InvestmentNews argued last week that the entire regulatory system for the financial industry needs to be revamped, after an independent commission has thoroughly reviewed the factors that contributed to the mess.
In times like these, when the equity markets swing wildly and just about everything can look cheap from certain angles, the focus on value has to be especially precise.
The crisis that has swept the financial markets in the past few months, beginning with the collapse of The Bear Stearns Cos. Inc. of New York and continuing with the bailout of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, and now the government takeover of American International Group Inc. of New York, makes obvious the need to revamp totally the nation's financial-markets regulation.
The immediate reaction to last week's federal takeover of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac was overwhelmingly positive.
I read Libby Dubick's Marketing Strategies column, "Grit your teeth and make that call," in the Aug. 19 issue on reaching out to clients during this volatile time, and I couldn't agree with her more.
Financial planners and investment advisers are likely to have a hard time calming their clients over the next few months as the mortgage crisis continues to roil the financial markets.
The current uncertainty surrounding the equity markets and the overall economy, tied largely to the troubled banking industry, is playing right into the hands of Stephen Goddard, co-portfolio manager of the $80 million <b>AFBA 5 Star Balanced Fund </b>(AFSAX).
