Fidelity Introduces Private Foundation Service For RIAs
Boston-based Fidelity Investments has added services for private foundations to its Wealth-Access platform for registered investment advisors.
Fidelity Private Foundation Services offers financial recordkeeping, charitable activity management, tax preparation, investment management and other services to help advisors create and maintain a private foundation for their affluent clients. The new service is integrated with Fidelity‚s brokerage platform, offering advisors a consolidated view of their clients‚ foundation records.
"Private foundations can be an excellent option for addressing the charitable giving requirements of many affluent individuals or families, yet they can also be quite complex to establish and maintain, causing many advisors to shy away from them," says Jay Lanigan, president of Fidelity Investments‚ Services for Registered Investment Advisors. "By automating the administrative and management tasks, Fidelity Private Foundation Services makes it easier for advisors to provide sound fiduciary management of their clients‚ private foundation, allowing them to spend more time building and strengthening client relationships."
Boston-based Fidelity is the second-largest provider of custody and brokerage services to the RIA marketplace, with more than $71 billion in assets from more than 1,600 advisors as of May 31. For more information about Fidelity‚s services for advisors, please visit http://ria.fidelity.com.
Software Includes Tax Cuts
Money Tree Software of Corvallis, Ore., has released Money Tree Suite Version 2.46, which includes the tax cuts contained in the Jobs and Growth Tax Relief Reconciliation Act of 2003. Free information and trials are available at www.moneytree.com or by calling (877) 421-9815.
Tool For Restructuring
FinancialCircuit of Campbell, Calif., has launched a Web-based tool that allows advisors to restructure client liabilities–including finding solutions for mortgage refinancings.
Called MoneyFind, the tool analyzes, plans and executes liability solutions for clients with real-time market data. By entering a client‚s basic financial data, including income, liabilities, tax rate and risk tolerance, MoneyFind can generate dozens of scenarios for restructuring liability, says company CEO Adrian Nazari.
Personalized MoneyFind, a version of the tool designed for independent advisors, costs $69 per month, he says. For more information, visit www.financialcircuit.com.
Broker-Dealer Purchase
Broker-dealer Berthel Fisher & Company Financial Services Inc. has bought more than 200 registered representatives of Continental Capital Investment Services of Bryan, Ohio.
The addition will increase Berthel Fisher‚s total sales force to 400 reps and expands its presence into 38 states. The Marion, Iowa-based firm also is expanding its operations at headquarters to support the acquisition.