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People Moves Related to "Schwab CTO's speech in NYC spotlights an RIA business addicted to innovation – with no fresh fix in sight"


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Biz Briefs: Schwab puts checks for $52 million in mail to robo-RIA customers allegedly misled about cash allocations • BlackRock blacklisted (again) • iShares beats NZAM-exiter Vanguard • Fidelity makes first acquisition in eight years • CFP board realizes Moms don't like CFPs

BlackRock gets Kentucky coal in stocking, and Vanguard keeps skating; iShares inches above -- by 2.8% -- Vanguard's annual net new ETF asset haul; Fidelity takes "natural next step" for stock plan business; new CFP chair outlines plans and the DOJ is set to become a major Robinhood shareholder..

January 13, 2023 at 3:01 AM

Envestnet shares popped -- up 8% today -- after Wall Street filtered out bad news and staked its bet on confidence in a new team

The Berwyn, Pa., firm sugar-coated nothing but ended up with a sweet stock price result as analysts see good outweighing bad.

February 24, 2024 at 3:33 AM

Bill Crager is dropping CEO role after multiple shoes dropped; the company insists it was his 'decision' but vision, Yodlee future uncertain

The co-founder of the $5.3-trillion AUA outsourcer of software and investments was pressed to take the job under the most adverse circumstances, then second-guessed by stakeholders as he managed the cards he was dealt.

January 9, 2024 at 4:09 AM

Bill Crager makes critical hire of 'step back from the numbers,' Joshua Warren, replacing 'brother' Pete D'Arrigo at CFO; Warren had a big role at BlackRock -- Envestnet's biggest stakeholder

The Envestnet CEO gets 'very, very impressive' 43 year-old BlackRock exec; the New York asset manager happens to be Envestnet's largest stakeholder.

September 27, 2023 at 2:48 AM

Biz Briefs: Vanguard's tax-loss harvest yields a caveat• Vermont green with envy ... of red states? • CFP Board spends $12 million on bungee metaphor • BlackRock isn't neutral on Credit Suisse • Women are the Goliath of 'David' in UK finance

Tax-loss harvest gains may have some home assembly required, says Jeff DeMaso • Adrian Johnstone is now in the driving seat at Practifi • CFP Board spending just topped $150 million • and Vermont shares some Texas thinking on ESG investing.

March 25, 2023 at 1:32 AM

Alois Pirker sets up shop in Marblehead by taking a page from the RIAs he advises

The former Aite-Novarica consulting chief wants the latitude of Pirker Partners to take the gigs he wants and avoid corporate consulting economics -- namely selling reports.

January 21, 2023 at 5:03 AM

Bill Crager shuffles the deck on management team created just seven months ago: Tony Leal is out of 'Big Three' inner circle, replaced by Morgan Stanley vet Rose Palazzo

The RIA software 'trailblazer' and co-founder of MoneyGuidePro has been working on departure for a year; will transition to a 'consultant,' company says

January 7, 2023 at 1:50 AM

Dimensional Fund Advisors, long the flagship of factor investing, struggles to chart a course as a nimble rival and big foot competitors cut into its market--and exploit its slow move to ETFs

Vanguard, BlackRock and Avantis rattle a complacent Dimensional Fund Advisors with fee cuts and ETF roll outs based on 'smart beta.'

August 9, 2022 at 1:57 AM

Envestnet just named an ESG head to meld 'wellness,' 'The Intelligent Financial Life' and 'sustainable investing' into a single nirvana -- that starts outside of the product realm

Ron Ransom earned CEO Bill Crager's trust as chief business development officer and now will define how Envestnet conducts itself as a global citizen and vendor of wellness.

July 27, 2022 at 2:27 AM

Walt Bettinger sheds 'president' title and Bernie Clark gets new boss as Schwab appoints Rick Wurster as president and No. 2 in charge

The Schwab CEO gets 2016 'Windhaven' hire to share burden of governance from enormity of $8-trillion post-TDA, post-USAA, post-Motif growth.

