Enjoy the current installment of “Weekend Reading For Financial Planners” – this week’s edition kicks off with the news that the SEC is proposing to expand the adviser custody rule beyond securities and funds to cover all assets in a client’s portfolio, including private securities, real estate, derivatives, and cryptoassets. Further, an investment adviser who can make trades on behalf of a client would be deemed to have custody of the client’s assets, which could substantively shift a very sizable portion of the wealth management RIA community under the custody rule, though it remains to be seen whether or what exact custody rule compliance requirements would be introduced for advisers who have custody through discretion but are still otherwise using third-party qualified custodians.
Also in industry news this week:
- A court ruling this week vacated Department of Labor guidance that a one-time rollover recommendation from a company plan to an IRA would trigger fiduciary duty requirements under ERISA
- Vanguard’s CEO this week indicated the firm plans to invest heavily in direct indexing amid the growing use cases for the strategy
From there, we have several articles on practice management:
- The tactics the most successful RIAs are using to attract and retain talent in the current tight labor market
- The practice management techniques that can help firms improve their long-term health rather than just short-term profits
- Recent advisor surveys suggest that while AUM remains the most commonly used advisor fee structure, an increasing number of firms are offering more than one fee model
We also have a number of articles on retirement planning:
- Survey data indicates that retirees are willing to be flexible with their spending, creating implications for retirement income planning
- How advisors can add value for clients by helping them make better Medicare decisions
- Why an advisor decided to buy an indexed universal life insurance policy for himself
We wrap up with three final articles, all about daily living:
- Why practicing gratitude can help one from overlooking some of the key influences of a happy life
- At a time when optimizing every minute of the day is in vogue, why focusing on just having “one good day” can be a more successful path
- How advisors can help clients avoid falling into a “deferred life plan” and make the most of their lives today
Enjoy the ‘light’ reading!
