NEW YORK — As long as the stock market keeps rising, and baby boomers keep getting older, variable annuity sales should continue to be robust, industry observers say.
By now, the merits of asset and stock diversification in a retirement portfolio are well established, but what about tax diversification?
Congressional members on both sides of the aisle are looking at using the alternative minimum tax debate to lead the way to a plan for tax simplification.
LOS ANGELES — Securities and Exchange Commission Chairman Christopher Cox is on a mission to wipe out the legalese in corporate-disclosure documents.
The financial planning world has been focusing too heavily on the act of accumulating assets, according to an academic speaking at the InvestmentNews Retirement Summit in New York this afternoon.
Initial reactions to the proposed changes to the ethical standards for certified financial planners have been favorable, but the other shoe could drop this week.
Advisers who start their own practices after leaving larger firms often find that their biggest obstacle is obtaining affordable health insurance for themselves and their families, observers say.
Nobody ever accused companies that push annuities on older Americans of being subtle.
NEW YORK — IBM Corp.’s announcement that it will offer financial planning services to all 127,000 of its U.S. employees is the biggest sign yet that companies are increasingly interested in providing workers with more individual — and effective — counseling on financial topics.
Some insurers are taking away their advisers’ group health insurance and other employment benefits if proprietary-product quotas aren’t met, advisers say.
The growth of the financial planning profession overseas is in the fast lane, though there are some speed bumps, observers say.
A life insurer known mainly for its fixed annuities has thrown its hat into the variable annuity ring.
Advisers are using creative techniques to work within the dense tax code to help their clients reduce their tax payments.
WASHINGTON — The ideas of limiting 401(k) plan options to index funds and requiring all plan administrators to be brought under fiduciary duties were in focus last week at a congressional hearing on 401(k) fees.
John Hancock led the industry with $735 million in individual life insurance sales last year, according to a recent survey of 78 major life insurers by LIMRA International Inc.
Many insurers are providing incentives to their advisers to sell proprietary products, despite claiming to have “open architecture” platforms, according to industry observers.
With a House panel scheduled to hold a hearing Tuesday to discuss whether the hidden fees in 401(k) plans are fair, at least one industry watcher is calling such fees too low and another says making general judgments about them is difficult.
NEW YORK — Advisers with clients who need life insurance for tax minimization and wealth transfer may want to consider a new policy geared to that market.
CHICAGO — Socially conscious and faith-based investing is gaining traction in the retirement plan arena.
Add class action litigation to the regulatory controversies, bad press and other woes plaguing insurers that sell equity index annuities.
