Bank Investment Consultant articles from April 2003

Bank Investment Consultant archives from April 2003

Will War Be Good For The Markets?
April 1, 2003... For an angst-ridden America, no news is not good news. Political reasons for a U.S. invasion of Iraq aside, a brief war would probably boost the stock markets, paving the way for the promised economic rebound we've been anticipating for...

Wachovia-Pru Is On, USB-PJ Is Over: Two of the nation's biggest banks are heading resolutely in opposite directions regarding the brokerage business. Which way is the right way?
April 1, 2003... Within hours of each other on Feb. 19, Wachovia Bank announced that its long-running pursuit of Prudential Financial's brokerage had been completed, and Minneapolis-based U.S. Bancorp said it would spin off Piper Jaffray. Wachovia and...

People on the Move.
April 1, 2003... The Phoenix Cos amed Dona D. Young as chairman, succeeding Robert W. Fiondella, who is retiring. Phoenix, a major underwriter and asset manager, has recently made a big push to increase bank-channel distribution. Young was named CEO on...

LTCI Carriers Cool to Bank Channel: Employer-sponsored plans are key to reaching younger buyers. But hurry, since reverse mortgages are gaining popularity to fund nursing-home care.
April 1, 2003... More than 100 underwriters sell long-term- care insurance, but the top dozen carriers dominate the market. Among them, only a few are active players in the bank channel: GE Capital, John Hancock and CNA. Two big carriers, Massachusetts...

Odds & Ends.
April 1, 2003... Banc One and Bank of New York have chosen Transamerica Investment Management as part of the management for their separate-account programs. Bank One's subsidiary, Banc One Securities Corp., headquartered in Columbus, Ohio, recently launched...

Northeast Online Aspirations: Big East Coast banks mull ShareBuilder for their smaller investors, while BISA chooses its new leadership roster. Hibernia to investors: Don't duck.
April 1, 2003... Several banks in the Northeast are in discussions with online trading company NetStock for the banks to offer the firm's ShareBuilder dollar-cost averaging service etStock already has partnerships with more than two dozen banks; its biggest...

Fidelity Creates Reward Card: Families can direct up to 2% back into a 529 account ew products are seen from FAME, ING, Brinker, Manulife and American Express Financial Group.
April 1, 2003... * Fidelity and MBNA launched a new college-savings reward credit card that allows families to earn 2% back on all eligible purchases, which can be directed into a Fidelity-managed 529 plan account. With no limit on the rewards dollars...

Product Profile: Selling Complex Products.
April 1, 2003... Many bank-based brokerages and insurance operations still make their living with relatively simple packaged products. And with the recent growth of platform-based Series 6 programs, the roles of the core mutual fund and the fixed annuity are...

What Proposed Savings Accounts Mean.
April 1, 2003... Lifetime Savings Accounts (LSAs), Retirement Savings Accounts (RSAs) and Employer Retirement Saving Accounts (ERSAs) could dramatically change reps' lives, making them more like advisers and less like administrators. But can the proposals...

Ross J. Price, Macatawa Bank: Price had always wanted to be a broker ow that he has found a start-up program in western Michigan, his production is set to go sky high.
April 1, 2003... Macatawa Bank in Zeeland, Mich., has only been around since 1997, and the brokerage program is even newer. It got its approvals from the National Association of Securities Dealers in June 2002 and opened for business the next month. The bank...

Rep Data.
April 1, 2003... 2002 AUM: $5 million Production: $36,000 (six months) Licenses: 7, 24, life, health Copyright 2003 Thomson Media Inc. All Rights Reserved.

Banks Central to Restoring Trust: Bank reps can do well by doing good. In helping to restore trust in markets, they can position themselves as the central source of guidance.
April 1, 2003... Investors remain gun-shy, and are staying away from the market in droves. A study competed late last year by PriceWaterhouseCoopers indicates that reticence comes from a crisis of confidence in markets, and says specifically that financial...