December 20, 2021 at 11:59 PM

Vanguard Group shows up as 'alpha' disciple with two new fixed-income fund launches as it surpasses PIMCO's $2 trillion with ex-Goldman Sachs partner now calling the shots

The $8 trillion Malvern, Pa. manager owns beta investing, but RIAs are demanding higher income -- hence market timing and cherry picking -- from their fixed-income allocation.

August 10, 2021 at 11:46 PM

Jon Stein ousts himself as Betterment CEO and taps Sarah Levy, who joins an exclusive club of top women executives, with a mission -- an IPO

The co-founder of the New York robo-advisor headhunted the ex-Viacom brass through Harvard professors on the down low to ostensibly scale operations.

December 8, 2020 at 5:27 PM

Envestnet nabs Dani Fava to cross-pollinate semi-autonomous units and reap 'financial wellness' as the end product

The Chicago outsourcer has a massive, partially disconnected arsenal of products that CEO Bill Crager is rationalizing into 'wellness' with yet another new unit.

July 23, 2020 at 1:42 AM

Behind the scenes, Envestnet's board of directors had much to tussle over before finally subtracting the 'interim' from Bill Crager's CEO title

With Jud Bergman gone at a chairman, a power struggle ensued to fill that spot, and the process dragged when taking the company private came under review

April 2, 2020 at 2:34 AM

Tim Hockey leaves baffled analysts (and everyone else) probing for answers to explain abrupt departure plan as TD Ameritrade CEO; It's about... nothing!

Discount brokers are facing myriad issues as trading fees continue sliding to zero, causing TD's board to seek a more RIA friendly CEO

August 8, 2019 at 6:32 PM

Dani Fava is out at Envestnet -- to capitalize on AI revolution at a new firm, she hints

The ex-TD Ameritrade talent was hired by CEO Bill Crager in 2020 to harmonize acquisitions -- not least MoneyGuidePro and Yodlee that the company still grapples with

March 20, 2024 at 1:25 AM

Tim Buckley sends shockwaves by retiring as Vanguard CEO after adding $750 billion per year during his stay in the executive suite

The 54 year-old lasted just over six years in the job, delivered on targets, but he also made head-scratching decisions and never solved its technology woes

March 1, 2024 at 3:35 AM

A canary in the coal mine, Amy Richardson left Charles Schwab & Co. for an RIA -- before the 2,000 layoffs -- now a robust job market is saving the Schwab diaspora, she says

The former Schwab director wants former colleagues to know life exists after Schwab and good job opportunities are plentiful in the financial services sector.

December 20, 2023 at 1:52 AM

Seven 'RIA' chief executives are stepping aside for CEO 'operators' as PE backers get 'trigger' happy in adverse market; here are their stories

Whether it's Edelman Financial Engines, SMArtX, Allworth or InvestCloud, the re-CEO-ing process follows a fat 2020 capital raise and thinner results in stormy financial markets.

September 7, 2023 at 9:46 PM

Biz Briefs: AdvicePay waives key hiring requirement to land its next CEO • ESG firms may get OK in Oklahoma • eMoney adds new chiefs • CFP Board names new chair-elect • Robinhood cuts more staff

Alan Moore replaces himself with another guy with two respectable titles • eMoney promotes two • Moisand's third in line now known • Robinhood sacks 173 in year-to-date.

July 26, 2023 at 2:34 AM

July 11, 2023 at 2:46 AM

Biz Briefs: The sorry scene at my local First Republic branch • Schwab launches new (smaller) lay-off round • Schwab hoovers pennies passing FINRA fee to clients • Gensler pleas for funds • Fidelity owner's private equity pres. retires • an Orion-Envestnet staff switcheroo • LPL dumps FutureAdvisor

Range Rovers screeched in and drivers joined a grim queue to get their cash, and cookie • The Schwab-TDA deal cull count now stands at roughly 3.5% of its staff • FMR's hockey star president has stepped down • SEC chief wants more enforcers • An Envestnet executive proves joining a rival is good business • LPL now has an in-house robot.

