CFP Board in the News

The selected articles provided below are among the many media references to CFP Board, its leadership, and its initiatives. Links to the articles cited above go to third party Web sites, some of which may require a registration or a subscription in order to view the original material, and articles may be available on the original sites for a limited time.

May 2012
April 2012
March 2012
February 2012
January 2012
2011 Articles

FINRA comes up with cost projections for its SRO and the CFP Board blasts them
FINRA is still angry that Boston Consulting Group did not consult them and says they created numbers "out of thin air"

At the end of April, FINRA issued a two-page report, complete with numbers, arguing that its startup costs would be only one-tenth of what BCG's report stated, and that continuing costs would amount to less than half of BCG's projected figures.

BCG, in turn, released its own review of the FINRA calculations soon after, pointing out discrepancies with the BCG estimates and potential omissions. The CFP Board, one of the groups that funded the BCG study and review, contends FINRA's numbers were inaccurate and didn't include all costs.

FINRA, in turn, is taking strong issue with that contention, saying BCG doesn't know what it's talking about and has no understanding of the workings of a nationwide examination program. "They are inventing the numbers out of thin air," says Nancy Condon, FINRA spokesperson.

"The organization that appears to be pulling numbers out of thin air is FINRA," responds Marilyn Mohrman-Gillis, managing director of public policy and communications for the Certified Financial Planner Board of Standards Inc., one of the groups that funded the BCG study, pointing to the in-depth analysis and statement of assumptions in the 20-page BCG cost review compared with the short two-page report FINRA released on its costs. Read more >

RIA Biz
Kelly O'Mara
May 14, 2012

The 10 Habits of a Good Financial Advisor

No other certification holds more weight than the CERTIFIED FINANCIAL PLANNER[™ certification]. Advisors who've earned it are more likely to act as a fiduciary planner because they've been trained like one. Read more >

Daily Finance
Tim Beyers
May 11, 2012

Group Disputes FINRA's SRO Cost Estimates; FINRA Calls Findings Amusing

Last year, the [Financial Planning Coalition] released a study conducted by Boston Consulting Group estimating high costs if FINRA were to become the SRO: $200 million to $250 million in startup costs and $460 million to $510 million for ongoing operations. The coalition says these expenses could be passed on to advisors in annual fees to the tune of $51,700, or much more, per firm, depending on its size. By comparison, FINRA recently released a two-page document with much lower estimates: $12 to $15 million in startup costs versus $150 to $155 million in ongoing operating costs. The new review comes in response to these FINRA numbers.

"They have left out important accounting of costs," Marilyn Mohrman-Gillis, the CFP Board's managing director of public policy and communications, said as she was on her way to meetings on the matter with members of the U.S. House of Representatives Financial Services Committee. "It would seem to us that they are drawing on their existing oversight operation. This raises concerns that a FINRA SRO would be truly independent." Read more >

Financial Planning
Ann Marsh
May 10, 2012

More Colleges Adding Financial Planner Programs

The growth in the number of colleges that offer financial planning as a major is giving financial advisers who are looking for new hires a lot to cheer about.

The number of colleges that have registered with the Certified Financial Planner Board of Standards Inc. to offer approved planning programs has grown to 130, up 20% from two years ago, and dozens more schools are in the process of registering, said Charles Chaffin, manager of academic programs at the CFP Board.

The growth in interest is largely being driven by job growth in the advice industry, he said.

The Bureau of Labor Statistics estimates the number of financial services jobs to grow by 32% over the next 10 years.

"Colleges are having to look very pragmatically at programs that are going to place students into lucrative and growing careers," Mr. Chaffin said. Read more >

Investment News
Jason Kephart
April 29, 2012

Bipartisan Support for SRO in Question

Proponents of legislation that would shift the oversight of investment advisers from the Securities and Exchange Commission to a self-regulatory organization — perhaps the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority Inc. — assert that the bill has bipartisan momentum.

But the top Democrat on the House Financial Services Committee won't sign on, because he questions whether the financial industry should police itself....

