DOL Fiduciary News: November 18, 2016
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Dallas judge indicates possibility of vacating DOL fiduciary rule
InvestmentNews; Nov 17, 2016 @ 5:56 pm
The United States District Court for the Northern District of Texas' standing-room-only hearing was attended by DOL brass Assistant Secretary Phyllis Borzi and Elizabeth Hopkins, counsel for appellate and special litigation. Judge Barbara Lynn often appeared sympathetic to the plaintiffs and was very focused on how the case in front of her differed from Judge Randolph Moss' November 4 decision in the District Court for the District of Columbia upholding the regulation.
On the independent agent issue, which squarely addresses workability issues associated with the best-interest contract exemption, Ms. Lynn pressed the DOL to answer questions regarding the availability of information on competing insurance products to independent insurance agents.
(http://www.investmentnews.com)
Fiduciary Rule May Face Derailment, But IMOs Still Preparing for Compliance
Best's News Service via Bestwire -- November 17, 2016 03:53 PM
WASHINGTON -- Despite the anticipation President-elect Donald Trump will derail the U.S. Labor Department’s fiduciary rule upon taking office, some independent marketing organizations are still pushing ahead with compliance plans as if the rule will still be effective next year.
“Everybody told us who was going to win the election and it turned out they weren’t right,” Nathan Hightower, general counsel and interim president of AmeriLife, said. “There has been a spate of articles about how they are going to eliminate the fiduciary rule and get rid of Dodd-Frank.
(http://www.ambest.com)
Jeb Hensarling Says GOP Wants to End Rules on Retirement Advice and Payday Loans
The Wall Street Journal; Nov. 16, 2016 7:45 p.m. ET
WASHINGTON—Congressional Republicans hope to scrap two contentious rules meant to rein in conflicted investment advice and payday lenders once President-elect Donald Trump takes office.
However, despite the Republicans’ big election victory that will keep both chambers of Congress under GOP control, the party’s path to legislating still faces the hurdle of a Democratic filibuster, among other factors
House Financial Services Committee Chairman Jeb Hensarling (R., Texas) said Wednesday that talks were being held with Mr. Trump about uprooting a Labor Department rule regulating how brokers sell retirement investments and a Consumer Financial Protection Bureau proposal aimed at holding down interest rates and increasing disclosures for small-dollar loans.
(http://www.wsj.com)
Group Urges Incoming Trump Administration to Choose "Regular Americans Over Wall Street" In Preserving Fiduciary Rule
WASHINGTON, Nov. 16, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- Members of the SaveOurRetirement Steering Group – AFL-CIO, AFSCME, Americans for Financial Reform, Better Markets, Consumer Federation of America and the Pension Rights Center – issued the following statement in response to reports that a Trump Administration may be considering repealing or undermining the Department of Labor (DoL) fiduciary rule:
(http://www.prnewswire.com)
New president will not trump Principal's DOL fiduciary rule prep
SNL.com; Wednesday, November 16, 2016 10:14 AM ET
Principal Financial Group Inc. executives acknowledged the uncertainty that the election of Donald Trump as the nation's 45th president creates regarding the planned April 2017 implementation of the U.S. Department of Labor's Conflict of Interest Rule, commonly known as the fiduciary rule.
Nora Everett, president of Principal's retirement and income solutions business and chairman of Principal Funds, said during the company's Nov. 16 investor day that there has been "a tremendous amount of speculation" regarding the rule's fate under the incoming administration, but she "wouldn't want to make a bet on it right now."
(http://www.snl.com)
Capital One will eliminate commissions on IRAs
InvestmentNews; Nov 16, 2016 @ 11:19 am
Capital One Investing, the brokerage arm of Capital One Financial Corp., will be eliminating commissions on advised individual retirement accounts by next year.
The company announced Wednesday that the advised IRAs will move to level-fee pricing by April, when the Department of Labor's fiduciary rule becomes effective.
(http://www.investmentnews.com)
Advisory space changing with or without DOL rule, Legg Mason CEO says
SNL.com; Wednesday, November 16, 2016 2:45 PM ET
The Department of Labor's Conflict of Interest rule only accelerated existing trends in the investment advice and brokerage space, and repealing it would not reverse that, Legg Mason Inc. Chairman and CEO Joseph Sullivan said Nov. 16 during the Bank of America Merrill Lynch Future of Financials conference.
Asset managers, advisers and retirement product brokerages have read the election of Donald Trump as a chance for a new administration to revisit the rule, which will go into effect in April 2017. Anthony Scaramucci, an adviser to the Trump campaign who was recently named to the president-elect's transition team, said in October that a Trump administration would seek to repeal the rule.
(http://www.snl.com)
Trips, Incentives Remain Despite DOL Rule
InsuranceNewsNet; November 15, 2016
Incentive trips and other bonus-style compensation are squarely in the crosshairs of the Department of Labor fiduciary rule.
But those strategies remain legitimate options, mainly because they are effective in rewarding and motivating top producers, said Michelle DeClerck, founder and president of Conference Event Management.
(http://insurancenewsnet.com)
InvestmentNews, Nationwide partner on new research on impact of fiduciary rule
Nov 16, 2016 @ 8:00 am
InvestmentNews Research, in partnership with Nationwide, has launched a new research series that focuses on how financial advisors believe the Department of Labor's Fiduciary rule will re-shape their business models and the retirement planning services they provide to clients.
The research initiative – “A new era of advice” – is based on a survey of the InvestmentNews audience of financial advisors and includes responses from more than 600 advisers across multiple channels and business models. The findings are revealed in two research papers and are housed on a new dedicated section of InvestmentNews.com, complemented by tools and resources from InvestmentNews Research and Nationwide.
(http://www.investmentnews.com)