April 29, 2023 at 1:36 AM

Biz Briefs: Fidelity says humans beat robots, even for Gen Z • Joe Lonsdale's Opto starts signing RIA test-drivers • Vanguard launches oddly delayed fund • Wealthbox hires, and Dynasty buys

Fidelity wins Delta Airlines business with sweetener • Opto pairs-up with Riskalyze and Merchant • Moonfare raises $15 million • CAIS bucks real estate trend • Vanguard launches "curious[ly]" delayed fund • WealthBox, Dynasty, and others buy and hire.

March 8, 2023 at 3:28 AM

Another RIA whisperer, Julian Lopez, has left Schwab Advisor Services after 24 years to join LPL, which he sees as more advisor-focused and 'entrepreneurial'

The Houston executive, like Kelly Smith in Chicago, was considered a key service talent for RIAs though Lopez says his circumstances differ.

February 23, 2023 at 8:14 AM

November 18, 2022 at 2:56 AM

RIA recap: Bernie Clark promises to 'be there' for coming TDA-Schwab system snafus; Fidelity gets custody win; Vanguard dishes out big tax bill to investors

Schwab RIA chief petitions for 'patience' for coming merger inconveniences but 'repapering' is no culprit; Carrie Pomerantz gets Schwab board seat; Addepar wins $65 billion AUM contract.

November 3, 2022 at 1:59 AM

Robinhood gets 'brilliant' upper manager -- and a spare CEO -- by nabbing TD Ameritrade's ex-thinkorswim top exec, hopefully to throw a lifesaver to Robinhood's sinking stock

The Menlo Park, Calif., firm nabbed Steve Quirk as first-ever chief brokerage officer to 'bridge the gap between academia and reality.'

January 6, 2022 at 10:33 PM

Oisín's snippets: Charles Schwab brand goes up on Omaha's TD Ameritrade stadium, home of college baseball world series • Interactive Brokers lands an RIA custody insider, Charlie Latimer, to climb the custodian ladder

The TDA brand lives on until the techies figure out how to make two systems into one, but change is in the air in Omaha, while Interactive Brokers gets a leg up in the custody business with a new hire.

December 27, 2021 at 9:58 PM

Wealthfront cedes to four years of investors clamoring for crypto by taking on expensive third-party vendor that Betterment rules out

The Redwood City, Calif., robo-advisor turned a hard 'no' into a soft 'yes' by dealing with Grayscale and its 200 basis-point-plus fees, which its robo rival in NYC -- also without a crypto path -- finds ludicrous.

August 14, 2021 at 2:20 AM

Fidelity Investments is paying 2,000 employees to hasten their corporate exits, including high-profile RIA overseer, Sanjiv Mirchandani, as part of its shift to a digital future

The Boston giant offered voluntary buyout packages and the 4% of staff who accepted will leave by June 30 to give other staff room to grow careers and make room for hires.

June 24, 2021 at 5:39 PM

Jason Wenk raises $50 million from Vanguard Group and others, and Altruist may soon overtake Pershing's No. 3 RIA custodian spot, the Altruist founder asserts

The Los Angeles founder's disruption blitz involves a mobile-first Robinhood feel and a plug-and-play outsourcing one-stop-shop -- a sweet combination, except that it may not lure many big RIAs, analysts say.

May 20, 2021 at 3:22 AM

Envestnet and Edmond Walters end odd couple 'Apprise' relationship with buyout, but leave open the door to jointly pursue RIA-to-entrepreneur dashboard... later

The MoneyGuidePro owner and eMoney founder execute clean break with Apprise IP rebranded as 'Wealth Studio.' Walters off to the races with a startup and vague promise to collaborate later.

April 6, 2021 at 12:50 AM

Charles Schwab prunes another 200 or so staff but assures Wall Street analysts the Jenga piece of TD Ameritrade RIA services is still part of the puzzle post-merger

The Westlake, Tex., broker deemed John Tovar 'best talent,' hence a keeper, and ex-TD staffers affirm Schwab's good instincts.