"Finra's analysis [of the estimated startup costs for an SRO] raises concerns about the independence of this oversight infrastructure it says it can put in place, and the ability of the infrastructure to meet the unique needs of investment advisers," said Marilyn Mohrman-Gillis, the CFP Board's managing director of communications and public policy. Read more >

Investment News
Mark Schoeff Jr.
April 29, 2012

Simply Money: Your Emotions May Be Costly

Who to turn to: If you do decide to start working with an advisor, we believe that it is critical to start the financial planning process with a written plan that has been designed by a [CERTIFIED FINANCIAL PLANNER™ professional] who has passed the rigorous exams and agreed to abide by the CFP Board's Code of Ethics. Read more >

Cincinnati.com
Nathan Bachrach and Ed Finke
April 26, 2012

CFP Board's New Chief Investigator Adds Enforcement Muscle

The organization that grants the primary financial planning credential has added muscle to its enforcement arm.

Last Monday, Rex Staples became the first director of investigations at the Certified Financial Planner Board of Standards Inc. He will oversee a burgeoning agenda.

Creation of the position reflects the growth in the number of CFP[® professional] designation holders, a group that has increased by 20% in the past five years to about 65,000 in the United States, and the heightened need to enforce the certification's code of ethics, said Kevin Keller, the CFP Board's chief executive. Read more >

Investment News
Mark Schoeff Jr.
April 15, 2012

CFP Board to Out Planners Who Go Bankrupt
Highlighting such filings should help the public make more-informed decisions when choosing a financial planner, group says

Under current rules, a CFP[® professional] who has declared bankruptcy within the last five years is be subject to an investigation and potential disciplinary action, including suspension or revocation of the CFP® designation. A CFP[® professional] candidate with a bankruptcy is barred from applying until five years after the bankruptcy.

CFP [Board] officials said there is inequity in a situation where some CFP® mark holders avoid any kind of public notice of their financial difficulties, while CFP[® professional] applicants have to wait several more years before they can join the organization.

"We needed to come up with a procedure that is more fair to these two groups of people and provides more information to the public," Michael Shaw, the CFP Board's managing director for professional standards and legal, told reporters on a conference call. Read more >

Investment News
Mark Schoeff Jr.
April 5, 2012

CFP Board Makes a Raft of Changes -- Including Plans to Send Out Press Releases About CFP[® Professionals] Who Declare Bankruptcy

The CFP Board announced today that it has shored up its rules and procedures regarding the Certified Financial Planner Board of Standards Inc. certification including more public disclosure for CFP® professionals who file bankruptcy.

"As part of our mission to benefit the public, we must continue to re-examine and improve upon the Certified Financial Planner Board of Standards certification and our processes to enforce its high standards," says Board of Directors chairman Alan Goldfarb, CFP®, in a statement. "The changes approved by the Board of Directors further support our mission and reinforce the CFP® certification's status as the standard for ethical and competent personal financial planning." Read more >

RIA Biz
Lisa Shidler
April 5, 2012

CFP Board to Make Planner Bankruptcies Public

Bankruptcy among holders of the CERTIFIED FINANCIAL PLANNER™ designation has been rising....

The CFP Board thinks investors should know about it. Under new rules announced today, it will issue press releases on the bankruptcies, making such cases available to investors who surf the Internet to search an advisor's name. At the same time, the board will drop bankruptcy as a cause for disciplinary action in many cases.

Effective July 1, the board will note such filings on the certificant's posting on the CFP [Board]'s website, and report on the bankruptcy filings in press releases that will come out at least four times a year. The board also said it will discontinue its practice of investigating certificants in bankruptcy—when such cases aren't accompanied by allegations of other bad practices—and forwarding such cases to its Disciplinary and Ethics Commission.
Read more >

Registered Rep
Jerry Gleeson
April 5, 2012

Financial Planners' Money Woes to Get More Attention

The names of all CERTIFIED FINANCIAL PLANNER™ [professionals] who file for bankruptcy will be publicly available under rule changes announced on Thursday by the group that oversees CFP[® professionals].

Previously, the Certified Financial Planner Board of Standards, a nonprofit based in Washington, would only release the names of CFP[® professionals] who had been publicly sanctioned for having a bankruptcy filing.

