Advisors Should Ask Themselves A Few Key Questions Before Joining The Ranks Of RIAs

What Advisors Should Ask Themselves Before Switching To RIAs (The Wall Street Journal)

It has become increasingly popular for advisors to make the switch to registered investment advisors (RIAs). Tom Daley of Illinois-based The Advisor Center says there are three types of RIAs that advisors can switch to 1. Broker-dealer model 2. RIA-only model 3. The hybrid model. Advisors should pick the model that's right for them based on where they are in their business cycle and what services they want to offer their clients.

"If the adviser would prefer to be independent, then tucking into the RIA-only or hybrid model may be the right move," he writes in a Wall Street Journal column. "...Going the hybrid route, meanwhile, lets advisers recruit the broadest range of financial advisers to work alongside them and use multiple custodians."

The #1 Thing Hedge Fund Managers Are Worried About Right Now (Bank of America)

Hedge fund managers are most concerned about a Chinese hard landing and a collapse in commodity prices according to BofA Merrill Lynch's November Global Fund Manager Survey.

$900 Million Team Leaves UBS To Start New Firm (Investment News)

Five UBS advisors that managed $900 million in clients assets have left to start independent investment advisory firm, Fusion Family Wealth, according to Joyce Hanson at Investment News. The firm was founded by Jonathan Blau, and includes Harvey Radler, Jeffrey Blick, Joel Bodner, and James Cloudman, all from UBS.

Three RIAs Are Celebrated By Charles Schwab At IMPACT Conference (FA Mag)

Charles Schwab has honored three registered investment advisors (RIAs) at the Schwab IMPACT 2013 conference in Washington, D.C. Atlanta-based Homrich Berg won Schwab's Best-In-Business Award, reports FA Mag. This award goes to independent advisory firms that have been in business for 10 year and have a "track record of growth and excellence and technology solutions that have helped expand market reach, responsiveness and operational efficiencies," according to FA Mag.

Paracle Advisors has won the Pacesetter Award, which goes to firms that have been in business for 10 years or less and that have shown promise. Meanwhile, Evensky & Katz Wealth Management won the Trailblazer Award, for "combining entrepreneurial spirit with a drive to advance the industry's interests as a whole," reports FA Mag.

Russ Koesterich: 4 Reasons We're Not In A Bubble (BlackRock)

Despite investor concerns about a stock market bubble. BlackRock's Russ Koesterich points to four reasons to show why they're not. 1. Valuations aren't cheap but they're far from previous cycle peaks. 2. Valuations are more "reasonable" outside the U.S. Stocks look cheap compared to bonds. 4. Many investors are still underweight stocks. As long as margins are high and interest rates are low Koesterich sees room for stocks to move higher.