With a number of independent broker-dealers on the block, it's a buyers' market for those firms looking to expand their business through acquisition
After struggling during the darkest days of the credit crisis, SagePoint Financial Inc., which is owned by American International Group Inc., is back to playing offense, today closing a purchase of the assets of Spectrum Capital Inc.
The independent broker-dealer industry came roaring back in 2010, with the 25 biggest firms collectively reporting a 16.9% increase in total revenue, compared with the year before
Jefferies Group Inc. (JEF) agreed to pay about $2 million to resolve Financial Industry Regulatory Authority claims that three employees failed to disclose conflicts of interest while selling auction-rate securities.
The BofA-Merrill boss sounds set to take on recruiters, the threat of the rising RIA model, and anyone else who steps in her path
With a number of indie B-Ds shuttering in the last 12 months, nearly 2,400 reps have been forced to find new broker-dealers.
So who's the big winner in the QA3 rep sweepstakes? Right now, it looks like FSC Securities. The AIG unit is in line to snag 50 of the foundering B-D's reps.
A mediation session to resolve hundreds of millions of dollars of investor claims against Securities America Inc. failed to yield a settlement last week, as the firm's 1,800 reps and advisers continue to speculate on whether the firm will survive.
Service providers have an additional six months to prepare for plan fee disclosure regulations, and from the looks of it, broker-dealers are going to need all that time to make sure they're up to snuff.
Southwest Securities Inc. will pay $500,000 to resolve Financial Industry Regulatory Authority claims that the firm violated Municipal Securities Rulemaking Board rules by using paid consultants to solicit business.
Alan Harter's clients started suggesting more than two years ago that he should cut his Wall Street ties and become their independent investment adviser
Seek out advice from others who have gone out on their own
Broker-dealers without big corporate parents or the ability to tap public markets are making an all-out effort to raise capital, in some cases turning to their own clients for financing.
In what's become an all-too-familiar scene, another small, indie brokerage is closing up shop. Ensemble Financial Services Inc., located in Pittsford, N.Y. will soon be shuttering its B-D operation -- and its 85 registered reps will be moving on.
Two broker-dealers have emerged as early winners in the fight over the 400 representatives affiliated with QA3 Financial Corp., which officially shut down Friday
Securities Service Network Inc. is the latest broker-dealer to pull the plum out of the pie of the defunct <a href= http://www.investmentnews.com/section/broker-dealer-data-profile&R=290006&Y=2009 >QA3 Financial Corp.</b>
Independent broker-dealers depend on hiring new advisers to keep their businesses growing -- and in 2011 they're likely to ramp up recruiting in the first half before the onset of new Dodd-Frank rules, according to an <i>InvestmentNews</i> analysis.
Among the largest independent broker-dealers, Commonwealth Financial Network has the highest concentration of financial advisers who produce more than $500,000 annually, according to InvestmentNews <a href=http://www.investmentnews.com/section/broker-dealer-data>data. And it's reached the top by getting people out the door: Namely, its advisers.
