Registered investment advisers, including dual registrant broker-dealers (collectively “advisers”) who provide discretionary investment management services to individual retirement accounts (IRAs), are fiduciaries under the...more
1/17/2023
/ Broker-Dealer ,
Conflicts of Interest ,
Fees ,
Fiduciary Duty ,
Individual Retirement Account (IRA) ,
Internal Revenue Code (IRC) ,
Investment Adviser ,
Investment Management ,
IRS ,
Retirement Plan ,
Standard of Care
There appear to be conflicting views of whether an investment adviser’s duty of care can be satisfied by disclosures that satisfy the duty of loyalty. That is, if an adviser discloses the receipt of additional compensation...more
9/27/2022
/ Best Interest Standard ,
Department of Labor (DOL) ,
Duty of Loyalty ,
Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA) ,
Fiduciary Duty ,
Investment ,
Investment Adviser ,
Prohibited Transactions ,
PTEs ,
Retirement Plan ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Standard of Care ,
Standard of Conduct
The DOL expanded its interpretation of fiduciary advice in the Preamble to PTE 2020-02 and as a result, many more broker-dealers and their registered representatives (investment professionals) are fiduciaries for their...more
9/13/2022
/ Broker-Dealer ,
Department of Labor (DOL) ,
Employee Benefits ,
Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA) ,
Fiduciary ,
Fiduciary Rule ,
Investment ,
IRA Rollovers ,
Prohibited Transactions ,
PTEs ,
Registered Investment Advisors ,
Self-Correction Programs ,
Standard of Care
The DOL’s expanded definition of fiduciary advice is described in the preamble to PTE 2020-02. When conflicted fiduciary advice is given to retirement investors (that is, retirement plans, participants (including rollovers),...more
The Department of Labor’s “Fiduciary Rule,” PTE 2020-02: The FAQs -
Key Takeaways -
▪️ The DOL has issued FAQs that generally explain PTE 2020-02 and the expanded definition of fiduciary advice.
▪️ In FAQ 18, the...more
2/3/2022
/ Best Interest Standard ,
Broker-Dealer ,
Department of Labor (DOL) ,
Fiduciary Duty ,
Financial Institutions ,
Insurance Industry ,
Investment Adviser ,
Prohibited Transactions ,
PTE 84-24 ,
PTEs ,
Standard of Care
The DOL’s prohibited transaction exemption (PTE) 2020-02 (Improving Investment Advice for Workers & Retirees) allows investment advisers, broker-dealers, banks, and insurance companies (“financial institutions”), and their...more
The Department of Labor’s “Fiduciary Rule,” PTE 2020-02: The FAQs -
This series focuses on the DOL’s new fiduciary “rule”, which was effective on February 16. This, and the next several, articles look at the Frequently...more
6/22/2021
/ Best Interest Standard ,
Broker-Dealer ,
Department of Labor (DOL) ,
Fiduciary Duty ,
Investment Adviser ,
Investment Management ,
Prohibited Transactions ,
PTEs ,
Regulation Best Interest ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Standard of Care ,
Standard of Conduct
On February 16, 2021, the DOL’s prohibited transaction exemption (PTE) 2020-02 became effective. The PTE is titled “Improving Investment Advice for Workers & Retirees.” It allows investment advisers, broker-dealers, banks,...more
4/14/2021
/ Broker-Dealer ,
Burden of Proof ,
Business Conduct Standards ,
Compliance ,
Department of Labor (DOL) ,
Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA) ,
Financial Institutions ,
Individual Retirement Account (IRA) ,
Insurance Industry ,
Investment Adviser ,
IRS ,
Retirement Plan ,
Standard of Care
Regulation Best Interest: Best Interest and Suitability-How They Differ (Part 1)-
Regulation Best Interest (Reg BI) imposes a “best interest” standard of care on broker-dealers for their recommendations of securities and...more
Regulation Best Interest, RIA Interpretation and Consideration of “Account Types” (Part 4) -
The SEC has issued its final Regulation Best Interest (Reg BI), Form CRS Rule, RIA Interpretation and Solely Incidental...more
Regulation Best Interest: Recommendations of Account Types (Part 2) -
The SEC has issued its final Regulation Best Interest (Reg BI), Form CRS Rule, RIA Interpretation and Solely Incidental Interpretation. I am discussing...more
Regulation Best Interest: Rollover Recommendations and Form CRS/ADV Part 3 Disclosures (Rollovers Part 6) -
The SEC has issued its final Regulation Best Interest (Reg BI), Form CRS Rule, RIA Interpretation and Solely...more
12/11/2019
/ Best Interest Standard ,
Broker-Dealer ,
Disclosure Requirements ,
Fiduciary Duty ,
Final Rules ,
Form ADV ,
Form CRS ,