CFP[® professionals] could avoid this public sanction by convincing the board that the bankruptcy was not their fault, for example, because it resulted from medical costs. A few of the 49 CFP[® professionals] investigated last year were able to keep their sanctions private, the board said. Read more >

Reuters
Jennifer Hoyt Cummings
April 5, 2012

CFP Board Changes Rules for Bankruptcies, Disciplinary Procedures

After taking public comment, CFP Board announced new changes to its rules and procedures in three areas, including the way it handles bankruptcies among certificants and applicants.

Going forward, the board will issue a news release four times a year, publicizing all bankruptcy-only cases and will no longer take the time to investigate these bankruptcies when public filings about them are readily available. So-called bankruptcy-only cases involve planners who are not under investigation for other issues by the board. Currently, the board submits all such bankruptcies to a disciplinary procedure, which can result in some actions that are not made public. Read more >

Financial Planning
Ann Marsh
April 5, 2012

Fiduciary Advocates Urge SEC Not to Reinvent Wheel

Several organizations backing higher standards for retail investment advice are urging the SEC to require brokers to act in the best interests of clients with some adjustments for their business practices rather than formulate a new approach to fiduciary duty....

"The goal in writing the new rules should be to extend the existing [Investment Advisers Act of 1940] standard to brokers, while clarifying its applicability in the context of broker-dealer conduct, rather than to replace the Advisers Act standard with something new and different," the letter states.

The letter was signed by the Consumer Federation of America, Fund Democracy Inc., AARP, the Certified Financial Planner Board of Standards Inc., the Financial Planning Association, the Investment Adviser Association and the National Association of Personal Financial Advisors. Read more >

Investment News
Mark Schoeff, Jr.
April 1, 2012

To Break Fiduciary Deadlock, Groups Lay Out Path for SEC

Hoping to break the stalemate in the Securities and Exchange Commission's efforts to write a rule to put brokers under a fiduciary mandate, seven leading consumer and industry organizations supporting a uniform fiduciary duty provided the SEC on Thursday with a "roadmap" for resolving the debate about how to create that rule.

To move the current "deadlocked" process forward, the groups say the "compromise framework" uses a July 2011 letter from the Securities Industry and Financial Markets Association (SIFMA) as a starting point to the SEC finding "common ground" with many of the groups' positions and suggesting a path forward where there is disagreement.

The organizations represented in the letter are the Consumer Federation of America, Fund Democracy, AARP, Certified Financial Planner Board of Standards, Inc., Financial Planning Association, Investment Adviser Association, and the National Association of Personal Financial Advisors. Read more >

AdvisorOne
Melanie Waddell
March 30, 2012

Industry Groups Submit New Fiduciary Roadmap to SEC

In an effort to break a deadlock in the SEC's effort to adopt a uniform fiduciary standard, a group of seven influential consumer groups and industry organizations – including the FPA, NAPFA and CFP Board – have provided the commission with a proposed roadmap for resolving the debate....

Kevin Keller, chief executive officer, CFP Board of Standards:

"In a recent consumer survey conducted by CFP Board, we found that 67% of Americans believe that the government has a role in protecting investors from fraud and abuse. Establishing a uniform fiduciary standard for broker-dealers is an essential step towards providing that protection. CFP® professionals have successfully delivered financial planning services, using a variety of business and compensation models, under a fiduciary standard of conduct so we know it can be done. We join with other public interest, consumer and industry groups to offer the SEC a practical, common sense, framework for a fiduciary rule that works for both consumers and financial service professionals." Read more >

Financial Planning
Ann Marsh
March 30, 2012

CFP Board Urges Better Disclosures, Clearer Language For Investors

Investors need simpler, easier to understand disclosures that are written in plain English and are provided before the investor hires a financial intermediary, according to the Certified Financial Planner (CFP) Board of Standards Inc., which issued proposed new disclosure language guidelines on Monday.

