Wealth Management
JPMorgan Asset Management recently announced that it plans to convert four of its mutual funds into ETFs, pending fund board approval. This includes three municipal mutual funds. The firm plans to switch all share classes of the Limited Duration Bond, High Yield Municipal, Sustainable Municipal Income, and Equity Focus fund. If approved at a meeting scheduled for February, the funds will be converted to actively managed transparent ETFs in July. The JPMorgan Limited Duration Bond fund invests mainly in mortgage-backed or mortgage-related securities that it believes will perform well over market cycles. The JPMorgan High Yield Municipal fund is designed to deliver a high level of current income exempt from federal income taxes. The JPMorgan Sustainable Municipal Income fund is designed to deliver current income exempt from federal income taxes by investing in municipal bonds with the use of proceeds that provide positive social or environmental benefits. According to the firm's announcement, the new ETFs will mainly have the same investment strategies as the mutual funds. JPMorgan was one of the first companies to convert active mutual funds into ETFs with the Inflation Managed Bond ETF conversion taking place in April.
Finsum:JPMorgan announced that it plans to convert three active municipal bond funds into actively managed transparent ETFs in July.
The SEC brought its first enforcement action this year for alleged violations of Reg BI, which requires that broker-dealers act in the best interest of their clients. The action came almost two years after Reg BI took effect. There are signs that there will be more Reg BI enforcement this year as the agency has issued subpoenas to dozens of broker-dealers. Toby Galloway, chair of the securities litigation and enforcement practice at Winstead PC stated, “They’ve got this rule that hasn’t been enforced a whole lot just yet. But they’re going to use it.” Reg BI isn’t the only enforcement action expected to take place this year. Communication technology and other issues are expected to see new enforcement actions in 2023. For example, several big banks were fined close to $2 billion in September for failing to monitor employees’ communications on messaging apps such as WhatsApp. Bloomberg News reported that the SEC’s probe into communication is expanding to other industry players such as asset managers. In addition, the agency is working to finalize new climate disclosure requirements for companies, while also looking for ways to bring litigation related to ESG issues under existing regulations.
Finsum:The SEC is expected to litigate more violations of Reg BI, communication technology, and ESG-related issues this year.
While many advisors are already making the move from wirehouses to RIAs and independent shops, recruiters expect that activity to pick up this year. That was the conclusion of a recent presentation put on by Fidelity which featured advisor recruiting professionals. The panel included Jodie Papike, president of Cross-Search, Ryan Shanks, co-founder and CEO of FA Match, and Louis Diamond, president of Diamond Consulting. The trio urged all advisory firms to review their recruiting and retention strategies this year, or “risk being left behind in a rapidly evolving and increasingly competitive industry.” Papike warned, “From my point of view as a recruiter, I can tell you that there are a lot of firms that are making massive missteps in how they are recruiting and retaining advisors. They have not kept up their service levels, and so, many advisors are feeling like they aren’t being supported or serviced at the level they need and expect.” This comes as a new report from Cerulli Associates indicated that many broker-dealers are finding it difficult to generate growth in advisor affiliations as independent firms become more popular among advisors. Advisors identified several challenges of operating at wirehouses, including insufficient staffing support, changes to compensation, and imposed minimums for new clients. The Fidelity panel predicted that the movement of advisors will continue to accelerate in the years ahead.
Finsum:According to three advisor recruiters and a new report from Cerulli Associates, advisors are unhappy at wirehouses due to insufficient staffing support, changes to compensation, and imposed minimums for new clients.
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While there is a difference in opinions as to how much direct indexing will take market share away from ETFs, there is no doubt that the strategy is growing. In fact, personalized portfolios in general are starting to really take shape. A big reason for this is that volatility is expected to continue next year and many investors want more control over their portfolios. While direct indexing lets investors cherry-pick which stocks to buy in a benchmark index, Edward Jones recently announced that it is providing advisors with a new and more personalized investing model for clients using ETFs and mutual funds. According to documents filed at the SEC, the personalized research models will consider client specifics such as existing assets, potential capital gains and losses, and the characteristics of the overall portfolio. Edward Jones is initially introducing these models on a limited basis. According to Scott Smith, director of advice relationships at Cerulli Associates, the personalized research models exemplify an industry trend toward personalization. He stated, “We’re seeing this across the industry, from direct indexing, where you’re knocking out individual securities, to this, where you’re tilting the portfolio. It’s all about using scalable technology to offer better client solutions.”
Finsum:As part of the trend towards personalized portfolios, Edward Jones recently announced that it will offer personalized research models using mutual funds and ETFs.
LPL Financial recently announced that it has appointed Garrett Fish as Senior Vice President and head of Model Portfolio Management to the firm’s investment research team. In this new role, Fish will lead LPL’s investment model portfolio function, leveraging his years of active portfolio management experience to guide the firm’s model management, which includes directing the investment process and communicating with advisors. Fish will also sit on the firm’s Strategic & Tactical Asset Allocation Committee, a body responsible for the multi-asset, capital market view of LPL. He comes to LPL from J.P. Morgan Asset Management, where he spent nearly two decades as an industry-recognized fund manager leading a variety of investment vehicles for institutional and wealth management. He has managed against large-cap equity, multi-asset, and sustainable mandates during his career. LPL’s Chief Investment Officer Marc Zabicki, had this to say as part of the announcement. “Garrett’s extensive active portfolio management experience, including his international purview, will deepen our investment model management capabilities for the benefit of LPL advisors and their clients. As he joins LPL’s seasoned team of research professionals, his background and experience will also be brought to bear across our entire organization as we work collectively to provide the expertise, rigorous analysis, and valued insights on which advisors and their clients can rely.”
Finsum:LPL bolstered its research team with the appointment of Garrett Fish as Head of Model Portfolio Management.
Direct indexing has been all the rage this year with many researchers predicting it will be the "next big thing" in investing. For instance, a few weeks ago, a report from Cerulli Associates estimated that direct indexing is poised to reach more than $800 billion in assets by 2026. But not all research firms share this sentiment. According to a recent study by asset management research firm Blackwater Search & Advisory, direct indexing is a “niche service that mostly benefits specific high-net-worth investors.” The firm believes that without a wide range of investors, the growth of direct indexing may not be as large as previously thought. According to the report, “Direct indexing is not necessarily the best option for everyone. Not everyone needs or wants the degree of customization that direct indexing offers, and the variety of funds already existing on the market is more than enough to craft interesting portfolios.” Many pundits talked about direct indexing as an “ETF Killer” due to greater personalization and tax advantages. However, ETFs offer a broad range of funds that appeal to a much wider number of investors. So, while direct indexing may continue to grow its market share, it appears that it isn’t the “ETF Killer” it was once projected to be.
Finsum:Based on the results of a recent study, direct indexing may not see as much growth as previously thought due to the strategy mainly benefiting affluent investors.