Fidelity Touts Tech Bundle for Breakaways0 Comments     Post Comment By Chris Latham February 13, 2015Fidelity is hoping breakaway brokers will bite at an integrated platform of tech tools that cost less as a package than if acquired separately. The custodian announced its new WealthCentral Technology Bundle on Thursday at the T3 Advisor Conference in Dallas.Advisors already using Fidelity’s WealthCentral brokerage software could access External IT’s unified cloud-computing portal, Redtail’s customer relationship management system and Advent Software’s Black Diamond portfolio-management tool. Now they can use these third-party programs together in a streamlined interface and work more quickly — and more securely — across the functions, according to Ed O’Brien, head of platform technology for Fidelity Institutional.

via Financial Advisor IQ – Fidelity Touts Tech Bundle for Breakaways.

As we close the books on 2013, most firms have long since set their recruiting goals for 2014. In the process, many have asked where our team saw transitioning advisers moving in 2014.After talking to advisers from around the country, working across all financial services channels, our team is predicting four clear recruiting trends in 2014.

via Four recruiting trends for 2014.

ING Direct Canada tends to be ahead of the curve on customer-facing technology — witness its pioneering BlackBerry 10 and Windows 8 apps released earlier this year. This week, the $40 billion-asset online bank revealed several new digital innovations, including one that lets its 1.8 million customers log in to their online banking account through Facebook, and another that allows customers to see certain account information from their mobile devices without logging in at all.

ING Direct is letting customers who opt in view account balances, history and pending transactions and receive real-time account alerts within Facebook, all in read-only mode. It plans to expand this application further to include transactions such as transfers, bill payments and email money transfers.

U.S. banks have not ventured to let customers bank through Facebook, due partly to concerns about the FFIEC’s proposed rules about banks’ use of social media and security questions.

More : ING Direct Forays into Facebook Banking, Biometric Security | Bank Investment Consultant.

J.P. Morgan Securities has bolstered its wealth management business with the addition of three seasoned advisors from rival firmsThe boutique brokerage has added industry veterans Kim Fonseca, Brian McAuliffe and Chris Foster to three of its 19 offices, which focus on providing wealth management services to high net worth clients. The three previously oversaw a combined $400 million in client assets. With 29 years of experience, Fonseca joins J.P. Morgan Securities’ Palm Beach, Fla., office. He had previously been with Morgan Stanley having started his career with Citigroup in 1993 according to public registration records with the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority. He will report to regional director Rick Penafiel.

More Info: J.P. Morgan Securities Recruits 3 | On Wall Street.

In my work with financial advisers and firms, I have learned that one of the biggest obstacles to engaging in social media is knowing what to share on social networks.Related to this story »A social-media-sharing guide for financial advisersTweet-challenged? Bulk of advisers still dont use social media for business Newsletter Sign-upINTech AdvertisementAn adviser has built social-media profiles, and they look fantastic. Now what?Here is how to get unstuck and what to do next.It is important to be strategic about social-media sharing and map out a plan that is consistent with an advisers goals. For example, if the goal is to attract physicians to a practice, an adviser should optimize social-media sharing with content that is relevant to physicians.

For More: A social-media-sharing guide for financial advisers – InvestmentNews.

Since Robert McCann joined UBS more than three years ago, it has focused on having a smaller but more productive brokerage force than its rivals at Wall Street’s other major brokerages. Its headcount of about 7,000 is roughly half that of Bank of America Corp.’s BAC +3.40% (BAC) Merrill Lynch and Morgan Stanley’s MS +1.54% (MS) Morgan Stanley Wealth Management and Wells Fargo WFC +0.92% & Co.’s (WFC) Wells Fargo Advisors.

Bari Goodman

Mr. McCann, who was elevated to chief executive of UBS Group Americas roughly a year ago, for years has said his ultimate goal for average productivity was $1 million per adviser.

For More: UBS Advisers Hit $1M Average Productivity Goal in U.S. – WSJ.com.

Stifel Financial Stalking Faltering Firms for Share: Video – Bloomberg.