8 Simple Rules for Creating a Profitable SMA Program.
April 1, 2003... As the newest "it product," the separately managed account is rapidly becoming an indispensable investment tool in banks' wealth management toolboxes. And with assets projected to grow annually at 23%, SMAs are poised to become the hottest...

Let the Sunshine In: To help Quick & Reilly transform from a discount shop to a full-service brokerage, FleetBoston hired Jane-Marie Baker from Schwab to lead one of Q&R's fastest-growing regions, Florida and New Orleans. Let the games begin.
April 1, 2003... FleetBoston Financial wants its Quick & Reilly brokerage subsidiary to be the new Charles Schwab and the new Merrill Lynch-not the old Schwab or the next Merrill-but to beat the wirehouses and supermarkets to the punch. The bank believes it...

Group Data.
April 1, 2003... Quick & Reilly AUM end 2002: $40 billion Number of clients: 1.8 million Number of reps: 1,100, with plans to add 300 by the end of 2003 Copyright 2003 Thomson Media Inc. All Rights Reserved.

Options Expertise Isn't an Option: Even though the stock market is in its third year of a downturn, stock options remain a hot accessory for the executive who has everything. Don't risk losing your executive-level clients.
April 1, 2003... In developing banks' ever-more complicated corporate relationships, having no in-house specialist to handle the intricacies of employee stock options is simply, well, not an option-especially for those that use this niche as an entree to...

Profit Potential for Hypothetical Stock-Options Grant*.
April 1, 2003... (part 1 of 2) Year 1 2 3 4 5 Vesting - 20% 40% 60% 80% Vested Shares (000s) 10 20 30 40 Market Price (US$) $8 ...

Cleaning Up With a QTIP Trust: Want to make sure your second husband is provided for during his lifetime but that he won't leave your remaining assets to his own children instead of yours from your first marriage? Oy vey.
April 1, 2003... Estate planning can be especially messy when several families are blended into one, but a client's estate troubles can be cleaned up with a QTIP trust. When one or both spouses have children from previous marriages, conflicts can often...

Beyond Cross-Selling: No new distribution channels are likely to emerge, but several vendors are attempting innovative approaches that can help bank brokers keep their prospect pipeline from draining to dry.
April 1, 2003... Distribution managers for both banks and service companies agree that the low-hanging fruit has all been picked, but there are still pools of untapped potential for bank-based brokers and insurance agents one are as obvious or as easy to reach...

DANs, DANs, for Everyone: BofA and ABN Amro pioneered the retail business for these $1,000, adviser-sold bonds. The market has grown to $42 billion over the last four years, and it's only getting hotter.
April 1, 2003... Financial advisers sell most of their investments in competition with many other vendors, and often in direct competition with their suppliers who sell directly to the public via Internet, mail or telephone. But in a rare cooperative...

Asset Allocation.
April 1, 2003... Jordan Miller Fifth Third Securities Balanced Growth Balanced Income Intermediate Long Intermedia Long Stocks (U.S.): 53% 53% 37% 37% ...

Banks Beckon American Century: Long a competitor in direct sales and retirement plans, American Century has shifted 10 of its best funds to a new adviser-sold- only group. And therein lies opportunity. Lots of it.
April 1, 2003... Kansas City, Mo., was the point of departure for many ambitious expeditions, few more so than the foray by American Century Funds into adviser-sold distribution. About half of the top two dozen retail fund complexes in the U.S. have a...

Funds Closed to Direct Investment from Consumers.
April 1, 2003... As of 12/31/02 Overall Morningstar Ratings International Growth * * * New Opportunities II NA: fund has not been rated Select * * * * Large-Company...

Processing Enters Technology Age: Annuity transactions are still living in the last century, where no one's ever heard the phrase "paperless office." All that's set to change now, though, as AnnuityNet, Streampoint and InfoOne launch platform options.
April 1, 2003... Financial firms have been more successful in automating their information- intensive business processes than perhaps any other industry. That is, except for fixed- and variable-annuity transactions, which still burden bank advisers and their...

