Want to make your clients happy? Invest some time, says PriceWaterhouseCoopers’ (PwC) latest Global Private Banking and Wealth Management Survey. Explaining recent spates of poor asset performance — in terms clients can truly understand — takes a great deal of face or phone time, the study notes. That’s a significant problem, since some firms have […]
Last week, the U.K.’s Financial Services Authority (FSA) issued rules that essentially codify a fee model for British investment advisors (IAs) and ban collection of commissions by IAs. The rules will take effect in 2012. The FSA’s principles-based regulatory regime was savaged by investors, government officials and the media following its failure to catch or […]
The planning of this issue started with a series of conversations with fee advisors. All those chats circled back to a common theme: Times like these show the advantages of not having to earn commissions. That’s no dig at those who do opt for a commission structure. This business is all about choice, starting with […]
If Canada is serious about doing away with its regulatory patchwork and moving toward common enforcement of securities violations, it can take cues from Quebec, according to presenters at a Capital Markets Institute forum in Toronto. Stéphane Rousseau, who chairs the University of Montreal’s Centre for the Law of Business and International Trade, noted a […]
Confidence is not high. So say the majority of critical thinkers handicapping the expected results of stress tests being performed on the largest U.S. banks. The results are scheduled for release on May 7 — provided they’re not delayed a second time. Needham, Massachusetts-based think tank Tower Group expressed concerns about the test methodology, saying […]
Paper is bad. That was the simple message insurance product distributors sent to carriers at today’s annual CLIEDIS general meeting. The association is dedicated to the development of a viable electronic data exchange between insurance carriers and distributors. “Our management system has been able to give you all this data for years. You just won’t […]
The Canadian economy continues to struggle, the return to growth will be delayed by one quarter — until the end of 2009 — and recovery will be more gradual, Bank of Canada Governor Mark Carney told the House of Commons Standing Committee on Finance on Tuesday. “Our projection is similar to our projection in January,” […]
A proposed rule change and guidance note published April 17 by the Investments Industry Regulatory Organization of Canada would amend existing requirements by mandating yield disclosure for fixed income securities, including bonds, on OTC markets. If approved, the rules would require dealers to include disclosures on confirmations sent to retail clients if the firm’s remuneration […]
I recently got a statement from the U.S. Social Security Administration that outlines the retirement benefits I’ll receive in about 20 years. I get this statement annually, glance at the bottom line, and normally toss it into a folder for future reference. But this year, I took a trip down memory lane and had a […]
Sometimes, you have to set an example; display some solidarity; share the pain. Which is why it was gratifying to see many high-level Canadian financial services executives recently forgo their bonuses or other compensation, and do so publicly. Naturally, the cynic in me sees it as a publicity stunt. But, even still, it was the […]