jeffnash

About Jeff Nash

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So far Jeff Nash has created 85 blog entries.

The DOL and the Law of Unintended Consequences

2024-02-01T20:32:44-05:00

If it seems we’ve been talking about the Department of Labor’s Independent Contractor Rule for years, it’s because we have. It was January of 2021 when the DOL first considered revising the standard for determining whether a worker is an employee or independent contractor under the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA). On January 10, 2024, the DOL released its final rule. The legal wrangling began immediately. Well, technically, it resumed. The DOL’s intent (which includes protecting workers’ rights when it comes to minimum wage and overtime pay) is reasonable. However, as with many legislative actions, unintended and far-reaching consequences make the rule untenable for constituencies that include independent financial advisors and broker-dealers. What are the consequences for the financial services industry? The rule’s negative impacts have been covered in depth elsewhere: potentially increasing the cost of advice for Main Street investors and compromising a financial advisor’s ability to control how [...]

The DOL and the Law of Unintended Consequences2024-02-01T20:32:44-05:00

2023: The Year of Scale

2024-02-01T20:31:02-05:00

New beginnings, especially ones dictated by the passage of time – such as the start of a new year – often prompt both reflection and anticipation, as we look back upon the past and also consider what’s ahead. How will historians look back on 2023? Perhaps more importantly, how will we, as active participants in the wealth management industry, view the challenges, opportunities and outcomes of the past 12 months? Rising interest rates proved to be a double-edged sword for financial services as the increased cost of capital tamped down M&A activity and upended the regional banking sector but also put additional dollars at the disposal of broker-dealers via cash sweep programs. Artificial intelligence (AI) went mainstream in the space as professionals tasked with duties from marketing to compliance relied more and more on advancements in this revolutionary technology to create efficiencies and build scale. Scale … While Taylor Swift [...]

2023: The Year of Scale2024-02-01T20:31:02-05:00

Building a Bridge for M&A Succession Planning

2023-11-02T15:25:11-04:00

M&A activity in the wealth management space continues at a healthy pace despite headwinds that include higher valuations, increasing capital costs, ongoing market volatility and geopolitical unrest. Although the number and size of transactions are smaller than in years past, they are expected to grow going forward. And, like the industry itself, M&A is evolving in terms of its execution, intent and ultimate goals – for all parties involved. When entrepreneurial businesspeople see an opportunity, they take advantage. The aging financial advisor population presents such a lucrative opportunity for aggregators and expansion-minded RIAs to build scale within their businesses. While the question, “Is bigger always better?’ is an eternal one, for today’s strategic consolidators, bigger isn’t necessarily the goal, or at least not the only goal. Leveraging complementary resources, capturing services that fill an existing gap to better service clients, driving operational efficiencies and providing succession opportunities for NextGen professionals [...]

Building a Bridge for M&A Succession Planning2023-11-02T15:25:11-04:00

How to Bridge the Gap Between Buyers and Sellers in the Wealth Management Business

2023-10-16T18:20:07-04:00

Gephyrophobia is the clinical term for a “fear of bridges.” In the wealth management space, we love bridges and rely on them (figuratively) to optimize our businesses every chance we get: bridges between clients and financial advisors, financial advisors and partner firms, and financial advisor business owners and their ultimate visions of success. These are the connections that drive achievement and satisfaction. Because connecting potential buyers and sellers is a more complex – and less frequently executed – endeavor, it isn’t usually considered in the same light. But it should be. No matter where you fall in the process – either growing your business inorganically, positioning yourself as a potential successor in a larger firm or extracting value from your business when you’ve set a timeline to begin your next chapter – making a move can be a convoluted and potentially time-consuming journey. Getting it right is all about making [...]

How to Bridge the Gap Between Buyers and Sellers in the Wealth Management Business2023-10-16T18:20:07-04:00

Succession Planning in an Age of Demographic Change, Active Aggregators and Private Equity

2023-09-11T19:23:25-04:00

You are probably familiar with the adage “Failure to plan is planning to fail.” It’s as true today as when Benjamin Franklin first said it. Of course in order to have a plan, you need to have options to consider. And, right now, when it comes to succession planning in the wealth management space, choices can be limited for financial advisors who are considering a succession. For all the worry surrounding the potential impact of artificial intelligence on wealth management, demographics may prove to be the real disruptor for the industry. You have most likely seen the statistics that bear this out: the average financial advisor’s age is 58. Almost 40% of financial advisors are planning to leave the industry in the next 10 years. Upwards of 70% of advisors don’t have a succession plan. There are more advisors over age 80 than under age 30. That’s a lot of [...]

