Pennsylvania + Wall

By Kevin Carroll

On March 17, 2015, the New York Times reported on a bill last year, in the prior Congress, that would have amended the Servicemembers Civil Relief Act (SCRA) to allow servicemembers to avoid the enforceability of arbitration clauses.  The Times article cites SIFMA as opposed to the bill on the basis that servicemembers are not being harmed by arbitration clauses.

Here’s the rest of the story:  The SCRA is generally limited to contracts for rent, installment contracts, mortgages, liens, assignments, leases, and the like.  The bill, however, as originally drafted, could be read to ban arbitration clauses in any and all contracts entered into by a servicemember, and not just those enumerated in the SCRA.  While we do not believe....... Read more...

 In his new book, A Force for Good, John Taft, CEO of RBC Wealth Management-U.S., invited more than 20 respected financial minds - selected for their expertise and fresh perspectives - to provide insights on a path forward for the industry, moving past the crisis of 2008. The book addresses fundamental questions about the financial system and introduces readers to the concept of "enlightened finance."

Q: Why did you write A Force for Good? 
A: I hope to kick start a more constructive dialogue about what the financial sector needs to do to consistently contribute to positive social goals. Much of the narrative since the financial crisis has focused on looking backwards, pointing fingers, assigning blame, identifying villains and meting out punishments. That was an appropriate and necessary phase in our recovery. But now we need to change the conversation by looking forward, developing a road map for what still needs to be done to help position finance for the future. .... Read more...

By Melanie Mortimer

At a recent meeting in midtown Manhattan, five different  groups presented snapshots of their portfolios to a panel of BNY Mellon portfolio managers and analysts. After each presentation, the panelists queried the speakers on the rationale for their investment strategy, asking them to explain their research process and risk tolerance.  

Who were the presenters? They were seventh and eighth grade students from Franklin Middle School in New Jersey. The presentations were part of the Invest It Forward ^™ program developed and launched in 2014 by the SIFMA Foundation. Invest It Forward is an industry-wide financial education and capital markets literacy campaign convening hundreds of financial firms committed to giving young Americans a solid understanding of the capital markets system and the invaluable tools to achieve their dreams..... Read more...

By: Kenneth E. Bentsen, Jr.

It's astonishing that the Labor Department would contemplate a regulation that would remove retirement choices.

The Obama administration is proposing a retirement rule that could restrict access to information, limit investor choice and raise costs on American families saving for retirement. 

This isn't about whether brokers and investment advisers should be subject to a fiduciary duty when doing the same thing. We agree with that. It's a question of whether the administration should proceed, irrespective of congressional intent and in conflict with regulators, with a rule that will ultimately make it harder to save.

Most middle-class investors, including most IRA investors, choose more affordable, transaction-based brokerage accounts, as opposed to managed accounts, which are often more expensive because the client is seeking more services.

Financial firms provide both services to their clients, but the clients get to choose, based on what services they want to buy. Both types of accounts are already heavily regulated.

  Continue reading on usatoday.com ....... Read more...