revenue, client growth and AUM over the last six months of 2017, RIAs say they’re feeling confident about the economic outlook and plan to capitalize on recent growth, according to a survey from TD Ameritrade Institutional.  Nearly nine out of 10 RIAs surveyed netted new client assets in the past six months and almost half expect AUM to grow at an even faster rate in 2018.  They also r ...

Firms largely ban texting, even for logistical purposes, amid guidance from FINRA that all business communications must be “retained, retrievable, and supervised.”  Securities America this week became the first of the top 10 largest IBDs to announce a program allowing its advisors to text clients. To read the full article in FinancialPlanning, click: IBDs in Slow-Footed Race to Let Advisors Text Clients. ...

Want to be an industry leader in AUM growth rate?  Start consolidating—but also be prepared for hurdles ahead.  Major acquirers and a platform provider of services for a large number of advisory firms sharply outperformed the five-year compound annual AUM growth rate of 11.7% for all RIAs, according to a new report by Cerulli Associates. To read the full article in FinancialPlanning, click: How to Achieve E ...

Help Clients Plan for the New Pass-Through Tax Deduction The new tax law includes a 20% deduction for some pass-through business income, but the specifics will vary depending on a client's circumstances.  The rules are fairly straightforward for clients with taxable income under certain thresholds: $157,500 for individuals and $315,000 for joint filers. To read the full article in ThinkAdvisor, click: The N ...

Now that the status quo of tax planning has been upended by the passage of the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act of 2017, wills, trusts, and portfolios are all due for a once-over and advisors are bracing to make sense of some of the most sweeping tax changes in decades. To read the full article in FinancialPlanning, click: Avoid “Dangerous” Planning Generalizations After New Tax Law. ...

Tax Overhaul Directly, Indirectly Affects Life Insurance Planning The recent overhaul of U.S. tax law will affect life insurance planning directly through changes to reporting requirements and tax-basis calculations for contracts.  Indirect effects include the likelihood that many clients will no longer need life insurance to pay the federal estate tax, for which the exemption has doubled. To read the full ...

As the learning capability of machines continues to improve, advisors are increasingly finding themselves outmaneuvered by robots.  These digital advisors are particularly appealing to millennials, who now represent close to half of the U.S. online banking population.  To that end, there is a technological gap as well as a demographic vulnerability that advisors are facing, especially as they help consumers ...

Many Americans have not saved a sufficient amount to retire comfortably.  Financial advisors can help their clients determine not only when to retire, but also if they should consider working at least part time in their early years in retirement.  Here are a few questions to ask to jumpstart the retirement planning process with clients. To read the full article in FinancialPlanning, click: Is Your Client Re ...

Financial advisors, more accustomed to fielding questions about fees or the stock market outlook from prospective clients, should get ready to also answer queries about best interest or suitability standards.  This is, if state regulators and AARP have anything to say about it. To read the full article in FinancialPlanning, click: AARP Wants Prospective Clients to put Advisors on the Record. ...

The Retiree's Cost of Care Barometer is an Excel planning tool designed to help you measure retiree health care costs and deliver funding solutions and planning advice tailored to your clients' needs.  This tool, developed by James A. Shambo, CPA/PFS (retired), will help you unveil the mystery of health care costs. To read the full article in AICPA, click: The Retiree’s Cost of Care Barometer. ...

Illiquid assets may constitute a sizeable chunk of the assets owned by ultra-high-net-worth clients, who often have different needs than other clients in areas such as data aggregation.  In many cases, these clients are especially focused on cash flow and philanthropic issues. To read the full article in FinancialPlanning, click: Managing the Unique Needs of Ultra-High-Net-Worth Clients. ...

Since enacting the Securities Exchange Act in 1934, Congress has repeatedly expanded the arsenal of the SEC to protect investors through enforcement actions.  As a result, the SEC has steadily increased the number of enforcement actions.  The author's analysis of 1,563 accounting and auditing enforcement cases from 2008 to 2014 shows the most frequent securities law violations adjudicated by the SEC, the pe ...

With the fiduciary rule in question, a prominent industry association is calling on the SEC to issue guidance on the use of the term "advisor" when offering advice to retail investors.  The CFA Institute has drafted a letter asking the SEC to take steps–ahead of the full regulatory initiative it is contemplating–to clarify the way financial pros describe themselves and their services. To read the full artic ...

I have a number of elderly clients.  It’s difficult for them to come in and sign documents, and if I overnight it to them, they often come back signed in the wrong place or otherwise incorrectly filled out.  To make life easier for my clients I’ve had them sign blank forms, and then I’ll fill them in as needed.  I’ve never used those forms improperly, but I’ve heard that if my firm finds out I can be in big ...

Financial advisors face a slew of new regulatory issues in 2018, and when it comes to compliance, they are “better off changing the oil regularly than waiting for the engine to blow up.”  That vivid warning comes from Todd Cipperman, founder of Cipperman Compliance Services, a consulting firm specializing in regulatory compliance.  To find out what to expect next year according to Cipperman, as well as Bao ...

The implementation effort surrounding FASB’s new revenue recognition standard is nearing an end for many companies; the deadline for compliance for public companies is the beginning of 2018.  Despite the years of preparation, certain aspects of compliance, particularly the complex disclosure requirements, are being left to the final hours.  Some companies are playing catch-up, scrambling to have their discl ...

The dominoes keep falling—allegations of sexual harassment are rampant.  Who is next?  The wounds are open, and it is time to start healing.  Before we can do that, though, we have to wonder why we have not seen more reports out of the wealth management industry recently.  In part, I believe it is because our male-heavy finance culture went through a slew of sexual harassment cases in the 90’s, including th ...

Wealth management firms of all sizes are trying to streamline their operations to benefit clients, and mobile is a prime example, according to the recent Financial Planning Tech Survey.  Forty percent of respondents cited mobile apps as a potential difference maker for the industry.  This article will cite which technologies offer the most promise to advisors, and which could fall by the wayside. To read th ...

Members of the accounting profession are being challenged to gain a deep understanding of how ledger technology and digital currencies work.  As the use cases for blockchain multiply, accountants and auditors need to consider how the existing accounting and auditing rules relate to distributed ledger technology. To read the full article in the Journal of Accountancy, click: Blockchain Considerations for Man ...

A financial planner who admitted to defrauding his client out of nearly $1 million through a signature-forging scheme received a prison sentence of four-and-a-half years.  William P. Carlson Jr. pleaded guilty to mail fraud in the U.S. District Court in Chicago and agreed to pay restitution of $911,000 in connection with the five-year scam. To read the full article in FinancialPlanning, click: Advisor Gets ...