Succession Planning in an Age of Demographic Change, Active Aggregators and Private Equity2023-09-11T19:23:25-04:00

The Right Stuff: How Wealthtech Can Amp Up a Firm’s Value Proposition With Recruits

2023-11-02T19:11:23-04:00

The Right Stuff: How Wealthtech Can Amp Up a Firm’s Value Proposition With Recruits by Jeff Nash, Founder & CEO, Bridgemark Strategies August 1, 2023 When it comes to winning the battle for the best advisors, technology plays a critical role. Constant innovation, including the growing presence of artificial intelligence (AI), only adds to the complexities for firms intent on creating a tech offering that will resonate with high-producing advisors and teams – during the transition process and beyond. Fortunately, the plethora of wealthtech and regtech solutions ease onboarding and offer scale and support to advisors after they’ve made the move. Indeed, the sheer volume of options can be considered a challenge! What technologies add gravitas to a firm’s value proposition? Well, that depends on the goals of the advisor and the firm. Solutions that facilitate a seamless transition, offer plug-and-play capabilities, create ongoing efficiencies, deliver comprehensive compliance solutions, elevate the [...]

The Right Stuff: How Wealthtech Can Amp Up a Firm’s Value Proposition With Recruits2023-11-02T19:11:23-04:00

AI’s Impact: Overblown or Underestimated?

2023-08-02T14:57:39-04:00

If you’ve ever asked Alexa to play Baby Shark 10 times in a row to quiet an agitated toddler or relied on your car’s navigation system to get you where you’re going, you are already on the AI bandwagon. However, as AI’s capabilities grow – seemingly exponentially – so do the concerns about its immediate and long-term effects on our professional and personal lives. Like most industries, the wealth management space has already been impacted by AI. And why wouldn’t it? AI offers productivity, precision and cost efficiencies. It helps businesses operate more effectively, scale more quickly, analyze data more accurately and calculate faster. It’s a tool – a powerful resource that may prove to be a great equalizer, closing the service gaps between large-scale enterprises and their smaller counterparts. The question now becomes one of degree. If past is prologue, technological disruptions like AI are a long-term positive. In [...]

AI’s Impact: Overblown or Underestimated?2023-08-02T14:57:39-04:00

Independence Still Beckons. And it’s Still Worth it.

2023-08-02T14:40:38-04:00

The road to independence isn’t an easy one. And it’s not for the fainthearted. As July 4th approaches and we commemorate our nation’s 247th birthday, the rewards of independence are all around us. While we honor the men and women who bravely took the steps that led us here, it’s admittedly difficult to appreciate the circumstances they found themselves in… the worries that accompanied their struggle, the doubts that may have entered their minds, the fears that their bold idea would be met with derision or apathy. Despite all this, they remained focused on the prize they were fighting for and emerged triumphant. We continue to reap the benefits of their efforts. Independence and the freedom it affords remains a driving force within the wealth management industry. According to a recent Cerulli report, on average, 71% of advisors surveyed had a preference for independent affiliation – including independent broker/dealer (IBD), hybrid [...]

Independence Still Beckons. And it’s Still Worth it.2023-08-02T14:40:38-04:00

A Tale of Two Rules

2023-06-30T12:19:06-04:00

Independent financial advisors have their hands full. On top of market, geo-political, economic and industry headwinds and anxious clients, the community is contending with two potentially paradigm-shifting scenarios: one regulatory, the other legislative. Both have been on the industry’s radar. Both have prompted push back. The first, FINRA Rule 4111 is a done deal, with a new reporting element that’s taking effect June 1, 2023. The other, revisiting the PRO Act’s independent contractor rules, has some runway before adoption – as well as the possibility of dialing back the disruption. Let’s see where we are right now and what they mean to the independent advisor space. The 411 on FINRA Rule 4111 On January 1, 2022, FINRA Rule 4111 became effective. The Rule’s intent is to protect investors by identifying firms with a history of misconduct (“Restricted Firms”) and subjecting those firms to certain obligations. Such obligations include depositing cash [...]

A Tale of Two Rules2023-06-30T12:19:06-04:00

In the Spring, the Grass IS Actually Greener…

2023-05-01T12:35:39-04:00

Spring has been called the season of new beginnings. So, it’s not surprising this time of year gets people thinking about switching things up on the professional front. It’s a big decision, no matter who you are; But, if you are a financial advisor, making a move to a new firm or business model can be particularly complicated. There are many constituents who’ll be impacted, including the advisor’s team and clients. And there are many options to consider. I thought it might be interesting to run through a hypothetical scenario to discuss all that goes into the assessment. Let’s take a look at Stanley Lynch, an advisor at one of the large wirehouses. He’s been in the business for over two decades and has earned the trappings of success that accompany hard work and commitment: $450 million AUM, with $3.5 million in annual revenue, most of it recurring. He’s got a [...]

In the Spring, the Grass IS Actually Greener…2023-05-01T12:35:39-04:00
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