Ole Miss will offer financial literacy class for student athletes (The Clarion-Ledger)
The University of Mississippi has partnered with Regions Bank to develop a financial literacy class for student athletes. The goal of the class is to teach athletes how to manage their finances, build credit and save for their future. The Clarion-Ledger says, "About 35 student-athletes are expected to take the course this spring with an additional 125 set to take it this summer."
The top 5 things to look for when selling your practice (Investment News)
Often times a retiring advisor sells his or her practice to someone who has a different approach to the industry than they do. This can be troubling as the final dollar amount of the sale is often tied to post-transaction earn-out revenues. Investment News suggests these five things to make sure your business is in good hands when you retire: 1) Make sure the buyer will communicate with clients in a way they prefer, 2) Does the buyer's culture mesh with your current employees, 3) Can the buyer show a track record of growing a business, 4) Has the buyer successfully purchased similar businesses, 5) Does the buyer have a plan to integrate your business into his.
The RIA app is here (Think Advisor)
Gerber Kawasaki Wealth & Investment Management of Santa Monica, California has launched a mobile phone app with the goal of steering new clients to their services. The app helps users monitor budget and retirement goals, calculate their net worth and keep tabs on investment and bank account information. "Many of our clients live and die on their phones now, so being on that real estate is really critical," noted President and CEO Ross Gerber.
RIA deals are slowing (Financial Planning)
Data out from Schwab Advisor Services showed registered investment advisor deals were flat in 2014 when compared to the prior year with aggregate acquired assets under management climbing 8.5% to $47.4 billion. Jon Beatty, senior vice president for sales and relationship management for Schwab Advisor Services, says deals have slowed because "at least 70% of the firms in our benchmarking study said they were focused on internal transitions."
The SEC is probing JP Morgan's asset management division (Business Insider)
Bloomberg says the Securities and Exchange Commission is looking into whether JP Morgan Securities"adopted a strategy that uses bonuses and other incentives to encourage their financial advisers to steer clients improperly into in-house funds, structured notes and other investments that generate fees for the bank." A spokesman for the bank declined to comment.