Business Planning, Compliance and Management

#FASuccess Ep 416: Avoiding The Compliance Headaches When Going RIA By Choosing A ‘Supported Independence’ Corporate RIA Platform, With Fran Toler

Nerd's Eye View

DECEMBER 17, 2024

Fran is the CEO of Toler Financial Group, an RIA based in Silver Spring, Maryland, that oversees nearly $200 million in assets under management for 280 client households.

Compliance

Compliance Financial Advisor Financial Advice Clients

A Recordkeeping Checklist For Financial Planning Services: Proactive Documentation Of Service Delivery To Reduce Regulatory Scrutiny

Nerd's Eye View

DECEMBER 18, 2024

Maintaining adequate books and records is a cornerstone of compliance for all investment advisers. For financial planning services, a similar approach to documentation can be applied to support regulatory compliance from the start of client engagement through all the steps that follow.

Financial Planning

Financial Planning Planning Compliance Clients

Compliance Calendar For A Solo RIA: Staying On Top Of Compliance Tasks While Serving Clients

Nerd's Eye View

APRIL 26, 2023

One of the most intimidating aspects of launching a solo advisory firm is the question of how to manage compliance. Creating a compliance calendar for a solo RIA can help to systematize and manage compliance tasks, requirements and deadlines. Read More.

Compliance

Compliance Clients Advertising Accounting

Webinars

What Your Financial Statements Are Telling You—And How to Listen!

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Crafting An Annual Compliance Calendar For A (Solo) RIA: Staying On Top Of Compliance Tasks While Serving Clients

Nerd's Eye View

APRIL 26, 2023

One of the most intimidating aspects of launching a solo advisory firm is the question of how to manage compliance. The 1st category of tasks that advisory firms must handle involves renewing their registration with the applicable state(s) in which they do business each year, which typically involves submitting select documents (e.g.,

Compliance

Compliance Clients Accounting Advertising

A Guide To Conducting And Documenting An Annual Compliance Review Under New SEC Amendment

Nerd's Eye View

OCTOBER 11, 2023

However, this "Compliance Rule" did not technically require that the annual compliance review of policies and procedures be conducted in writing, even though advisers were required to maintain records if they did document such reviews in writing! the SEC's new marketing rule). the SEC's new marketing rule).

Compliance

Compliance Financial Planning Planning Investing

#FASuccess Ep 416: Avoiding The Compliance Headaches When Going RIA By Choosing A ‘Supported Independence’ Corporate RIA Platform, With Fran Toler

Nerd's Eye View

DECEMBER 17, 2024

Fran is the CEO of Toler Financial Group, a DBA firm under the RIA Rossby Financial, in Silver Spring, Maryland, that oversees nearly $200 million in assets under management for 280 client households.

Compliance

Compliance Financial Advisor Financial Advice Clients

Hiring Your First Employee: What You Need To Know To Cover Your Compliance Obligations

Nerd's Eye View

JUNE 5, 2024

If they want to continue to grow and increase their capacity, they'll need to make several important decisions and address a plethora of legal and compliance requirements not only to avoid potential legal issues but also to ensure that their business will continue to operate smoothly.

Compliance

Compliance Clients Consulting Accounting

Anatomy Of An RIA Sale, Merger Or Acquisition: 5 Important Legal & Compliance Steps

Nerd's Eye View

NOVEMBER 22, 2023

In this guest post, Chris Stanley, investment management attorney and Founding Principal of Beach Street Legal, discusses in depth the various stages of buying, selling, and merging an investment advisory and financial planning business.

Compliance

Compliance Sales Financial Advisor Financial Planning

How To Survive Your First SEC Audit: Preparing For The SEC Examination And Complying With The Information Request Letter

Nerd's Eye View

JULY 31, 2024

Even firms with robust compliance programs that do a good job following their required policies and procedures can struggle with examinations if they don't have the information that examiners will ask for readily available.