The CFP Board outlined its suggestions on how investor language can be simplified in a 12-page letter sent to Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) Secretary Elizabeth M. Murphy. The SEC is currently conducting its own study on financial literacy among investors. Read more >

Financial Advisor
March 27, 2012

CFP Board to SEC: Require Clear and Simple Language for Investors

In order to make better financial decisions, investors need simple, easy-to-understand disclosures written in plain English and provided before they hire a planner, the CFP Board recommended to the SEC.

"We believe that investor education, including timely and effective disclosures, is important to the protection of investors, regardless of who is providing the advice," CFP Board Chief Executive Officer Kevin Keller wrote in a letter to the commission. "The additional disclosure requirements we recommend, many of which are currently embraced by CFP® professionals under our Code of Professional Conduct, will help investors make key financial decisions including what type of advisor is best suited for them," according to Keller.

The CFP Board sent the letter to the SEC as part of the commission's study of financial literacy among investors. Read more >

Financial Planning
Ann Marsh
March 26, 2012

CFP Board's Keller Says New 'Top Cop' Will Beef Up Investigations

Kevin Keller, CEO of CFP Board, told AdvisorOne that the Board's new director of investigations named March 15 would help police the growing number of CFP[® professionals]. Rex Staples, the former general counsel for the North American Securities Administrators Association (NASAA), will start his new post as "top cop" on April 9, and will head a nine-person team to monitor and enforce compliance with the CFP Board's Standards of Professional [Conduct]....

Keller said the decision to create the new post and appoint Staples is not due to an increase in the number of compliance cases handled by the organization, but rather, said Keller, "to build our capacity to achieve our mission of benefiting the public." Read more >

AdvisorOne
Marlene Y. Satter
March 23, 2012

SEC Chief: Require Brokers to Put Investors First

After President Obama in 2009 appointed Mary Schapiro to become the 29th chairman of the Securities and Exchange Commission, she hung a sign in her office with this message: "How does it help investors." This ethos – conceptually simple if often devilishly complex in its application – is the lens through which Schapiro views every agency task.

I interviewed Schapiro after she spoke at the annual seminar of the Securities Industry and Financial Markets Association (SIFMA) Compliance and Legal Society. In her keynote address, she underscored the SEC's mission to protect investors, while balancing the need to create an environment where financial institutions can operate efficiently and contribute to the growth of the U.S. economy....

Schapiro says that the nuances of suitability and fiduciary standards "puts investors in a terrible situation, where they are forced to parse out complicated legal concepts." As a result, she supports the fiduciary standard…which puts retail customers' interests first. But many of [SIFMA's] constituents are fighting hard to water down the definition in the name of preserving "customer choice of and access to financial products and services."

To wrap up, I asked Schapiro what questions investors should ask potential advisors or brokers. She encourages everyone to conduct background checks on the SEC and FINRA websites or the site of the North American Securities Administrators Association (a group of state-level securities regulators), as well as the Certified Financial Planner Board of Standards site. Read more >

CBS MoneyWatch
Jill Schlesinger
March 21, 2012

Retirement Plan's Basic Rules Still Work: Cut Expenses, Save

One of your best moves may be to see how much of those expenses you can reduce or eliminate. "If you can enter retirement without debt, you have so much more flexibility," says Eleanor Blayney, [CFP®,]consumer advocate for the Certified Financial Planner Board of Standards.
Read more >

USA Today
John Waggoner
March 18, 2012

CFP Board Hires Veteran Regulator as Director of Investigations

As the CFP Board expands its enforcement activities, it has created the new position of director of investigations and hired veteran securities regulator Rex Staples to fill the role.

Staples will report to Michael P. Shaw, the board's managing director for Professional Standards and Legal. "Rex Staples will make an immediate impact on CFP Board's efforts to enforce the high standards of the CFP® [professional] designation," Shaw said. Read more >

Financial Planning
Ann Marsh
March 16, 2012

CFP Board Hires First Director of Investigations

In a move that highlights its increasing emphasis on enforcement, the Certified Financial Planner Board of Standards Inc. has hired its first director of investigations.

Rex Staples, former general counsel for the North American Securities Administrators Association Inc., has been tapped to fill the newly created position at the CFP Board. He will lead a team that pursues cases of alleged violations of the conduct standards that CFP[® professionals] must follow to maintain the designation.

