Happy Friday, readers! As luck would have it, the third weekend newsletter of every month focuses on the topic of Client Service. The subject was certainly top of mind for many in the retirement plan advisory industry this week, after the SEC moved on Wednesday to propose a broad new set of conflict of interest regulations and disclosure requirements. The SEC proposals were put forward directly on the heels of a major setback for the DOL fiduciary rule expansion in the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals. Below you will find various articles and research reports offering key context for understanding the regulatory whirlwind. We hope you will share some of what you read with a client or colleague!
The release of a thousand-page “best interest” rulemaking package by the SEC applying to all brokers and investment advisers is being hailed as a victory by some and a deep disappointment by others; either way, it’s the start of another long chapter in the epic industry battle over federal conflict of interest regulations.
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It will take time for the fully detailed picture to emerge, but the SEC voted late Wednesday to propose new conflict of interest standards for how broker/dealers and financial advisers label themselves and sell products under various fee structures to retail clients.
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With so much uncertainty now overhanging the future of the DOL fiduciary rule expansion, the onus is squarely on advisers, broker/dealers and recordkeepers to decide how they will respond; we hear from one small advisory firm in Northern Ohio that will carry on with business as usual.
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The latest decision out of the Fifth U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals throws a dramatic new element of confusion into the epic regulatory saga that has been the rollout of the Department of Labor fiduciary rule.
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The Department of Labor (DOL) Employee Benefits Security Administration (EBSA) announced its “Getting It Right – Know Your Fiduciary Responsibilities” seminar will be held in Queens in New York City on May 17.
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A new proposed rule published by the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) would replace FINRA Rules 3270 and 3280 and is, according to FINRA leadership, intended to reduce unnecessary burdens while strengthening investor protections relating to advisers’ outside business activities.
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