Brooke Southall

Brooke, love the optimism. Counter point. One wonders if some fiduciary advocates (not Jason or Fred) confuse setting a principles based standard rule with setting the neighborhood traffic camera speed limit. That we can give out tickets with precision and efficiency to "enforce" the rule. Also, that the damage of the last several years to fiduciary at DOL and the SEC doesn't matter. The damage is documented. We have a supportive administration to help undo the damage and reconstruct ERISA and a real fiduciary standard at the SEC. Of course, the industry militantly resists. Same old, same old.

The DOL's Trump-era reprieve from rollover fiduciary rigor is over with aspects of remedy that might 'scare the daylights' out of defense lawyers

ERISA

401(k)

Fred Reish

Jason Roberts

The days when RIAs were the outsiders at the 401(k) party are fast coming to a close. What's new is that the mass of 401(k) assets 
is getting critical at about $3 trillion; fiduciary advisors are getting appreciated; fat fees and questionable kickbacks are getting exposed and stepping out of line is getting dicier as the Department of Labor tightens the regulatory screws.

The old reasons why the 401(k) business is attractive are still in place: there are fresh assets pouring in every month and when employees leave jobs or retire, they produce rollovers that build up IRA accounts for financial advisors. The drawbacks of getting into the 401(k) business are still in place, too. Dealing with retirement assets is really a second line of business and it remains -- unless you overcharge with hidden fees -- a low margin business with high potential fiduciary liabilities.

Still, the outsourcers, infrastructure and accumulated knowledge for RIAs to capitalize on is growing daily and a the mega-shift of assets away from brokers is making the 401(k) business riskier and riskier -- to ignore.

401(k) Stories

The Biden DOL is cool with surprisingly toothy rules it inherited that are sure to cause some RIAs to scramble and may be easier for broker-dealers to manage.

The DOL's Trump-era reprieve from rollover fiduciary rigor is over with aspects of remedy that might 'scare the daylights' out of defense lawyers

Knut

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