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1 week ago | 
investmentnews.com | Leo Almazora
While alts-focused advisors might not be putting their clients in BlackRock's new public-private model portfolios anytime soon, they're certainly counting it as a step in the right direction for the industry. To quickly recap: In late March, BlackRock launched a new series of customizable model portfolios, which combine public and private market investments in a UMA structure.
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1 week ago | 
investmentnews.com | Leo Almazora
Schwab is taking a strategic step beyond the world of investing as it unveiled a minority investment in Wealth.com, an estate planning platform geared toward financial advisors. The minority stake, announced Wednesday, marks a push by the online brokerage and RIA custody giant to broaden its wealth management capabilities in line with evolving investor needs.
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1 week ago | 
investmentnews.com | Leo Almazora
A former UBS Financial Services broker has been permanently barred from the securities industry after Finra found he secretly borrowed $738,000 from two clients and misused a portion of the funds. Manuel F. Melendez, who had been registered with UBS from 2007 until his departure in April 2023, consented to the ban without admitting or denying the findings, according to a Letter of Acceptance, Waiver, and Consent finalized April 15.
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1 week ago | 
investmentnews.com | Leo Almazora
Savvy Wealth, the digital-first wealth platform with a professed mission to modernize human advice, is strengthening its legal and compliance core with another veteran addition to its leaderhip. The firm announced Wednesday that it has hired Lisandra Wilmott as its first head of legal and compliance, a move aimed at strengthening the company’s operational foundation as it expands its national RIA affiliate, Savvy Advisors.
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1 week ago | 
investmentnews.com | Leo Almazora
Bleakley Financial Group and RBC Wealth Management have each added more than $1 billion in client assets through recent advisor moves, as competition to recruit top talent in the RIA and wirehouse channels continues to intensify. On Wednesday, Bleakley annnounced it had brought on two advisory teams formerly affiliated with Northwestern Mutual. Together, the teams represent more than $1 billion in assets and expand Bleakley’s reach into Virginia, Florida and Idaho.
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1 week ago | 
investmentnews.com | Leo Almazora
LPL Financial has introduced a new tier in its leadership structure, elevating five senior executives to managing director roles – a move the firm says reflects its ongoing growth and evolving operational complexity. The newly appointed managing directors are Christa Carone, Gary Carrai, Brett Goodman, Scott Posner and Brent Simonich. Each had previously served as executive vice presidents within the organization.
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1 week ago | 
investmentnews.com | Leo Almazora
Two wealthtech platforms have announced new integrations designed to streamline data workflows and deepen the advisor-client planning experience, with both updates converging on a common partner: eMoney. Wealth.com and PreciseFP each unveiled integrations that connect with eMoney’s financial planning ecosystem, as the broader wealthtech sector continues to prioritize automation and efficiency in light of heightened client expectations.
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1 week ago | 
investmentnews.com | Leo Almazora
Creative Planning and EP Wealth Advisors each expanded their national footprints through separate acquisitions on Tuesday, marking continued momentum in the continuing story of RIA industry consolidation. Creative Planning, one of the largest RIAs in the US, revealed it has acquired Monterey Private Wealth, a California-based firm with over $1 billion in client assets. The deal, which closed March 31, extends Creative Planning’s presence along the West Coast.
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1 week ago | 
investmentnews.com | Leo Almazora
Opal Wealth Advisors, an independent RIA based in New York, is looking to supercharge its growth strategy with a veteran hire to its C-suite. On Tuesday, the firm announced Kayla Kennelly, a former vice president at Goldman Sachs, as its new chief growth officer, a move the firm says will help shape its long-term strategy and deepen its client base.
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1 week ago | 
investmentnews.com | Leo Almazora
It's been just over 80 days since President Donald Trump took office for his second turn at the White House, with little time wasted declaring tariffs on scores of US trading partners across the world. And at this point, 12 days since his latest "Liberation Day" tariff orders sparked record turbulence in the stock markets and precipitated a seismic selloff in Treasuries, it's probably safe to say: it's the end of the world economic order as we know it, and Americans aren't feeling fine.