Compliance

Compliance Ethics Advertising Clients

From New-Hire To Confident Advisor: Structuring A First-Year Associate Advisor Onboarding Plan To Develop Technical And Client Skills

Nerd's Eye View

MARCH 24, 2025

In this article, Senior Financial Planning Nerd Sydney Squires discusses how to construct an associate advisor onboarding plan that guides an associate advisor through their first year, establishes clear checkpoints for progress, yet still allows enough flexibility to grow with the new advisor!

Planning

Planning Clients Financial Planning Communication

The Latest In Financial #AdvisorTech (November 2023)

Nerd's Eye View

NOVEMBER 6, 2023

This month's edition kicks off with the news that Practice Intel has launched a new "growth platform" centered around quantifying the quality of an advisor's client relationships with an all-in "Relationship Quality Index" (RQI) – which while potentially valuable in helping advisors understand and improve their client experience (and subsequently (..)

Compliance

Compliance Valuation Financial Advisor Clients

The SEC Playbook For Newly-Registered Advisers: Preparing For The SEC Examination And Complying With The Information Request Letter

Nerd's Eye View

JULY 31, 2024

Even firms with robust compliance programs that do a good job following their required policies and procedures can struggle with examinations if they don't have the information that examiners will ask for readily available.

Compliance

Compliance Ethics Advertising Clients

AI Meeting Notes Tools For Financial Advisors: Solo Productivity Vs Associate Advisor Development?

Nerd's Eye View

MARCH 17, 2025

This is largely because, for financial advisors, it's not 'just' about capturing notes from the client meeting itself, but also about managing everything that follows: recording meeting notes in the CRM for compliance purposes, assigning post-meeting tasks to the team, and sending the client a post-meeting recap email.

Financial Advisor

Financial Advisor Clients Financial Planning Professional Services

Assessing Payouts And Platform Fees For Profitability When Choosing An Independent Advisor Platform To Affiliate With

Nerd's Eye View

APRIL 22, 2024

Notably, different affiliate platforms have different payout rates; those that pay out the most (and thus have the lowest fees) tend to cover relatively few functions such as compliance and technology, while those that pay out the least (and therefore have the highest fees) cover a significant amount of the advisor's overhead costs.

Compliance

Compliance Clients Financial Advisor Numbers

Form U4: Common Missteps And Best Practices For RIAs

Nerd's Eye View

JUNE 7, 2023

In this guest post, Chris Stanley, investment management attorney and Founding Principal of Beach Street Legal LLC, breaks down the key details of what’s included on Form U4, common missteps that may trip up IARs in their filings, and best practices for preparing and filing Form U4 with state and Federal regulators.

Compliance

Compliance Advertising Media Investing

The Future Of Advisor Platforms: Reducing Overhead Costs With Services (Not Technology)

Nerd's Eye View

MARCH 13, 2023

However, the reality is that it’s very expensive to build and maintain technology, especially when considering the full range of CRM, portfolio management, financial planning, and more than a dozen other sub-categories of technology that financial advisors use in their firms. broker-dealers, RIA aggregators, TAMPs, etc.)

Compliance

Compliance Portfolio Management Planning Financial Advisor

The Latest In Financial #AdvisorTech (January 2024)

Nerd's Eye View

JANUARY 1, 2024

Welcome to the January 2024 issue of the Latest News in Financial #AdvisorTech – where we look at the big news, announcements, and underlying trends and developments that are emerging in the world of technology solutions for financial advisors!

Retirement Planning

Retirement Planning Startup Compliance Clients

The Latest In Financial #AdvisorTech (August 2023)

Nerd's Eye View

AUGUST 7, 2023

From there, the latest highlights also feature a number of other interesting advisor technology announcements, including: Wealth Management GPT has launched as one of the first standalone AI writing tools for financial advisors, distinguishing itself from other tools that are integrated within already-existing AdvisorTech tools (which raises questions (..)

Estate Planning

Estate Planning Wealth Management Financial Advisor Planning

RIA Code Of Ethics: Important Nuances To Note In Relatively Straightforward Requirements

Nerd's Eye View

JUNE 21, 2023

In addition to collecting the required reports, the firm’s Chief Compliance Officer (CCO) also has certain review requirements.