The CFP Board grants CFP® certification and enforces the related ethical requirements for the approximately 63,000 U.S. investment advisers who hold the mark. Certified planners, for instance, must adhere to a fiduciary-duty standard when providing investment advice. Read more >

Investment News
Mark Schoeff Jr.
March 16, 2012

CFP Board Creates Director Of Investigations Position

The Certified Financial Planner Board of Standards today appointed Rex Staples to the newly created position of director of Investigations.

In his new position, Staples will lead a team responsible for monitoring and enforcing compliance with the CFP Board's standards of professional conduct, according to the board. The CFP Board grants and administers the CFP® certification, a designation held by 65,361 people in the U.S. .

Staples will also be charged with "ensuring that investigations of any alleged wrongdoing continue to be conducted in an expedient and consistent manner, are a fair process for all participants and are credible to the public," the CFP Board stated in a press release. Read more >

Financial Advisor
Jim McConville
March 15, 2012

Americans Expect Social Safety Net, Survey Says

Americans feel they are responsible for their own financial security, but a majority expect the government to provide a social safety net, according to a survey by the Certified Financial Planner Board of Standards.

"Consumers are assuming a significant amount of responsibility in nearly every element of their personal financial lives—retirement, health care, education—but they still look to government to provide support and protections," said CFP Board Chief Executive Officer Kevin R. Keller.

Keller predicted U.S. economic growth to be even better if Americans are equipped to make smart financial decisions and plan for their financial future. Citizens are generally more optimistic than pessimistic that economic conditions will improve, he said. Read more >

Financial Advisor
March 14, 2012

Survey: Americans More Optimistic About Future Finances

Americans feel optimistic about their immediate financial future and accept responsibility for their own financial security.

This is according to a new CFP Board survey of 1,015 Americans nationwide, ages 18 and up, across the entire political spectrum.

"This is encouraging news for the future that comes on the heels of continued, albeit slow, growth in jobs. I think the fact that there would be optimism is consistent with what is happening in the country," CFP Board Chief Executive Officer Kevin Keller says. Read more >

Financial Planning
Ann Marsh
March 14, 2012

Bleak Retirement Survey Reveals Silver Lining for Financial Advisers

In a separate study conducted for the Certified Financial Planner Board of Standards released today, Americans recognize that they have more responsibility than ever for their own financial security, including retirement. But they still expect the government to provide the crucial social safety net of Social Security and Medicare benefits.

More than 80% of respondents say they recognize the urgency of creating a financial plan and nearly 60% said they would benefit from the counsel of a financial adviser, said Kevin Keller, CFP Board Executive Officer. Read more >

Investment News
Mary Beth Franklin
March 14, 2012

Americans: We're Responsible for Our Financial Well-being — Just Don't Ditch Social Security
Also believe it's Uncle Sam's job to protect investors from fraud

The [Shifting Economy Survey], conducted by KRC Research on behalf of the Certified Financial Planner Board of Standards Inc., consisted of a telephone survey of 1,015 age 18 and older March 1 to 4.

"What we found encouraging in the results of the survey is the fact that [67%] of respondents said they felt it was their sole responsibility to plan and prepare for their financial security," said Kevin Keller, the CFP Board's [CEO]. "At the same time, they felt the government has a role in providing basic safety net services like Social Security, Medicare and investor protection from fraud. We don't think there's necessarily any conflict in that."

In fact, Mr. Keller said that most CFP[® professionals] have Social Security and Medicare baked into their clients' portfolios.

"I think a lot of financial plans in the country would be in real trouble if [Social Security and Medicare] were not there for clients of financial planners," Mr. Keller said. Read more >

Investment News
Mark Schoeff Jr.
March 14, 2012

Women's Forum: Boosting Your Practice by Targeting Female Clients

When the Women Advisors Forum conference kicks off Tuesday in Boca Raton, Fla., it will be opened with a session from Eleanor Blayney, [CFP®], president of Directions for Women.

