Ted Godbout

What’s Driving Record M&A Activity in the RIA Industry?

By Ted Godbout | 3/15/2018

Increases in the number of private equity buyers and the availability of financing, along with market cycle timing and greater motivation to break away, are among the key factors driving record merger and acquisition activity, according to a new report.Echelon Partners’ 2017 RIA M&A Deal Report... READ MORE

FAs Shifting to a More Client-centric Model

By Ted Godbout | 3/14/2018

According to a new report, the fiduciary movement, digital advice and changing consumer demands are among the components driving the shift toward a client-centric model among financial advisers, where the client wants a more collaborative, enhanced level of personalized advice, compared to a world... READ MORE

What’s a Plan Sponsor to Do About Missing Participants?

By Ted Godbout | 3/14/2018

Given the recent attention and lack of formal guidance addressing missing participants for ongoing DC plans, there are increasing calls for the government to formally address how far plan sponsors need to go to find missing participants.Noting that the IRS, Labor Department and PBGC have been... READ MORE

TDFs as a Decumulation Solution?

By Ted Godbout | 3/12/2018

Long utilized in DC plans to help participants save for retirement, target date funds have “untapped potential” to support retirement spending, new survey results suggest.BlackRock’s latest DC Pulse Survey of 1,000 DC plan participants and 228 large DC plan sponsors (at least $300 million in assets... READ MORE

Report Finds DC Plan Performance Catching up to DB Plans

By Ted Godbout | 3/12/2018

While many would argue that comparing the returns of DB and DC plans is not an apples-to-apples analysis, a new report examines the plan performance gains that DC plans have made against DB plans.CEM Benchmarking’s report, “Defined Contribution Plans Have Come a Long Way,” finds that while DB funds... READ MORE

TDF Assets: The Big Got Even Bigger in 2017

By Ted Godbout | 3/8/2018

Fueled by the strong stock market performance in 2017, assets in mutual fund and CIT-based target-date solutions continued to see impressive growth, with passive strategies still gaining market share, while active managers also saw solid growth, according to a new report.Assets in mutual fund and... READ MORE

FINRA Proposal Would Revamp Supervision of Outside Business Activities

By Ted Godbout | 3/7/2018

FINRA is seeking comments on a proposed streamlined rule to address the outside business activities and private securities transactions of registered advisers at member firms in an effort to reduce regulatory confusion and provide better investor protection.The self-governing organization’s Feb. 26... READ MORE

IRS OKs Speeding Up NQDC Distributions to Pay Taxes on Some 457A Deferrals

By Ted Godbout | 3/7/2018

The IRS says it intends to issue regulations permitting the acceleration of payments under a nonqualified deferred compensation (NQDC) plan to pay federal, state, local and foreign income taxes due on taxable pre-2009 Section 457A deferrals.A recent Plan Sponsor Council of America (PSCA) bulletin ... READ MORE

Will We See Any Action on Retirement Legislation This Year?

By Ted Godbout | 3/5/2018

As the dust settles on the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act and attention turns to other legislative initiatives, is there a chance we will see any retirement policy legislation in 2018?In NAPA’s Feb. 27 members-only webinar, “First Quarter 2018 CPFA Washington Update,” Doug Fisher, Director of Retirement... READ MORE

Long-Term Care Planning Still Largely Neglected, Advisors Say

By Ted Godbout | 2/28/2018

Even though financial advisors encourage their clients to have a long-term care solution, consumers are not appropriately planning for long-term care and significantly underestimate potential costs, according to survey results by Lincoln Financial Group.The results are based on two online surveys ... READ MORE

HSA Savers on the Rise, But Most Not Maximizing Contributions

By Ted Godbout | 2/27/2018

While the majority of HSA account holders are spenders, a new report indicates a potential shift in the saver/spender trend, as more employees express concern with health care costs in retirement.ConnectYourCare’s 2018 report — “CDH Account Trends: Tax-Advantaged Account Usage, Outlook and... READ MORE

Institutional Investors Turn to Alts, ESG and Risk Management as Volatility Looms

By Ted Godbout | 2/27/2018

While still making the most of what they can in today’s market, institutional investors have been bracing for the impact of renewed market volatility, taking steps to diversify and construct durable portfolios, according to new survey findings.Natixis Investment Managers’ sixth consecutive annual... READ MORE

More 401(k) Plans Adding Automatic and Roth Features, Survey Finds

By Ted Godbout | 2/27/2018

As concerns mount that employees are not saving enough for retirement, U.S. employers are making significant enhancements to their DC plans, according to a new survey by Willis Towers Watson.Based on responses from 349 large and midsize U.S. companies that sponsor a DC plan, the firm’s Defined... READ MORE

Communication, Trust Top Priorities When Targeting Gen X Investors

By Ted Godbout | 2/26/2018

When it comes to building and maintaining a successful advisor/investor relationship, Gen X investors are most likely among the generations to say that trust comes first, according to a new report.And to create a successful customer experience, quality communication is the No. 1 factor for Gen X... READ MORE

Social Media Becoming Financial Achilles’ Heel for Millennials

By Ted Godbout | 2/26/2018

While Millennials do appear to be on their way to being in better financial shape than other generations, they still carry with them a number of bad financial habits, according to a recent study.Allianz’s Generations Ahead study finds that social media has become the Millennials’ “financial... READ MORE

Digital Advice Preferences May Not Be What You Think

By Ted Godbout | 2/23/2018

When assessing the overall opportunities available to digital advice platforms, there appears to be a fairly straightforward inverse relationship between age and interest, but that pattern doesn’t necessarily correlate when combining age and wealth cohorts, new research shows.In a follow-up to its... READ MORE

Equity Compensation Participants Receptive to Financial Wellness Programs

By Ted Godbout | 2/23/2018

Employees who participate in equity compensation plans see the long-term value of the benefit but many don’t fully understand how they work and are afraid of making a mistake when exercising employee stock options or selling shares, a new survey reveals.More than one-third of participants (36%) say... READ MORE

Should Broker-Dealers Become Sole Proprietors to Take Advantage of the TCJA?

By Ted Godbout | 2/21/2018

Inevitably, loopholes arise whenever any major legislation is enacted, whether intentional or unintentional. One possible loophole created by the new pass-through rules under the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (TCJA) could provide significant tax benefits for broker-dealers, according to a new client alert... READ MORE

What Do Consumers Want Most From Financial Services Firms?

By Ted Godbout | 2/20/2018

“Understandability” and fee clarity tied for what consumers want most from their financial services firms, according to Hearts & Wallets’ eighth annual customer satisfaction ratings.Based on more than 5,000 U.S. household ratings of top performers on everything from providing personal financial... READ MORE

How Influential Is Plan Access and Participation on Retirement Planning?

By Ted Godbout | 2/16/2018

Workers who have participated in an employer-sponsored plan are much more likely than those who have never participated to report that they have recently tried to figure out how much retirement income they will need, according to new research.Overall, 41% of those with access and currently... READ MORE

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