DOL Fiduciary News: August 25, 2016
Please Note:
These links will take you directly to the homepage of the website that features the article.
To reach the article directly, copy and paste the article title into the search feature on the homepage of the publication website.
Cogent Reports: DOL Ruling Puts Advisors Under Microscope
August 24, 2016 10:00 AM EDT
CAMBRIDGE, Mass. -- (BUSINESS WIRE) -- The Department of Labor’s (DOL) fiduciary ruling is quite possibly the most significant regulatory action that financial advisors have faced in more than a decade. Many asset managers and distributors are spending millions of dollars in anticipation of the types of support advisors will need to adapt. But what are advisors saying? While they agree with the overall spirit of the ruling, the vast majority of advisors are worried that the ruling could cause more harm than good. These and other findings are included in The Advisor of Tomorrow™ (http://landing.marketstrategies.com/the-advisor-of-tomorrow-2016), a Cogent Reports™ study by Market Strategies International.
(http://www.businesswire.com)
‘Suitability On Steroids:’ Agent Supervision Under DOL Fiduciary Rule
InsuranceNewsNet; August 24, 2016
Marketing organizations that are authorized to act as financial institutions under the Department of Labor fiduciary rule are proposing new supervision frameworks for their agents.
So what does this mean for independent insurance agents who sell fixed indexed annuities? The agents can expect those new frameworks to be more rigid and require stiffer due diligence. There also will be an increased transparency about how much commission-based agents will be paid. That’s according to application materials from the organizations seeking to be authorized as financial institutions under the new rule, which takes effect in April 2017.
(http://insurancenewsnet.com)
NAFA DOL fiduciary rule case likely to be ruled on quickly
BenefitsPro.com; August 24, 2016
The U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia will hear arguments at 2 p.m. Eastern time Aug. 25 in The National Association of Fixed Annuities v. Thomas E. Perez.
Erin Sweeney, a Washington, D.C.-based attorney with Miller and Chevalier Chartered and a former Benefit Law Specialist with the Labor Department under the George W. Bush administration, will be there, monitoring the proceeding on behalf of her clients, along with what she expects will be a “who’s who” among the country’s small, and these days, influential band of ERISA legal specialists.
Among the five lawsuits looking to stay the DOL’s fiduciary rule, Sweeney says the claims brought on behalf of fixed indexed annuity providers are uniquely compelling.
(http://www.benefitspro.com)
7 Myths Surrounding The DOL Rule
Financial Advisor; August 24, 2016
What advisors don’t know could hurt them — but what advisors think they know could hurt them even more.
With more than four months having passed since the U.S. Department of Labor released the final language of its fiduciary rule, advisors are still digesting the regulation’s implications.
Yet with less than eight months before the new rule goes into effect, a number of misconceptions still exist, according to Concord, Calif.-based AssetMark.
(http://www.fa-mag.com)