Welcomes Bernie Clark with open arms

I read the article “Schwab hands Bernie Clark reins to RIA business,” which appeared in the Feb. 8…

I read the article “Schwab hands Bernie Clark reins to RIA business,” which appeared in the Feb. 8 issue.

In response to the sentence “Advisers’ initial reaction to the move was muted,” I am not muted in my response.

I am very happy to have Bernie Clark leading the ship. He has always listened, and I look forward to his leadership.

Dick Bellmer

Partner

Deerfield Financial Advisors Inc.

Indianapolis

I completely agree with the Investment Insights column about performance fees’ catching on (“Financial advisers should embrace performance-based fees,” Feb. 15).

The industry doesn’t like the idea, but like it or not, that is what the public wants. Customers want to pay for results, not attendance.

Jeffrey A. Dunham

Chief executive

Dunham and Associates

Investment Counsel Inc.

San Diego

We read with interest the article in the Feb. 1 issue “Groups retrench on defining planners.”

The Financial Planning Coalition, which represents more than 75,000 financial planners across the country, takes issue with the view that we have “given up [our] effort to get Congress to establish a definition for financial planning.”

On the contrary, we would like to make clear that we continue to proactively pursue our legislative goals. We remain dedicated to the cause of establishing across-the-board standards for those who hold themselves out to be financial planners.

We are hopeful that the upcoming financial-regulatory-reform package will contain provisions that create a financial planning oversight board that would establish and enforce competency and ethical standards for all who claim to be planners.

It is time to ensure widespread accountability and transparency for consumers who seek financial advice.

William T. Baldwin

Chairman

National Association

of Personal Financial Advisors

Arlington Heights, Ill.

Robert Glovsky

Chairman

Certified financial planner

Board of Standards Inc.

Washington

Tom L. Potts

President

Financial Planning Association

Denver

I enjoyed the article “Advisers go it alone on personal finances,” which appeared in the Feb. 8 issue.

In 2008, my wife and I hired another fee-only adviser and went through a comprehensive-planning process. It was great.

We now feel like if something should happen to me, my wife has a female adviser that she likes and can work with. I feel like things I knew well were reinforced, and I learned things in areas I knew less about.

Please keep pushing our peers to consult outside advisers. It will help their businesses and family life.

Greg Garvan

Founder and president

Money with a Mission

Charleston, S.C., and Ithaca, N.Y.

Investment adviser representative

First Affirmative

Financial Network LLC

Colorado Springs, Colo.