Wealth Management
According to a recent announcement, Raymond James Financial has nabbed a Merrill Lynch advisor managing $250 million in Miami. Daniel Laiter, who has been in the industry for 25 years, joined Raymond James’ Alex. Brown unit on January 20th. He started his career at Lehman Brothers in 1997, joined Credit Suisse by way of its Donaldson Lufkin & Jenrette Securities predecessor in 2001, and returned to Lehman for two years between 2006 and 2008 before joining Merrill. Laiter, who focuses on clients in Mexico, will report to Eric Termini, regional executive for South Florida. As part of the announcement, Termini said “Danny represents one of the top advisors in the industry.” Laiter was convinced to move in part by a “client-centric” culture and the “experienced management team” at Raymond James. In June, Raymond James folded Alex. Brown into its core employee channel, Raymond James & Associates, led by Tash Elwyn. The unit had around 150 advisors at that time, a small fraction of the roughly 3,450 advisors in the RIA division. Raymond James announced four additional hires into the unit last year, including three who joined in Miami.
Finsum:Raymond Jamesadds to its Alex. Brown unit with the recruitment of a Merrill Lynch advisor managing $250 million.
According to findings from Vestwell’s fourth annual Retirement Trends Report, advisors who serve the small plan market expect to see “significant practice growth” in 2023 as both employer and employee demand for advisor services is at all-time highs. The report, which surveyed thousands of advisors, employers, and their workforces, noted that an overwhelming majority of both small business employers and employees (90%) are interested in utilizing the support of an advisor to guide them through their plan options. The report also found that employers said the services they value most from advisors are investment recommendations and management (65%), educating employees (62%), plan design recommendations (57%), plan administration (54%), and fiduciary oversight (50%). In addition, 47% of employers said personalized investment recommendations for their employees were a value-add from advisors. Also of note, 70% of advisors reported that market volatility has not affected their retirement business in the small plan market within the last year. As part of the report, Vestwell stated, “Despite volatile financial markets, employers are considering upgrades to their plans and are interested in professional advice, while a plurality of advisors believe their practice will expand due to small plan growth. In other words, the small business market is on track to become a big business.”
Finsum:Based on the findings of a new report, the small plan market is expected to see significant growth this year as employer and employee demand for advisor services are at all-time highs.
Veriti Management LLC recently announced it is rebranding as First Trust Direct Indexing. The provider of tax-advantaged, direct indexing solutions also announced the appointment of Robert Hughes as Chief Executive Officer, taking the reins from Veriti Co-Founder and Managing Partner James Dilworth. Hughes will focus on integrating Veriti’s direct indexing capabilities and technology with the extensive resources and distribution network provided by its new affiliate, First Trust Portfolios L.P. Veriti was acquired by First Trust Portfolios last July. The deal lets First Trust bring direct indexing to its advisor clients, while potentially exposing Veriti to a larger market. The affiliation between the two companies comes at a time when there is strong demand for more tax-efficient, personalized investment solutions. First Trust Direct Indexing seeks to turn volatility into an asset through tax loss harvesting strategies, which have the potential to increase an investor’s after-tax returns. Hughes had this to say about the rebranding and his appointment, “First Trust Direct Indexing is well positioned to help advisors solve the dual demands of individualized account customization and a smart approach to seeking tax alpha that can tilt client portfolios to their satisfaction. I’m excited to be joining at a pivotal time for our business and the industry.”
Finsum:Following the acquisition of Veriti by First Trust Portfolios last July, the firm is rebranding as First Trust Direct Indexing and appointing Robert Hughes as CEO.
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LPL recently announced that Jonathan Blakelock, an army veteran, who operates Blakelock Financial Group in the Houston suburb of Kingwood, Texas, has joined LPL Financial’s broker-dealer, RIA, and custodial platforms. Blakelock and his six-member support staff joined LPL from Ameriprise, where he and the team oversaw about $180 million in advisory and brokerage assets. He started his career in 2007 and has grown his business organically over the years, now serving more than 400 clients in 17 states. His practice offers a comprehensive suite of advisory services, ranging from small businesses to retirement and tax planning strategies, to family finances and divorce financial planning. Blakelock said that he made his decision to move to LPL based on a need for greater flexibility and choice, particularly in the area of financial planning, a cornerstone of the practice. He stated the following in a new release, “LPL has several advanced planning programs to choose from, along with more mutual funds and innovative solutions to deliver better experiences for my clients. This move will give me more tools and flexibility, while still providing oversight that my clients want. It also allows me to brand my business and have more control in the way we operate.”
Finsum:Jonathan Blakelock and his six-member support staff made the move from Ameriprise to LPL based on a need for greater flexibility and choice, particularly in the area of financial planning.
You can’t talk about the markets in 2022 without mentioning volatility, and it appears investors are just as nervous now as they were last year. That is according to the results of a recent survey from Allianz Life. The firm’s findings in its Quarterly Market Perceptions Study for the fourth quarter of 2022 revealed that 77% of the survey's respondents believe equities will be volatile in 2023, extending the big swings that eventually drove stocks into a bear market in 2022. Stocks were hit hard last year as high inflation prompted the Fed to raise interest rates. The volatility is making most Americans nervous about their retirement portfolios in the face of a potential recession, while inflation is still running hot. In fact, many investors would rather hold onto cash than risk losing money in stocks. Allianz Life found that 64% said they would rather have their money sit in cash rather than endure market swings. The financial services provider also noted that Americans are so concerned about their financial futures that many are halting retirement contributions and are worried about covering their day-to-day expenses. For instance, 65% of respondents said they will adjust their retirement and investment plans if volatility continues, jumping from 57% during the same period last year. Plus, eighty-two percent of Americans are worried that rising inflation will keep hurting their income's purchasing power over the next six months.
Finsum:After suffering crushing losses last year on account of wild market swings, investors are even more concerned about volatility this year, which could result in them sitting in cash and halting retirement contributions.
The SECURE 2.0 Act of 2022, which was passed in December 2022, is retirement reform legislation that aimed to increase retirement access and security for Americans. While the legislation’s focus was on defined contribution plans, it still had an impact on annuities. For instance, Section 201 of the SECURE 2.0 act removes availability barriers to some life annuities in tax-advantaged retirement accounts. Before the bill was passed, required minimum distribution tests limited the availability of some lifetime annuities which had large benefit increases from year to year. The passage of the bill now allows these annuities to increase at a constant percentage, no more than 5% per year. In addition, Section 202 seeks to make Qualified Longevity Annuity Contracts (QLAC) easier to invest in. The section raises the cap to $200,000 on how much money a participant can use from their retirement account to purchase a QLAC. Previously, it used to be either 25% of the account’s value or $125,000, whichever was greater. Plus, Section 204 allows a retiree with a partially annuitized plan to combine the payments from both the annuity and the plan to calculate their required minimum distribution, according to Elizabeth Dold, a tax attorney and executive committee member at the Groom Law Group. Before the bill, the two accounts had to be separated, each with its own RMD calculation, which could result in higher RMD payments than if they were counted together.
Finsum:While the SECURE 2.0 Act focused on DC plans, the legislation made changes to annuities such as removing availability barriers to some life annuities in tax-advantaged retirement accounts and making QLACs easier to invest in.