Trader Talk

The vexing question of how much to raise taxes or cut benefits to preserve Social Security is moving into a perplexing new phase. President Trump’s suggestion of eliminating payroll taxes that fund benefits would end the program entirely if carried out in legislation, according to the Social Security Administration. Earlier this month, Trump deferred payment
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The ongoing economic impact of COVID-19 has resulted in historic unemployment and financial losses to individuals across the United States — with the pain disproportionately born by Black and Hispanic Americans. CFP professionals are in a unique position to help those Americans. But first, our organization must fully realize our vision of building diverse, equitable
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The SEC is loosening rules on private market access, expanding who can invest in a sector that has been criticized over lack of transparency. Under the new order, SEC or state-registered advisors and certain brokerage license-holders, among other individuals and institutions, can now be considered accredited investors, giving them access to investments that include private
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LPL Financial is warning advisory clients that they could be paying higher expenses on their mutual funds, even if there’s no transaction charge. This and other disclosures follow similar ones by wealth managers in response to the SEC’s Regulation Best Interest, which bulked up regulatory requirements. Making sense of new details about fees can be
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A former Merrill Lynch team that managed $400 million in client assets is going independent with the help of tru Independence, an open architecture RIA platform, according to the firm. The group, led by Blaine Werner, is known as 44 Wealth Management, representing the 44 years it has been servicing clients. Werner built his 43-year
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As markets continue to experience the repercussions of the coronavirus pandemic, some clients are watching their long-term investments even closer than usual. And while outperformance is still more than attainable from their holdings in mutual funds, there is one caveat: Actively managed returns come at a price. The 20 mutual funds with the biggest 10-year
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The Department of Labor wants to adjust the rules regarding ESG in retirement plans. Financial advisors want none of it. Of 46 advisors who gave feedback to the department during its comment period ending July 30, all but two expressed opposition to the proposal. That mirrors widespread criticism leveled against the Labor Department among the
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Sanctuary Wealth signed an ex-Merrill Lynch team that managed $530 million in client assets, according to the firm. The Longo Group is Sanctuary’s first partner firm based in New Orleans, and is led by advisor Ted Longo. He built his 34-year career at Merrill Lynch, according to FINRA BrokerCheck records. He also opened Merrill’s office
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The world’s biggest ETF tracking oil is facing U.S. regulatory action after it took a series of extreme steps to survive the historic crude selloff earlier this year. The SEC has issued the United States Oil Fund ETF (USO) with a Wells notice about the intended measures, according to a filing on Wednesday. The fund
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A multitrillion-dollar beast is prowling Wall Street, making huge market moves that few can see coming — and it’s getting bigger. Known as model portfolio investing, it’s a booming corner of money management in which the likes of BlackRock, Vanguard and Charles Schwab bundle funds into ready-made strategies. It has been around for years, but
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This year’s election will be particularly consequential for advisors and their clients. Financial regulation — fiduciary rules in particular — could rebound in 2021. Tax rates will likely change, again. Social Security’s fate is up in the air. It’s a lot to take into account, even before considering other matters up for grabs, such as
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The IRS and the Treasury Department plan to send interest payments averaging $18 to approximately 13.9 million individual taxpayers who filed their 2019 federal income tax returns on time and are receiving tax refunds. The interest payments will go out to individual taxpayers who filed a 2019 return by this year’s July 15 deadline and
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When entrepreneurial clients approach advisors for help with company decisions like finding the best 401(k) plan for employees, they’re met with shrugs, blank stares or referrals to other experts. Betterment’s new offering for advisors is designed to solve that problem. The firm is bringing 401(k) functionality from its Betterment for Business platform over to its
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