February 11, 2021 at 12:08 AM

Second Betterment exec departs as new CEO Sarah Levy orients to her first month on the job and is confronted by personnel matters

Chief operating officer Dustin Lucien is the latest to leave the New York City robo-advisor, one of at least eight positions open as it prepares a push across multiple business lines to ignite growth.

January 19, 2021 at 6:32 PM

Wealthfront's unlikely tapping of Sheila Bair and Tom Curry signals likely push to gain a bank charter, analysts say

The Redwood City robo-advisor's addition of two renowned former chief banking regulators brings legitimacy and guidance that could lead to a margin-fattening bank charter and help solve the robo-advisor's problem of high client acquisition costs.

December 31, 2020 at 4:37 AM

Envestnet turns to former FIS executive -- and replaces a CTO -- to help shape up the firm's disparate offerings into a unified whole around the concept of 'wellness'

The Chicago outsourcer gets Donna Peeples to harmonize products and marketing to move beyond the 'TAMP' label as Orion contends for market share with Brinker added.

November 10, 2020 at 2:45 AM

Goldman Sachs nabs TD Ameritrade's Darla Sipolt for RIA custody; Kate Healy, Jim Dario and Peter Dorsey are among 1,000 staffers cut by Schwab post TD merger

Included in the wholesale reduction of the Omaha, Neb.-based broker's redundant talent, about 40% of TD Ameritrade's marketing staff also got word today they have no future with their San Francisco-based owner

October 27, 2020 at 1:20 AM

Oisín's Bits: Wealthfront drops old mission statement, declares war on institutions and emphasizes banking future • Seeking Utah charter, Edward Jones may become largest bank in US by branch count • After Advent chief leaves, Black Diamond head steps up

Andy Rachleff cans the old 'democratizing' mission statement at his robo; The 14,200 one-man Ed Jones branches may become branch banks; Steve Leivent consolidates power at SS&C.

July 3, 2020 at 1:12 AM

Mark Tibergien sets up Ben Harrison to challenge Schwabitrade with a $150 million cut to Pershing's minimum and millions more to develop Veo-busting technology

The CEO suite hand-off in Jersey City pulls a trigger on a plan to bypass Fidelity's and eventually Schwab's custody units by luring disaffected RIAs.

March 11, 2020 at 7:58 AM

Into the PIMCO void, Vanguard re-applies itself to active fixed-income funds and Bond Kings get a bitter taste of what the Peter Lynches of yesteryear learned the hard way

The Malvern, Pa. giant has only 24% of assets invested in bonds but nearly 40% of its portfolio staff are bond-directed as it seeks to exploit a world of high fees driven by fiefdoms and petty monarchs.

January 3, 2020 at 1:33 AM

Head of Schwab Private Client is apparent casualty as Charles Schwab slices $100 million in expenses by pink-slipping 600 staff in face of interest rate 'time bomb'

Schwab executive Chris Thom let go by Schwab as part of its efforts to reduce its workforce by 3% this week, a source says to get ahead of an expected Fed rate cut that will slash revenues.

September 18, 2019 at 4:39 AM

Walt Bettinger axes current and former Schwab retail chiefs, Terri Kallsen and Andy Gill; funnels responsibilities to Jonathan Craig, for now

The Schwab CEO is 'restructuring,' which includes cutting the Chairman's Club program that sent 200 top performers to Hawaii on a free junket

July 24, 2019 at 12:53 AM

TD Ameritrade's board suddenly pushes out Tim Hockey after his big misread of RIAs; Tom Bradley name-dropped as successor

The CEO broke the TD promise never to compete with RIAs, took it back and got sent packing

July 23, 2019 at 4:30 AM

With IPO clock at 10-years and ticking, Personal Capital makes two big, out-of-character moves to go upmarket and downmarket

With $9 billion in assets, the Redwood City-based national RIA hired the ex-Virgin America CMO Porter Gale to make one brand investors associates with both the freebie tools and the full-priced financial advice its advisors provide mostly from call centers

March 22, 2019 at 7:55 PM

October 19, 2018 at 7:41 PM

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