Advisory M&A News – 4/1/2026
Plancorp adds $1B in first major acquisition; Five Star Wealth joins LPL Financial; Creative Planning grows internationally with Maseco acquisition;...
News
Gen X Retirement Anxiety Soars as Income Needs Persist
Pre-retirees show heightened anxiety related to retirement readiness, with 28% of older respondents sharing concerns about outliving savings.
Entering the Era of Hyper-Personalization
Artificial intelligence is turning the advisory goal of scalable, individualized financial planning into a reality.
Plan Management, by the Numbers
Nearly one-quarter of surveyed plan sponsors last renegotiated fees with their current adviser more than 5 years ago.
Modern Succession Planning: Less Transactional, More Emotional IQ
As advisory firms increasingly invest in artificial intelligence, experts say the next generation of leaders will have to remain human-centered.
DOL Proposed Alts Rule Could Fuel Future ERISA Cases
The Department of Labor may help fiduciaries with its scenarios and test cases on including alternative investments in defined contribution plans,...
Financial Professionals Increasingly Use Automation, In-Person Engagement for Client Growth
About 61% of financial professionals ranked acquiring new clients as their largest source of net assets in the next 12...
Adviser 401(k) Compensation Continues to Decline
The latest ‘401(k) Averages Book’ found all sizes of 401(k) plans had continued fee compression, including reduced adviser payments, investment...
Defaulted Federal Student Loans Now Managed by US Treasury, Education Department
The total student loan portfolio is nearly $1.7 trillion and almost one-quarter of borrowers have defaulted.
Carlyle to Acquire Majority Stake in MAI Capital
The transaction values the registered investment adviser at more than $2.8 billion, and MAI employees will continue to hold a minority equity ownership.
Feelings of Financial Instability Persist Across Generations
Research shows 1 in 5 surveyed consumers said their top financial goal for this year was to cover their monthly...
4 Common Financial Weaknesses Can Undermine Retirement Readiness
A lack of emergency savings was the most common vulnerability of retirement savers, according to a report by Georgetown’s Center...
AI Product & Service Launches – 3/30/2026
Jump launches agent for advisers; Merrill and Bank of America introduce meeting tool; Mangrove Technologies rolls out digital asset ecosystem;...
DOL Releases ‘Safe Harbor’ Regulation for Alts in DC Plans
The much-anticipated safe harbor aims to reduce ‘regulatory burdens and litigation risk’ for the inclusion of private assets in defined...
January, February Active Months for RIA M&A
Merger-and-acquisition activity is keeping pace with the last couple years, but buyers and sellers are showing they are selective.
Geopolitics Moves From Tail Risk to Market Driver
Energy shocks, policy intervention and great power competition are driving persistent volatility.
Retirement Industry People Moves – 3/27/2026
Finseca elects Prudential’s Moira Buckley as secretary, future board chair; GW&K names 3 new partners; Voya hires Bill Whittington to...
US Retirement Assets Rose 11% in 2025, per ICI
Nearly 40% of US retirement assets last year were in individual retirement accounts.
How Retirement Fiduciaries Can Help Health Plan Fiduciaries
Advisers’ deep knowledge of the fiduciary process can aid employers making sense of new disclosures from pharmacy benefit managers.
Schwab Finds Teens Eager to Invest Amid Calls for More Economic Education
According to a recent survey by Charles Schwab, 70% of responding teenagers expressed interest in investing.