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.

Berthel Fisher & Company Financial Services is a subsidiary of Berthel Fisher & Co., which was established in 1985 and provides full-service securities brokerage services for investors, investment banking service for mature companies and entrepreneurs, leases and loans for growing businesses and insurance products.

Software Helps Advisors

BMRW & Associates of Stow, Ohio, has developed and launched The Magma Platform Solution to assist financial services firms with anti-money laundering regulations brought on by 9/11.

The Magma Platform Solution is customizable financial data management and reporting software that provides data to help advisors and others meet NASD/SEC regulations, the firm says.

"Magma collects an investor‚s transactional and position data from multiple sources and consolidates it into a single data source, improving the broker‚s ability to evaluate and monitor customer portfolios while allowing management an improved ability to detect any suspicious investment activity," says Carl Cline, President & CEO. For more information, visit www.bmrw.com.

MSC Offers New Services

Mutual Service Corp. (MSC) of West Palm Beach, Fla., is offering two new services for advisors who want more independence.

MSC‚s Fee-Friendly program emphasizes complete product choice, open technology and clearing platforms, and extensive specialized transition services. Its Transition-to-Independence Analysis process includes a new consultation service for employee-based representatives who are considering a move to an independent broker-dealer.

For more information, call (800) 749-8900, ext. 50.