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  5. DOL or DOA? The Election and the Conflict of Interest Rule

DOL or DOA? The Election and the Conflict of Interest Rule

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6 November 2016
William Trout

It’s one of those watershed moments. Clinton wins, and the Department of Labor (DoL) conflict of interest rule takes hold and likely gets extended beyond retirement products to all types of investments. Trump wins, and DoL gets slowed down and perhaps even rolled back.

Assuming Clinton wins (which appears likely) firms will need to gear up on three fronts:

  • Platform: DoL makes paramount the ability to deliver consistent advice across digital and face to face channels. Such consistency requires a clear view of client assets held in house, which in turn implies eliminating legacy product stacks and their underlying technology silos, as I note in a recent report.
  • Product: Offering only proprietary products only is a non-starter under DoL. But too much product choice can be as bad as too little. Firms must demonstrate why programs and portfolios offered are the best for each particular client.
  • Proposition: In a best interest world, the client proposition must extend beyond price. Client education, transparent performance reporting and fee structures, as well as an easy to use digital experience, will distinguish stand outs from the broadly compliant pack.

None of the pain points above lend themselves to easy solutions. As such, the banks and brokerages most affected by DoL are struggling to develop processes that go beyond exemption compliance. I’ll discuss more comprehensive approaches in the All Hands on Deck: Technology's Role in the Scramble to Comply with the DOL Fiduciary Rule webinar I’m co-hosting this November 14.

I hope you will join me for the webinar, and in the meantime, you will share your thoughts and comments on this post.

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