This article originally appeared in the Winter 2014 issue of NAPA Net the Magazine. To view a PDF version of this article, CLICK HERE.Game on! DC plan advisors, who have toiled away in relative anonymity within their broker dealers and retail investment managers, now find themselves squarely in the... READ MORE

When NFP bought the remainder of the assets it did not already own in 401(k) Advisors and RPAG last year, it set off a series of events that has resulted in the recent rebranding of 401(k) Advisors and the creation of NFP Retirement.  With more than $30 billion in AUA, they are one of the largest... READ MORE

Only plan advisors know how important their local DC wholesaler can be in growing, building and managing their practice. We call them “DC Wingmen” because if they are doing their job, they have your back. And only you know which Wingmen are really good and truly add value. Our first annual "DC... READ MORE

Cerulli is predicting that TDFs, which seem to dominate DC plans today, will garner as much as 90% of new contributions by 2019. That’s good news for firms with a viable TDF strategy, but potentially devastating news for long-only, active equity managers without TDFs or those still struggling to... READ MORE

A new study by State Street’s Center for Applied Research coins a new term, the “Folklore of Finance,” which tries to explain why most investors don’t achieve their long-term financial goals.  The New York Times wrote about the study and the folklore angle here. In short, investors tend to be... READ MORE

The recent problems at ARCP, a sister company of RCAP that owns multiple BDs (including Cetera), started with the disclosure of accounting errors and resulted in major BD clients and custodians suspending sales of ARCP’s non-traded REIT products. In the wake of all that turmoil, analysts asked RCAP... READ MORE

In an effort to gain more revenue and control over a plan, some advisors have taken to creating their own investments and recommending themselves or charging more as a 3(38) fiduciary. But according to a letter by EBSA’s Phyllis Borzi (subscription required) obtained by The Wall Street Journal,... READ MORE

The two biggest independent BDs were scurrying to overcome errors last week. American Realty Capital’s (ARC) CEO Nicholas Schorch, whose sister company RCAP has gobbled up 12 BDs over the past 18 months, including Cetera, had to explain accounting errors amounting to $23 million to its BD partners... READ MORE

Hot off their acquisition of Financial Telesis in partnership with Bill Chetney, LPL Retirement Partners held its annual event in Arizona the week of Oct. 20. The buzz at the meeting was about the acquisition and who is – and is not – joining Chetney’s new aggregator, Global Retirement Partners. ... READ MORE