Ethics

Ethics Fiduciary Duty Compliance Clients

#FA Success Ep 289: Coming Together As A Partnership To Serve Your Collective Community, With Kamila Elliott

Nerd's Eye View

JULY 12, 2022

Kamila is the CEO and Founder of Collective Wealth Partners, an independent RIA based in Atlanta, Georgia, that oversees nearly $25 million in assets under management for almost 175 client households. My guest on today's podcast is Kamila Elliott.

Financial Advisor

Financial Advisor CFP Clients Financial Planning

#FA Success Ep 370: Leveraging Google Reviews To Generate Inbound Local Prospects, With Tim Goodwin

Nerd's Eye View

JANUARY 30, 2024

Tim is the founder of Goodwin Investment Advisory, an RIA based in Woodstock, Georgia, that oversees $275M in assets under management for 370 client households. Welcome back to the 370th episode of the Financial Advisor Success podcast ! My guest on today's podcast is Tim Goodwin.

Financial Advisor

Financial Advisor Clients Compliance Engineering

#FA Success Ep 352: Finding Personal Scale By Leveraging Yourself Through Outsourced Delegation, With Bridget Venus Grimes

Nerd's Eye View

SEPTEMBER 26, 2023

Bridget is the President of WealthChoice, a virtual independent RIA that oversees nearly $80 million in assets under management for 68 client families, and Co-Founder of Equita Financial Network, an advisor platform that helps advisors plug in and share resources.

Financial Planning

Financial Planning Financial Advisor Clients Planning

#FA Success Ep 331: Getting Comfortable Hiring Advisors ‘Early’ As The Advisory Business Revenue Grows, With Jake Northrup

Nerd's Eye View

MAY 2, 2023

We also talk about why despite being a CFA charterholder Jake outsources investment management to First Ascent – for which clients pay an entirely separate additional fee – because it both allows him to simplify compliance to not manage investments in-house, and takes away the cost pressure of having to hire a separate employee to just (..)

Financial Advisor

Financial Advisor Financial Planning Clients Planning

Upfront And Ongoing RIA Compliance Obligations Of State Vs SEC-Registered Investment Advisers

Nerd's Eye View

NOVEMBER 2, 2022

In this guest post, Chris Stanley, investment management attorney and Founding Principal of Beach Street Legal, breaks down some of the key differences between the Federal and state registration application requirements, approval processes, and post-registration requirements for RIAs.

Compliance

Compliance Investing Investments Government

Learning Experiences Advisor Firm Owners Wished They Knew Before Merging Or Selling

Nerd's Eye View

JUNE 26, 2023

Firms seeking acquisitions may talk up their values prior to the sale, but the reality is that at a firm that is rapidly acquiring other businesses – particularly when funded by private equity ownership – the focus is often on the growth of assets and profitability, no matter what the core values are purported to be.

Compliance

Compliance Sales Planning Media

#FA Success Ep 336: Showing Prospects An (Asset) Map To Generate More Advice Engagement, With H. Adam Holt

Nerd's Eye View

JUNE 6, 2023

We also talk about how Adam almost didn’t land his first job with Equitable because he didn’t do well on his insurance exams and only lucked into the job because a newly-hired manager happened to need one more insurance producer to meet his own numbers, how, in the early stages of his career, Adam wanted to work with business owners and (..)

Assets

Assets Financial Advisor Financial Planning Insurance

Advisory Agreement Statutory Requirements: What Advisors Need To Know To Stay Compliant

Nerd's Eye View

AUGUST 17, 2022

In this guest post, Chris Stanley, investment management attorney and Founding Principal of Beach Street Legal, lays out the statutory requirements for RIA advisory agreements and some of the essential elements for advisory agreements to include when describing the RIA’s services and fees.

Clients

Clients Assets Financial Planning Management

#FA Success Ep 387: Merging A Fast-Growth Firm Into A Much Larger One To Get The Operations Monkeys Off Your Back, With Jenny Martella

Nerd's Eye View

MAY 28, 2024

Jenny is a Principal and Wealth Manager at Modera Wealth Management, an RIA based in Westwood, New Jersey, that oversees $12.5 billion in assets under management for approximately 4,700 client households. Welcome to the 387th episode of the Financial Advisor Success Podcast ! My guest on today's podcast is Jenny Martella.