Carriers.
April 1, 2003... Carrier AnnuityNet Info One Aegon/Transamerica X O AIG/SunAmerica X X AIG/American General O O Allianz O ...

The Rush Toward DCCs and DSAs: Credit insurance is the most common insurance offered by banks, but that fact will soon be history. More banks are beginning to offer the potentially more lucrative DCCs and DSAs, regulated as "banking products.".
April 1, 2003... Although most banks sell at least one of the four types of credit insurance, dwindling profit margins and regulatory headaches are prompting more banks to offer debt-cancellation contracts instead. And add the federal government's...

Clearing the Way: Outsourcing your clearing and execution needs may be the best idea.
April 1, 2003... Every April, as the tax deadline looms over us, investors tend to think more about their portfolios and investment vehicles in general. If your clients are asking about alternatives to reach their financial goals, you need to be confident...

Fidelity Investments Correspondent Clearing Services.
April 1, 2003... Broker-dealers have always operated in a very demanding business environment, driven by competitive pressures and strict regulatory oversight. However, given the unprecedented market environment of the past two and a half years, broker-dealers...

Pershing LLC.
April 1, 2003... Powerful tools are required in these changing times in order keep pace with competition. That is why Pershing will offer a collection of new technology products in 2003 to help you effectively manage your business and keep you in front of the...

SWS Financial Services, Inc.
April 1, 2003... Bob Gioia, President, SWS Financial Services, Inc. I spend a lot of time answering the "why" question, as in, "Why should I conduct my business through your firm?" In reply, I always say that you should do business with us if you find that...

Wedbush Morgan Securities.
April 1, 2003... Jeff Martin, Vice President, Correspondent Services In this constantly changing market, there is still one thing that everyone can always depend on. That is Wedbush Morgan Securities' financial stability, strong operating controls, and...

Death and Taxes: Paying taxes is inevitable, but some funds are helping investors soften the blow.
April 1, 2003... Smart investors are always conscious of exactly how their financial portfolio will affect the amount of money they owe Uncle Sam in taxes. This April, with the economic climate that we have seen, investors are all the more interested in making...

Eaton Vance Tax-Managed Value Fund.
April 1, 2003... Michael Mach, CFA and a Vice President at Eaton Vance Management, joined Eaton Vance in 1999. Investment Outlook: During the last three years, there has been a marked swing in market leadership from aggressive growth investing toward...

Fidelity Advisor Tax Managed Stock Fund.
April 1, 2003... Tim Heffernan, portfolio manager. Investment Outlook As portfolio manager of Fidelity Advisor Tax Managed Stock Fund, I positioned the fund with a higher percentage of stocks in industries - such as labor staffing, media and energy...

Liberty Tax Managed Value Fund.
April 1, 2003... Scott Schermerhorn has managed the fund since its inception in June 1999. He is a member of the tax management oversight team and head of the large value equity department. Investment Outlook: We all know that taxes can reduce...

Pioneer Core Equity Fund.
April 1, 2003... John A. Carey, CFA, is head of Pioneer's equity team and has over 22 years of investment experience. Investment Outlook We are encouraged by positive economic signs, including low interest rates, moderate inflation, and high...

Fortune 500(r) Index Fund.
April 1, 2003... SSgA Funds Management, Inc. manages the fund. Product Description The Fortune 500(r) Index Fund is an exchange traded fund based on Fortunes' list of the 500 largest companies in the US ranked by total operating revenue. The fund is an...

The Psychology of Senior Clients: Seniors require more delicate handling than other kinds of clients. They value integrity and experience-and are more concerned with protecting their assets than growing them. They also distrust jargon.
April 1, 2003... Selling to seniors, for bank reps, requires a clear understanding of these clients' psychology. Many seniors share the same psychological tendencies. To be successful in this market, you have to heed these differences. Seniors have been...