Blayney founded Directions for Women, which is based in McLean, Va., following her career as a financial planner to serve women consumers and the financial advisors working with them. She also serves as Consumer Advocate for the Certified Financial Planner Board of Standards.

In a talk titled "Our Clients, Ourselves," Blayney plans to address how advisors can better work with female clients, one of the fastest growing segments of the wealth advisory market. Read more >

Financial Planning
Lorie Konish
March 12, 2012

Puzzling Over New Questions on CFP® Exam

The [CFP®] exam set for March 16-17 will feature new questions driven by a different philosophy by the CFP Board of Standards…. The CFP Board in January sent around an e-mail to potential test-takers seeking to allay some of the concern about what they called "myths" surrounding the new exam. It would not be harder than earlier exams, but comparable in difficulty, the board said. It would be in the same format—285 multiple-choice questions over two days, with short scenarios and longer case studies. And it would not require more memorization, but rather focus on using knowledge to solve problems that are related to the work a financial advisor actually does.

"It's really a move from recognition and rote memorization to requiring some higher cognitive functioning," Barkley says. "Our goal is to make the exam more representative of what [CFP®] practitioners do." Read more >

Registered Rep
Jerry Gleeson
March 9, 2012

New Chapters After Bankruptcy
Proposed rule changes by the CFP Board could help planners whose own finances hit the rocks.

In January, the board asked for comments from CFP® professionals and others on the proposed rule change. As of last month, it had already received about 250 responses. "People are very passionate about this issue," says Michael Shaw, a managing director for the CFP Board who supervises both the professional standards and legal departments.

"They are either very much in favor of the notion that, if you are a CFP® professional, you should never file a bankruptcy," Shaw adds, "or that a bankruptcy is something a client doesn't need to know about, that just because you filed a bankruptcy doesn't mean you wouldn't do a good job for your clients." Shaw says his staff will review the comments - the deadline to submit them was last month, although tweaking the proposal and extending the deadline was being considered - before going to the board for final approval. Read more >

Financial Planning
Miriam Rozen
March 1, 2012

SEC Seeks More Examiners, but SRO Idea Still Looming

The Financial Planning Coalition is making the rounds on Capitol Hill with a Boston Consulting Group report that it had commissioned showing that the [SEC's] OCIE [Office of Compliance Inspections and Examinations] could increase the number of times it examines an adviser from once every 11 years to once every four years with a $105 million annual increase in the division's budget.

"You have existing infrastructure in place [at the SEC] that just needs to be funded," said Marilyn Mohrman-Gillis, managing director of public policy and communications at the Certified Financial Planner Board of Standards Inc. Read more >

Investment News
Mark Schoeff Jr.
February 19,2012

SEC Maximizes Performance-based Fee Minimums
In bid to protect less savvy investors, commission doubles net-worth threshold

The final rule also excludes the value of a client's primary residence from the net-worth calculation, similar to newly increased thresholds for private placements....

Critics of the changes worried that raising the bar for performance fees would limit options for some clients and hurt small advisory firms.

But supporters argued that performance fees entail risks that require a level of sophistication and wealth from clients.

The Certified Financial Planner Board of Standards for example, argued in a comment letter that the value of a home is likely to be a function of the length of time an investor has owned the home, rather than a gauge of experience or sophistication. Read more >

Investment News
Dan Jamieson
February 16,2012

How to Fend Off Financial Fraudsters

The "Consumer Guide to Financial Self-Defense" highlights behaviors that "warn of fraudulent or unethical practices on the part of a financial adviser." Produced by the Certified Financial Planner Board of Standards Inc., the 28-page booklet features a series of 10 "red flags." Each flag identifies a common situation where you may be victimized; describes the warning signs of fraud or abuse; shares actual examples in which individuals were cheated; and shows what you can do to protect yourself.

The chances of encountering trouble may be greater than you think. According to the board's survey of CERTIFIED FINANCIAL PLANNER™ [professionals], 60% of respondents knew a consumer "who had experienced fraud or abuse at the hands of another adviser." What's more, the most likely targets of such fraud were older adults, ages 61-75. Read more >

Smart Money
Glenn Ruffenach
February 13, 2012

Partner in Finance

[Marilyn Capelli]Dimitroff[, CFP®] started out in the brokerage business in the late 1970s, obtained her CFP[® certification] credentials in 1982 and launched a financial firm with another woman, operating as an independent RIA and independent broker-dealer in Chicago. In 1995, she opened Capelli Financial Services.

