How Do You Manage Different Standards of Fiduciary Care? You Don't. Manage to the Highest.

摘要

Currently there is a great amount of debate around reconciling the fiduciary standard among Trust Departments, Investment Advisers, and Broker-Dealers. Over the last few years, wealth management has evolved from a transaction-based business to an advisory business. Brokerage firms, which once solely provided transactional advice, now create more complete solutions for their clients. And there has been a tremendous increase in the number of Registered Investment Advisors (RIA's) who are providing asset management recommendations without specific product sales to retail customers. Given the coalescence of these industries, it can be difficult for investors to distinguish between the Broker-Dealers, the RIA's, and the Trust Companies, which creates a dangerous environment since the quality of the advice differs significantly between advisors. Not by virtue of their different regulatory frameworks, but because of the disparate fiduciary standards that they have implemented and adhered to.