Investment Adviser ,
Investment Management ,
New Rules ,
Regulation Best Interest ,
Retail Investors ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Securities Regulation ,
Standard of Care ,
Standard of Conduct
Regulation Best Interest: Rollover Recommendations for Investment Advisers (Rollovers Part 5) -
The SEC has issued its final Regulation Best Interest (Reg BI), Form CRS Rule, RIA Interpretation and Solely Incidental...more
Regulation Best Interest: Education vs. Recommendation (Part 1) -
The SEC has issued its final Regulation Best Interest (Reg BI), Form CRS Regulation, RIA Interpretation and Solely Incidental Interpretation. I am...more
The SEC has issued its final Regulation Best Interest (Reg BI), Form CRS Rule, RIA Interpretation and Solely Incidental Interpretation. I am discussing the SEC’s guidance in a series of articles entitled “Best Interest...more
10/30/2019
/ 401k ,
Broker-Dealer ,
Department of Labor (DOL) ,
Disclosure Requirements ,
Financial Services Industry ,
Investment Adviser ,
IRA Rollovers ,
Regulation Best Interest ,
Retirement Plan ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Standard of Care
Regulation Best Interest:
The SEC has issued its final Regulation Best Interest (Reg BI), Form CRS Regulation, RIA Interpretation and Solely Incidental Interpretation. I am discussing the SEC’s guidance in a series of...more
10/17/2019
/ Best Interest Standard ,
Broker-Dealer ,
Disclosure Requirements ,
Fiduciary Duty ,
Final Rules ,
Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) ,
Form CRS ,
Investment Adviser ,
Investment Advisers Act of 1940 ,
Investment Management ,
New Rules ,
Regulation Best Interest ,
Retail Investors ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Securities Regulation ,
Standard of Care ,
Standard of Conduct
Regulation Best Interest: An Overview of the Changes.
The SEC has issued its final Regulation Best Interest (Reg BI), Form CRS Regulation, RIA Interpretation and Solely Incidental Interpretation. I am discussing the SEC’s...more
10/4/2019
/ Best Interest Standard ,
Broker-Dealer ,
Final Rules ,
Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) ,
Form CRS ,
Investment Adviser ,
Investment Management ,
Regulation Best Interest ,
Retail Investors ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Securities Regulation ,
Standard of Care
Regulation Best Interest: An Overview of the Requirements -
The SEC has issued its final Regulation Best Interest (Reg BI), Form CRS Regulation, RIA Interpretation and Solely Incidental Interpretation. I am discussing the...more
9/26/2019
/ Best Interest Standard ,
Broker-Dealer ,
Conflicts of Interest ,
Disclosure Requirements ,
Duty of Care ,
Investment Adviser ,
Investment Management ,
Investors ,
Policies and Procedures ,
Regulation Best Interest ,
Regulatory Requirements ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Standard of Care
Regulation Best Interest: The Focus on Costs (Part 2) -
The SEC has issued its final Regulation Best Interest (Reg BI), Form CRS Regulation, RIA Interpretation and Solely Incidental Interpretation. I am discussing the...more
9/18/2019
/ Best Interest Standard ,
Broker-Dealer ,
Disclosure Requirements ,
Fiduciary Duty ,
Final Rules ,
Form CRS ,
Investment Adviser ,
Investment Management ,
New Rules ,
Regulation Best Interest ,
Retail Investors ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Securities Regulation ,
Standard of Care ,
Standard of Conduct
On June 5, 2019, the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) approved the Regulation Best Interest Final Package, the new disclosure requirements that accompany the financial services industry’s new Regulation Best Interest...more
8/20/2019
/ Broker-Dealer ,
Disclosure Requirements ,
EDGAR ,
Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) ,
Financial Services Industry ,
Form CRS ,
New Rules ,
Regulation Best Interest ,
Retail Investors ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Securities Transactions ,
Standard of Care ,
Standard of Conduct
I am writing two series of articles that together are called “The Bests.” One is about Best Practices for plan sponsors, while the other is about the Best Interest Standard of Care for advisors. Each series is numbered...more
5/29/2019
/ Best Interest Standard ,
Best Practices ,
Client Services ,
Elder Issues ,
Investment Adviser ,
Policies and Procedures ,
Regulatory Oversight ,
Regulatory Requirements ,
Risk Management ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Senior Investors ,
Standard of Care