When she first went solo, she decided to become more involved with the CFP Board. Dimitroff became a member of the CFP Board [Board of Directors] in 2004 and was elected chairwoman of the board in 2009. From 2006 to 2007, she chaired the task force to revise the CFP Board's Standards of Professional Conduct and helped craft the definition of the term "fiduciary" for CFP® certificants.

As chairwoman, she remained committed to open communication e between the board and certificate holders. In one year alone, she and the CFP Board's CEO at the time, Kevin Keller, held 17 Certificant Connection meetings around the country, traveling to different areas around the country and inviting all the certificants in the region to come together and share their achievements and concerns."I learned firsthand about how proud folks are of their certification," Dimitroff recalls.

CFP[® certification]holders now number more than 64,000, up from a bit more than 36,000 at the end of 2000. This growth rate, which has far outpaced S&P 500 returns over the same time period, seems to square with Dimitroff's belief that CERTIFIED FINANCIAL PLANNER[™ professionals] provide many needed services beyond investment advice. Read more >

Financial Planning
Jim Grote
February 1, 2012

Top Tax Strategies For 2012

There's a one-word theme for the 2012 tax year: uncertainty. Chief among the reasons are the sky-high exemptions on the estate tax, the lifetime gift tax and the generation-skipping tax. All are currently set at $5 million, but they are headed for expiration at year's end. Most planners expect that these taxes and others - including taxes on capital gains and dividends - will be going up next year, though no one knows for sure. And that's the rub.

"The big question is whether the Bush-era tax cuts will expire at the end of 2012," says Eleanor Blayney, [CFP®,] consumer advocate for the CFP Board. "So there's a lot of uncertainty. A lot of us assume that, one way or another, taxes will go up. And if not directly, then we may lose deductions." Read more >

Financial Planning
Ann Marsh
February 1, 2012

CFP [Board-Registered Programs] Online

The whole world seems to be moving online, including programs to earn the CERTIFIED FINANCIAL PLANNER™ [certification]. During the past decade, online versions of the CFP Board's course work have sprouted up all over the country at various universities and colleges.

"The growth in online CFP [Board-Registered] Programs has made CFP® certification more accessible,'' says Kevin Keller, CEO of the CFP Board of Standards Inc…. Today, there are 341 [CFP Board-Registered Programs] comprising 186 certificate programs, 105 undergraduate programs, 44 master's programs and six PhD programs. At year-end 2011, there were 64,236 CFP® professionals in the U.S. Read more >

Financial Advisor
Jim McConville
February 2012

Declutter Your Finances: 3 Steps to Save

Buying stocks without a clear, overarching strategy is a recipe for clutter. Instead, start by determining what your asset allocation should be, says Eleanor Blayney, [CFP®,] CFP Board Consumer Advocate. Read more >

More Magazine
Manisha Thakor
January 31, 2012

Broker fiduciary rule no longer on SEC calendar

Nearly a year after the Securities and Exchange Commission delivered a report to Congress recommending a regulation that would impose a universal fiduciary duty for retail investment advice, the agency has yet to propose a rule — and the road to that point soon may lengthen further.

In a letter to Congress last week, the SEC said that it will gather information for an economic analysis of the impact of a standard-of-care regulation....

"We are supportive of the SEC moving forward in a deliberative and appropriate process to lay the foundation for a rule," said Marilyn Mohrman-Gillis, managing director of public policy and communications at the Certified Financial Planner Board of Standards Inc.

She argues that universal fiduciary duty will help the millions of baby boomers who are nearing retirement and must protect their nest eggs.

"These are the people who desperately need financial advice at a fiduciary standard of care," Ms. Mohrman-Gillis said. "It is even more necessary today than when Dodd-Frank was passed." Read more >

Investment News
Mark Schoeff Jr.
January 13, 2012