Wealth Management

Wealth Management Financial Advisor Fee Only Communication

#FASuccess Ep 387: Merging A Fast-Growth Firm Into A Much Larger One To Get The Operations Monkeys Off Your Back, With Jenny Martella

Nerd's Eye View

MAY 28, 2024

Jenny is a Principal and Wealth Manager at Modera Wealth Management, an RIA based in Westwood, New Jersey, that oversees $12.5 billion in assets under management for approximately 4,700 client households. Welcome to the 387th episode of the Financial Advisor Success Podcast ! My guest on today's podcast is Jenny Martella.

Wealth Management

Wealth Management Financial Advisor Fee Only Communication

#FA Success Ep 320: Navigating Hyper-Growth To Achieve Platform Scale For Independent Advisors, With Jim Dickson

Nerd's Eye View

FEBRUARY 14, 2023

Jim is the CEO and Founder of Sanctuary Wealth, an RIA platform with 80 partner firms in 29 states that collectively oversee nearly $25 billion in assets under management.

Compliance

Compliance Financial Advisor Clients Management

Advisory Agreement Statutory Requirements: What Advisors Need To Know To Stay Compliant

Nerd's Eye View

AUGUST 17, 2022

In this guest post, Chris Stanley, investment management attorney and Founding Principal of Beach Street Legal, lays out the statutory requirements for RIA advisory agreements and some of the essential elements for advisory agreements to include when describing the RIA’s services and fees.

Clients

Clients Assets Financial Planning Management

When Does A Financial Coach Need To Register As An Investment Adviser? The “ABCS” Test To Determine Status

Nerd's Eye View

DECEMBER 6, 2023

In this guest post, Chris Stanley, investment management attorney and Founding Principal of Beach Street Legal, explores the specific conditions under which a financial coach must register as an investment adviser. Nevertheless, the 'securities' component of the definition has several nuanced exceptions.

Investing

Investing Investments Retirement Planning Financial Advising

#FASuccess Ep 388: Transitioning To Independent RIA With Only $7M Of AUM To Turbocharge Growth With Website Local SEO, With Freeman Linde

Nerd's Eye View

JUNE 4, 2024

Freeman is the Co-Founder of La Crosse Financial Planning, an RIA based in La Crosse, Wisconsin, that oversees nearly $50 million in assets under management (AUM) for 73 client households. My guest on today's podcast is Freeman Linde.

Fee Only

Fee Only Financial Advisor Clients Estate Planning

#FA Success Ep 388: Transitioning To Independent RIA With Only $7M Of AUM To Turbocharge Growth With Website Local SEO, With Freeman Linde

Nerd's Eye View

JUNE 4, 2024

Freeman is the Co-Founder of La Crosse Financial Planning, an RIA based in La Crosse, Wisconsin, that oversees nearly $50 million in assets under management (AUM) for 73 client households. My guest on today's podcast is Freeman Linde.

Fee Only

Fee Only Financial Advisor Clients Estate Planning

#FA Success Ep 305: Accelerating Growth Of (Fee-Only) Clients By Making It Clear You Have Nothing To Sell, With Mindy Crary

Nerd's Eye View

NOVEMBER 1, 2022

Mindy is the owner of Creative Money, an independent RIA based in Seattle, Washington, that offers a unique 12-month financial planning engagement – or as Mindy puts it on her homepage, “financial planning that doesn’t suck” – which has allowed her firm to work with nearly 400 client households just this year.

Fee Only

Fee Only Clients Financial Planning Financial Advisor

How to Choose the Right Wealth Management Firm in Kansas City

Fortune Financial

SEPTEMBER 25, 2023

How to Choose the Right Wealth Management Firm in Kansas City Managing your wealth is a crucial aspect of financial success and security. Let’s look at key factors to consider when selecting the ideal wealth management firm in the Kansas City metro area. But with many options available, how do you choose the right one?

