Fidelity brings its 401(k) muscle to RIAs with new product
The 401(k) giant seeks to do for RIAs what it's done for brokers all along
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Fidelity will hire 4,000 staff in first half -- a staggering number but a tapering off from 'unprecedented' rate in 2021-2022 that catapulted it to 68,000 employees
The $10.3 trillion giant explains its hiring -- in a layoff environment -- as an RIA-like goal, namely having the human bandwidth to develop 'lifetime' relationships with its 40 million investors
February 17, 2023 at 2:49 AM
RIA Quick Takes: Orion deepens DFA embrace by using it as portfolio manager-inside-ETF ~ Hardship withdrawals surge at Vanguard and Fidelity ~ Schwab hires 400 ~ Fidelity flips six funds into ETFs ~ Kitces makes list before Christmas ~ Amit Dogra has $1 billion of good news from his new Portland gig
Americans are struggling, though jobs are plentiful; Larry Fink's ESG zeal costs BlackRock another client, just as the Vatican issues ESG guidance; UBS says we didn't like you anyway to mass affluent and Michael Kitces and Craig Iskowitz join forces.
December 3, 2022 at 3:16 AM
Fidelity Investments loses Kathleen Murphy who largely caught up Fido to Schwab (near $4T) on the retail side by reversing net promoter scores
The 'no whining allowed' leader of the Boston giant's retail business, who oversaw $2 trillion in net new assets, was ready to exit but hung in through a year dominated by COVID-19 challenges
January 23, 2021 at 2:02 AM
Fidelity Institutional looks like a big TAMP after Mike Durbin removes last internal walls between products and advisors after 'meteoric' 2019 leap; two Fido RIA sales legends depart amid the shift
Rich Policastro and Tom Valverde are out after Fidelity Custody & Clearing assets leap to $2.6 trillion AUA, restructuring gets the credit -- and so restructuring gets extended.
March 13, 2020 at 10:36 PM
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Bill Sands
Is anyone really believing you can get free admin? Maybe if the plan had one participant. But most companies that look at bundled products are larger companies w/ a lot of employees. If anyone is getting paid hidden fees, it would be Fidelity. They’re getting paid…one way or the other.
Alison Farrin
It is getting easier to provide the basic service for close to free. But as always, the plan sponsor receives what it pays for. Generally these large “service” providers take whatever information they get from the employer, run the tests and report. So, the Plan Sponsor gets a test, a report and a 5500 – usually based on bad data in the initial submission. That works just fine until they are audited. Then all the issues become apparent and the Plan Sponsor looks for someone to blame, or closes the Plan citing administrative difficulties.
We joke about the retirement administration of one large payroll provider. They have a 100% failure record on correct ADP tests for plans where we have subsequently assumed administration.
They also provide “free” administration for their premier payroll clients. The clients that pay extra for the premier package….....
Phil Chiricotti
When digesting this article, your readers might want to note that the DOL does NOT have a set of enforcement regulations for RIAs. DOL regulations deal with fiduciaries. Anybody can be a functional fiduciary. Furthermore, RIAs/IARs may not be ERISA fiduciaries when serving a retirement plan. It depends on the services that are performed. Fiduciary status under ERISA is not the same as fiduciary status via securities licensing.
