Oisin Breen
Articles written by Oisin Breen
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Morningstar takes sword to grade inflation, likely to slash 40,000 funds' 'medalist' ratings and leaves, for now, the five-star system intact
The Chicago fund tracker's reforms slam managers who merely hug benchmarks, rewards managers with a 36-month plan to outperform
November 16, 2024 at 6:28 AM
Pathstone reclaims by poach Schwab’s family office division unit head, Eddie Brown, weeks after the Lovell Minnick ultrahigh-net-worth roll-up snapped up a $50 billion RIA
Brown's hire is also something of a 'reunion', given his near 15 years at Pathstone, and through family office roles at both Fidelity and Schwab.
November 14, 2024 at 7:23 PM
'Displaced' John Thiel uses RIA and Fidelity-Advyzon back office to get back into game -- a road well traveled by multiple, ex-Merrill Lynch chiefs seeking second acts
Forget SPACs and board seats, the former head of Merrill Lynch Wealth Management follows the likes of Bob McCann and Sallie Krawcheck into easy-access RIA industry.
November 14, 2024 at 1:54 AM
Fidelity Investments surges past $15 trillion, on its way to $16 trillion, after its CEO made one big, contrarian bet and two smaller plays that have the giant hopping
The Boston company grew $800 billion per quarter on average through nine months, and just keeps hiring to 'deepen relationships,' with crypto and digital engagement giving it an edge.
November 9, 2024 at 1:41 AM
Vise resets -- again -- with more executive firepower and fresh vision focused on RIA M&A and 'wellness,' but analysts say its solutions must stand apart to succeed
The New York City brat pack -- still loaded with VC cash -- is pivoting, again, but with a pitch that has convinced big hitters to join the firm as advisors and president, respectively.
November 6, 2024 at 5:06 AM
Facet Wealth (mostly) borrows $35 million after three years of sober cash rationing, but -- after self-curbing growth -- analysts see upsides
The Baltimore firm has now raised $245 million to get to 55 advisors serving subscriptions and 15,000 clientele, short of 24,000 target set in 2021, but advisor efficiency is up and cash burn down almost to zero.
November 2, 2024 at 1:38 AM
Apollo partners with State Street Global Advisors for ultimate moonshot -- making alts liquid with ETFs -- but Apollo may make liquidity function at a premium untenable for investors, never mind the SEC
The Apollo-SSGA pitch to the SEC promises Apollo will buy the alts in a pinch -- but the hitch is that it's the originator, buyer, and seller, introducing uncertainty to 'market' pricing.
October 29, 2024 at 3:50 AM
Plan sponsor eyes are lighting up as T. Rowe Price launches set-it-but-don't-forget-it target-date funds -- a 'major improvement,' Cerulli analyst says, over myopic retirement date focus
The Baltimore asset manager's new product tracks its index, but factors some investments in or out, based on wider portfolio holdings and risk
October 12, 2024 at 2:01 AM
RIAs keep Goldman Sachs' hopes alive its RIA custody unit will find legs as $55-billion New Edge signs on and Goldman fills vacated No. 2 custody spot
Predictions are aging badly that Goldman Sachs Advisor Solutions might get nixed as big-pipeline RIAs dial it in, and Jeremy Eisenstein comes off the executive bench to be Adam Siegler's right hand.
October 11, 2024 at 1:17 AM
SEC actions expose underbelly of RIA industry awards, but they are often lucrative for those who hand them out and unlikely to stop being abused by those who get them
The Washington regulator nailed RIAs with misuse of award mentions, using the new Marketing Rule as cudgel after declaring false advertising a 2024 priority
October 9, 2024 at 3:07 AM
Federal judge, who tossed Stephen Greco's sweeping RIA lawsuit, grants leave to refile with more facts and less 'overlong and needlessly complex' arguments
Judge LaShonda Hunt keeps long-running, widely watched case against Creative Planning, Schwab, Fidelity and TD Ameritrade hanging by a thread.
September 28, 2024 at 2:22 AM
The folksy Kitces 'fintech map' ballooned by 265% to 485 brands over six years, a sensation sowing seeds of its own destruction, making Kitces chart two new 'maps' -- including an app
The Kitces map is wildly popular but increasingly Nascar-ized, which may not discourage further RIA software brand atomization, but has bundlers scrambling to react.
September 27, 2024 at 12:41 AM
Betterment changes its RIA custody brand to 'Advisor Solutions' -- a sign that digital innocence and niche marketing are now passé -- but its RIA clients are applauding
RIAs prefer if CEO Sarah Levy goes fuller service even if it means introducing a few analog necessities anti-thetical to startup dreams
September 21, 2024 at 1:38 AM
Dani Fava era of buying à la carte tech for Carson Group takes shape with 'modular'-minded YCharts deal -- but Orion is still the mainstay
YCharts -- a 'Bloomberg-terminal-lite' for RIAs -- signals its less-known risk software gave it a leg up to become part of refreshed Carson strategy to be more 'flexible and innovative.'
September 19, 2024 at 3:22 AM
eMoney and Flourish collaborate to gather assets by addressing client inertia with a new tool to sweep stranded, held-away deposits into higher yielding Flourish accounts
The Fidelity-owned software vendor's aim is to aggregate held away assets but will stay well clear of moving sweep cash or identifying choices.
