Bank of the West wealth managers to offer Vanguard ETFs
Bank of the West’s Retirement & Investment team has the Vanguard ETF Core Series to its Investment Advisory Solutions platform, where the exchange-traded funds will be available to investors through Bank of the West financial advisors.
As part of its investment advisory offering, the Retirement & Investment team offers a targeted line-up of fund strategist portfolios (FSPs), including Bank of the West, Envestnet | PMC, and Russell Investments strategies, and more than 300 separately managed accounts (SMAs) through third-party asset managers.
In addition to investment advisory solutions, the team provides a broad range of retirement and goal planning services, growth and income investments as well as insurance products, according to a release from Dale Niemi, head of the Retirement & Investment team.
Vanguard, based in Malvern, Pa., manages approximately $3 trillion in U.S. mutual fund assets, including more than $434 billion in ETF assets, as of January 31, 2015. Bank of the West, chartered in California and headquartered in San Francisco, has $71.7 billion in assets.
A subsidiary of BNP Paribas, it provides individual, commercial, wealth management and international banking services through more than 600 offices in 22 states and digital channels.
Retirement & Investment is a team within the bank’s Wealth Management Group, which provides wealth planning, investment management, personal banking and trust services. The bank’s Retirement & Investment team is part of its Wealth Management Group, which manages over $10 billion in the United States and €305 billion ($345 billion) globally, as of December 2014.
Global Retirement Partners acquired by plan advisor consortium
A group of retirement plan advisory firms today announced its intention to acquire Global Retirement Partners, LLC (GRP), a retirement plan consulting firm servicing over 100 advisors across the US. GRP will retain its name and GRP’s management team will continue to manage day-to-day activities, according to a release.
The acquiring firms include EPIC Retirement Services Consulting, Heffernan Financial Services, MRP, Oswald Financial, Inc., Perennial Pension & Wealth, Retirement and Benefits Partners, StoneStreet Advisor Group, and Washington Financial Group.
Established in 2014 as part of GRP’s acquisition of Financial Telesis, Inc. (FTI), GRP provides turnkey retirement plan infrastructure, compliance, commissioning, and personnel to advisors who specialize in the retirement space.
Firms in this group have access to an in-house former ERISA attorney, out-sourced quarterly due diligence reporting, and the eGRP Advisor Alliance – a turnkey retirement plan advisor affiliate offering marketing, advertising, conferences, tools, financial wellness programs, and investments.
LPL Financial extends platform to CWP advisors
The Center for Wealth Planning, Inc. (CWP), a nationwide network of independent advisors, has joined the RIA (Registered Investment Advisor) custodial platform of LPL Financial, the large independent broker-dealer announced this week.
CWP advisors have used LPL’s corporate RIA and broker-dealer platforms since its inception in 2005. Based in Troy, Mich., CWP serves 65 independent financial advisors nationwide that collectively serve approximately $2 billion in brokerage and advisory client assets, as of Feb. 28, 2015.
Joseph Ruzycki, founder and CEO of the Center for Wealth Planning, said the arrangement would give “our advisors the option to work through our own RIA—Center for Wealth Planning Advisors, Inc.—or to continue to affiliate with LPL Financial’s corporate RIA.”
Launched in 2008, LPL’s RIA offering grown to manage $90.8 billion, as of Dec. 31, 2014.
© 2015 RIJ Publishing LLC. All rights reserved.