Wealth Management

Wealth Management Management Risk Tolerance Retirement Planning

Drafting RIA Advisory Agreements: Best Practices And Essential Elements To Include

Nerd's Eye View

AUGUST 24, 2022

In his latest article for the Nerd’s Eye View blog, Chris Stanley, investment management attorney and Founding Principal of Beach Street Legal, laid out the statutory requirements for RIA advisory agreements and what to include in the agreement when describing the RIA’s services and fees.

Electronics

Electronics Clients Retirement Planning Financial Advice

Designing “Custom GPTs” With Advanced ChatGPT Features To Enhance Advisor Capabilities With AI

Nerd's Eye View

JANUARY 17, 2024

Finally, a 4th prompt reviews transcripts from the perspective of a compliance officer to ensure that David and his team adhere to regulatory standards and their own internal policies. Additionally, AI tools have allowed David to transform what were once monologue-based planning meetings into interactive, engaging dialogues.

Financial Advice

Financial Advice Financial Planning Planning Clients

Drafting RIA Advisory Agreements: Best Practices And Essential Elements To Include

Nerd's Eye View

AUGUST 24, 2022

In his latest article for the Nerd’s Eye View blog, Chris Stanley, investment management attorney and Founding Principal of Beach Street Legal, laid out the statutory requirements for RIA advisory agreements and what to include in the agreement when describing the RIA’s services and fees.

Electronics

Electronics Clients Retirement Planning Financial Advice

How to Choose the Right Wealth Management Firm in Kansas City

Fortune Financial

SEPTEMBER 25, 2023

How to Choose the Right Wealth Management Firm in Kansas City Managing your wealth is a crucial aspect of financial success and security. Let’s look at key factors to consider when selecting the ideal wealth management firm in the Kansas City metro area. But with many options available, how do you choose the right one?

Wealth Management

Wealth Management Management Risk Tolerance Retirement Planning

How To Register Your RIA: State Vs SEC Registration And When Notice Filing Is Required

Nerd's Eye View

OCTOBER 19, 2022

By more deeply understanding the nuances of Federal and state filing rules, advisers can be better positioned to stay compliant while managing their changing circumstances! This is particularly relevant not only for startup firms but also for those that are expanding or adding clients in new states via new virtual meeting capabilities.

Clients

Clients Government Startup Numbers

5 Benefits of Hiring a Financial Services Marketing Agency

Indigo Marketing Agency

JULY 1, 2024

When the economy is changing all the time, you need more than just a good business plan to stay ahead of the competition. It needs a personalized, cutting-edge marketing plan, which is where a marketing agency for financial services comes in. With an agency like Indigo, there’s no contract and you have choices.

Financial Services

Financial Services Marketing Marketing Media

401k for Small Business Owners in Kansas City: Maximizing Benefits and Strategies

Fortune Financial

MARCH 5, 2024

Whether you’re a solo entrepreneur or leading a growing organization, there’s a plan that fits your needs. Active Management and Engagement: Once your 401k is operational, the focus shifts to active management and engagement. This means staying informed about plan performance, fees and compliance requirements.

Retirement Planning

Retirement Planning Financial Advisor Retirement Taxes

Advice-only financial planners are stealing the show!

Sara Grillo

MAY 23, 2022

Advice-only financial planning is fee-only comprehensive financial planning without the expectation or even the option to manage any client investments. Financial planning is offered as a stand-alone product; it is the only thing that an advice-only financial planner does. What is an advice-only financial planner?

Financial Planner

Financial Planner CFP Financial Planning Education

#FASuccess Ep 416: Avoiding The Compliance Headaches When Going RIA By Choosing A ‘Supported Independence’ Corporate RIA Platform, With Fran Toler

A Recordkeeping Checklist For Financial Planning Services: Proactive Documentation Of Service Delivery To Reduce Regulatory Scrutiny

Webinars

Trending Sources

Compliance Calendar For A Solo RIA: Staying On Top Of Compliance Tasks While Serving Clients

Webinars

Crafting An Annual Compliance Calendar For A (Solo) RIA: Staying On Top Of Compliance Tasks While Serving Clients

