Monday, March 13, 2017

Caution: Some Investment Products May Be Hazardous to Your Health


John Bogle, from his recent NY Times op-ed on the fiduciary rule:
[Gary] Cohn, most recently the president of Goldman Sachs, called it “a bad rule” and likened it to “putting only healthy food on the menu, because unhealthy food tastes good but you still shouldn’t eat it because you might die younger.” Comparing healthy and unhealthy food to healthy and unhealthy investments is an interesting analogy.
Introduction of the Labor Department's fiduciary rule has been delayed, possibly forever. But the losing battle has had positive results. Investment costs are dropping, and more investors understand the difference between registered investment advisers and financial advisers.

Nevertheless, the terminology is designed to confuse. Michael Piwowar, the acting head of the Securities and Exchange Commission, believes a fiduciary rule is a bad idea . But he suggests it might be time to stop calling brokers "financial advisers." 

Got any ideas for an alternative designation?

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