Articles published 4/2017
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As Acorns grapples with monetizing 1.1 million micro-accounts, the laid-back LA robo-advisor brings Wealthfront’s former chief exec onto its board
After this week's $1.3-billion Robinhood valuation, the sheer quantity of Acorn accounts may count for plenty in VC estimations
April 28, 2017 at 9:50 PM
After VC personally supplants CEO, Trizic raises $3.3 million, signs online octopus and begins to shed perception that it squandered a lead
Drew Sievers invested $1 million in the robo-advisor then took the place of CEO Brad Matthews, who admits it's been for the better as he became a father at 38
April 27, 2017 at 10:39 PM
Randy Bullard pitches himself into major role at SigFig to add his Placemark knowledge to a robo hothouse
The serially successful wrap-program pioneer convinced CEO Mike Sha that he was the right guy to demystify the legacy-robo tech divide to employees -- and close deals
April 26, 2017 at 5:41 PM
Andy Rachleff makes waves with NY Post quote: Don't get 'hung up' on our lose-more-funds-than-you-deposit disclosure
Fresh off blasting BlackRock, the feisty Wealthfront CEO claims he was 'misrepresented' as the robo offers ready credit lines for those with $100K-plus in taxable accounts
April 25, 2017 at 9:06 PM
DFA and TD Ameritrade strike 'strategic' deal with potential to shift RIA custody power axis
Tension in the three-way relationship between Fidelity, Dimensional Fund Advisors and the RIAs who use both vendors creates opening for Tim Hockey
April 24, 2017 at 6:33 PM
John Bunch climbs high at Financial Engines as two execs vacate power spots and rollover retail gets accorded higher priority
Former TD retail chief's rise shows what Larry Raffone has in mind for old Mutual Fund Store machinery as Raffone works to make his mark at Financial Engines
April 20, 2017 at 10:43 PM
RIA lobby fires off letter to DOL claiming rules aimed at reining in overzealous stockbroker sales pitches chill RIA conversations with their prospects
The IAA's letter to the Labor Department asks that RIAs not get entangled in rules designed to prevent stockbrokers from making misleading pitches
April 20, 2017 at 5:16 PM
Stone Point and KKR buy Focus Financial for $2 billion by employing massive leverage
PE giants with loans of about $1 billion -- psyched that the roll-up's roll flow is snowballing in 2017 -- cash out Centerbridge, Polaris, Summit, several advisors and employees
April 19, 2017 at 4:39 AM
Wells Fargo's new ADV reveals plenty about its robo's ambitions to max cross-selling and minimize channel conflict
Intuitive Investor is priced on the high side and bars micro-investors, yet is positioning itself as the anti-niche player
April 18, 2017 at 6:24 PM
Joel Bruckenstein pitches DOL rule to Sen. Marco Rubio after fate makes them JetBlue seat mates
Rubio opened up on small investors and retirement issues -- and cracked wise about the Russians
April 17, 2017 at 6:38 PM
HighTower picks up $6.4-billion roll-up on the cheap but the valuation may reflect WealthTrust's stagnant growth and profitability
The Chicago roll-up gets an embattled league of RIAs for about $70 million by persuading its financiers to double down and private equity owners to suck it up
April 13, 2017 at 11:35 PM
After putting big chips on DOL fiduciary rule, Betterment hosts funereal event to mark the April 10 Go Day That Wasn't
CEO Jon Stein sat shoulder to shoulder with CFP Board and Consumer Federation of America guests and held court with CNNMoney, Wall Street Journal and Consumer Reports reporters
April 13, 2017 at 6:50 PM
TD Ameritrade shocks RIAs most accustomed to its largesse with a letter, a contract and a tight deadline to sign
The Jersey City, N.J.-based custodian tells RIAs to accept new terms on branch referrals or be terminated from the program
April 12, 2017 at 4:08 AM
Betterment's 'call me a masochist' co-founder goes in search of more acute pain and Jon Stein flies solo
Eli Broverman leaves the table 14 years after meeting Jon Stein over a poker game
April 10, 2017 at 10:24 PM
Talent exodus at MoneyGuidePro revealed by posting from Mount Kilimanjaro includes two Knulls
The big execu-shuffle may reflect influx of power players into the business of financial planning software -- perhaps hottest of RIA technology categories
April 7, 2017 at 8:03 PM
The 10 takeaways Chip Roame imparted at his Tiburon CEO Summit in NYC and other items I gleaned by gumshoe reporting
From the Battery Ritz common space, disembodied text and email recipients appear in human form
April 6, 2017 at 5:26 PM
'Poof, it's gone!' DOL quietly strips two heavy lifts from the fiduciary rule as it makes delay official
The Department of Labor effectively makes the 60-day delay into a 270-day one as part of document that was supposed to only formalize the postponement until June 7
April 5, 2017 at 7:41 PM
Why FutureAdvisor orphaned its B2C book of business, how post-Invesco Jemstep is doing and other learnings at CFA Society's robo-panel in San Francisco
Since BlackRock acquired it, the $152-million robo has gone full-on for big enterprises with big books of boomers and joined a chorus of robo-owners sick of millennial bullcrap
April 4, 2017 at 5:38 PM
Why ProShares yanked ETFs from Schwab's no-commission OneSource ETF exchange
The fund firm puts faith in the drawing power of its own brand -- and saves more than $2 million
April 3, 2017 at 7:04 PM
Donald Trump sends flurry of pro-DOL rule tweets early on Saturday that astound RIAs
Ron Rhoades admits he is 'absolutely stunned' at POTUS' fiduciary advocacy on Twitter -- perhaps the product of a chance golf course encounter that sparked the meeting of minds