A Guide To Conducting And Documenting An Annual Compliance Review Under New SEC Amendment

#FASuccess Ep 416: Avoiding The Compliance Headaches When Going RIA By Choosing A ‘Supported Independence’ Corporate RIA Platform, With Fran Toler

Hiring Your First Employee: What You Need To Know To Cover Your Compliance Obligations

Anatomy Of An RIA Sale, Merger Or Acquisition: 5 Important Legal & Compliance Steps

How To Survive Your First SEC Audit: Preparing For The SEC Examination And Complying With The Information Request Letter

From New-Hire To Confident Advisor: Structuring A First-Year Associate Advisor Onboarding Plan To Develop Technical And Client Skills

The Latest In Financial #AdvisorTech (November 2023)

The SEC Playbook For Newly-Registered Advisers: Preparing For The SEC Examination And Complying With The Information Request Letter

AI Meeting Notes Tools For Financial Advisors: Solo Productivity Vs Associate Advisor Development?

Assessing Payouts And Platform Fees For Profitability When Choosing An Independent Advisor Platform To Affiliate With

Form U4: Common Missteps And Best Practices For RIAs

The Future Of Advisor Platforms: Reducing Overhead Costs With Services (Not Technology)

The Latest In Financial #AdvisorTech (January 2024)

The Latest In Financial #AdvisorTech (August 2023)

RIA Code Of Ethics: Important Nuances To Note In Relatively Straightforward Requirements

#FA Success Ep 289: Coming Together As A Partnership To Serve Your Collective Community, With Kamila Elliott

#FA Success Ep 370: Leveraging Google Reviews To Generate Inbound Local Prospects, With Tim Goodwin

#FA Success Ep 352: Finding Personal Scale By Leveraging Yourself Through Outsourced Delegation, With Bridget Venus Grimes

#FA Success Ep 331: Getting Comfortable Hiring Advisors ‘Early’ As The Advisory Business Revenue Grows, With Jake Northrup

Upfront And Ongoing RIA Compliance Obligations Of State Vs SEC-Registered Investment Advisers

Learning Experiences Advisor Firm Owners Wished They Knew Before Merging Or Selling

#FA Success Ep 336: Showing Prospects An (Asset) Map To Generate More Advice Engagement, With H. Adam Holt

Advisory Agreement Statutory Requirements: What Advisors Need To Know To Stay Compliant

#FA Success Ep 387: Merging A Fast-Growth Firm Into A Much Larger One To Get The Operations Monkeys Off Your Back, With Jenny Martella

#FASuccess Ep 387: Merging A Fast-Growth Firm Into A Much Larger One To Get The Operations Monkeys Off Your Back, With Jenny Martella

#FA Success Ep 320: Navigating Hyper-Growth To Achieve Platform Scale For Independent Advisors, With Jim Dickson

Advisory Agreement Statutory Requirements: What Advisors Need To Know To Stay Compliant

When Does A Financial Coach Need To Register As An Investment Adviser? The “ABCS” Test To Determine Status

#FASuccess Ep 388: Transitioning To Independent RIA With Only $7M Of AUM To Turbocharge Growth With Website Local SEO, With Freeman Linde

#FA Success Ep 388: Transitioning To Independent RIA With Only $7M Of AUM To Turbocharge Growth With Website Local SEO, With Freeman Linde

#FA Success Ep 305: Accelerating Growth Of (Fee-Only) Clients By Making It Clear You Have Nothing To Sell, With Mindy Crary

How to Choose the Right Wealth Management Firm in Kansas City

Drafting RIA Advisory Agreements: Best Practices And Essential Elements To Include

Designing “Custom GPTs” With Advanced ChatGPT Features To Enhance Advisor Capabilities With AI

Drafting RIA Advisory Agreements: Best Practices And Essential Elements To Include

How to Choose the Right Wealth Management Firm in Kansas City

How To Register Your RIA: State Vs SEC Registration And When Notice Filing Is Required

5 Benefits of Hiring a Financial Services Marketing Agency

401k for Small Business Owners in Kansas City: Maximizing Benefits and Strategies

Advice-only financial planners are stealing the show!

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