Wealth Management
The October CPI report may have marked an inflection point for the Fed’s hiking cycle which is leading to inflows into fixed income ETFs. According to Andres Rincon, the Head of ETF Sales and Strategy at TD Securities, this is being driven by advisors, retail investors, and institutions with fixed income accounting for two-thirds of total ETF flows.
The short-end accounts for 40% of these flows as investors look to take advantage of high rates with increased demand for Treasuries, HISA ETFs, money market ETFs, and ultra short-term bond ETFs. However, the very long-end is also attracting interest to provide a hedge against a decline in rates and the overall market. Rincon also noted a surge in demand for fixed income products from TD’s direct indexing channel which had been absent during the period of zero percent rates.
Another trend that is supportive of fixed income ETF inflows is the conversion of popular mutual funds into ETF offerings. This is due to demand from institutions and advisors and advantages to the ETF structure in terms of liquidity and transparency. This is leading to more growth for the total ETF market as well.
Finsum: Andres Rincon, the Head of ETF Sales and Strategy at TD Securities, notes that fixed income ETFs are seeing significant inflows due to a variety of reasons.
Being a financial advisor certainly has its challenges due to the unique nature of the industry. One aspect of this is the difficulty of differentiating your offerings and services from your competitors especially when it comes to attracting new clients.
This means that an effective marketing strategy is essential to long-term success. It can help in building a solid pipeline of prospects and increasing your conversion rate. There are many well-trodden templates that advisors can follow such as building a website or a newsletter. However, your marketing strategy can be more creative and go beyond these generic ideas.
Additionally, it can result in more chances of success if it’s something you enjoy, can be consistent with, and reflect your personality which will lead to a more authentic connection with prospects.
Some of the more outside-of-the-box ideas include sharing ideas on online forums or message boards. Here, the key is not to make a hard sell but instead show your expertise. It can be valuable in building SEO visibility while creating a more genuine connection than other marketing channels.
Some other ideas to consider are direct mail marketing, hosting a client appreciation event, or sharing quizzes or polls on social media. The commonality of these marketing ideas is that you can experiment with different approaches, show off what makes you unique, and target your ideal clients.
Finsum: Marketing is more important for financial advisors than most industries given that it can be difficult to easily differentiate services and offerings. Here are some out-of-the-box ideas to consider.
Virtus Investment Partners recently launched a new actively managed fixed income ETF that primarily invests in high-quality, short-duration debt from multiple sectors. The Virtus Newfleet Short Duration Core Plus Bond ETF (SDCP) intends to provide high levels of returns and income while limiting variance in net asset value.
SDCP will also selectively invest in securities that are below investment-grade if yields are sufficiently attractive. It aims to achieve these goals through prudent risk management, a disciplined investment process, and finding opportunities in undervalued parts of the market. The fund will target securities with a duration between 1 and 3 years and will charge 35 basis points.
SDCP’s subadvisors is Newfleet Asset Management which has considerable expertise in all parts of the fixed income market including newer, more niche, and out-of-favor sectors. It believes active sector rotation and risk management are keys to portfolio construction.
Overall, SDCP’s launch is a continuation of a major theme in 2023 - the growth of fixed income ETFs. According to Todd Rosenbluth, the head of Research at VettaFI, fixed income ETFs comprise only 20% of the total market but account for 40% of inflows so far this year.
Finsum: Virtus is launching a new short-duration focused active fixed income ETF with Newfleet Asset Management as an advisor.
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Consumers are increasingly seeking greater personalization. According to a McKinsey report, "The value of getting personalization right—or wrong—is multiplying," 71% of consumers stated that they expect personalized experiences. It stands to reason that this expectation would extend to their investment portfolios, which are arguably more consequential than everyday consumer purchases.
For financial advisors, this signals a shift towards accommodating clients who demand more than what mutual funds and exchange-traded funds (ETFs) can offer. Separately managed accounts (SMAs) are a viable solution to meet this demand for customization. SMAs allow investors to personalize their investment strategy to fit their unique objectives, risk appetite, and financial situations—something that generic investment vehicles cannot always match.
In addition, the expertise offered by investment managers in SMAs is invaluable. Their insights are critical for asset allocation, security selection, and risk management. As the trend towards customization grows, SMAs may well become a cornerstone of investment portfolios, offering the personal touch that today's investors increasingly expect.
Finsum: Separately Managed Accounts may emerge as the solution of choice to fulfill investors' growing preference for personalization.
At the DeVoe and Company annual M&A+ Succession Summit, LPL Financial announced an expansion of its liquidity and succession offerings for unaffiliated advisors. The program was initially started last year for LPL advisors who are eyeing retirement but still a decade away from actual retirement.
In essence, the program is designed to allow advisors to receive market value for their firm immediately, but they are required to commit for a period of time to support the next generation of advisors who would be groomed to take over the business. As an intermediary, LPL would buy 100% of the practice while the chosen successors would run the firm while participating in a 10-year ‘successor advisor’ program before fully taking over.
This strikes a balance as it gives the current generation liquidity and full value for their business, while also setting up the next generation of advisors who may not necessarily have the capital to acquire a practice. According to LPL Executive VP of Strategic Business Development Jeremy Holly, “They’re not having to come out of pocket or take down a bunch of debt to take over. And the principal seller doesn’t have to take a steep discount to sell their practice to that next generation.”
Finsum: LPL Financial introduced a new program for succession planning. Current advisors would be able to sell to LPL but remain with the firm while the next generation is trained to takeover.
The outlook for the financial markets and economy is quite murky given several uncertainties such as a slowing economy, high interest rates, inflation, trouble in the banking sector, and geopolitical risk. Adding to these woes has been the poor performance of bonds. Typically, they are a safe haven during periods of uncertainty and volatility. Yet, they have suffered losses and failed to provide sufficient diversification over the last couple of years.
Thus, many are looking at other asset classes to meet these needs such as fixed-indexed annuities. The rates on these annuities are tied to the performance of an index such as the S&P 500 with much less risk. They combine the security of a fixed annuity while having some upside like an index annuity.
Most fixed-indexed annuities are structured to provide 100% protection of the principal which is especially advantageous during a market downturn. In some ways, these are more secure than bank deposits given that there is a 100% financial reserve requirement for annuity issuers while banks have much lower reserve requirements on deposits.
However, there are some downsides to fixed-indexed annuities. Relative to bonds, there is much less liquidity, as most have some sort of limits on how much of the principal can be withdrawn without incurring a penalty. There are also higher fees than simply investing in a fixed income fund.
Finsum: Fixed-indexed annuities may be a better fit for many investors than traditional bonds especially in the current environment.