"The question is [after] having chose to remake themselves as investment advisors, will they meet the appropriate standard," Roper asked.
Furthermore, Roper said, the Dodd-Frank legislation "is clear that it [fiduciary standard] won't apply to different things brokers do that aren't personalized investment advise to retail clients."
Added Robert Glovsky, chair of the board of directors at the CFP Board, "In the [Dodd-Frank] Act, Congress specifically said that commissions and proprietary sales are permitted. And the key in applying the fiduciary standard lies with the appropriate disclosure and informed consent."
Glovsky added that CFP certificants abide by the fiduciary standard and that some of them get compensation from commissions. "They've worked within a fiduciary standard and have been able to do it within their business model," he said.
Regarding the survey, when respondents were told what the fiduciary standard means and then given a choice of which financial professionals are required to uphold that standard, 77% said it applies to investment advisors, 76% said it applies to financial advisors and 75% said it applies financial planners. That's correct.
But 66% and 60% incorrectly said it applies to stockbrokers and insurance agents, respectively.
The upshot, according the survey, is there remains a good deal of misunderstanding about which financial professionals abide by the fiduciary standard.
The survey was presented to the SEC as part of the associated groups' lobbying efforts during the agency's six-month study period on the standard of care issue.