Thursday, April 25, 2024

White House attempting to control investments

The Biden administration on Tuesday finalized a new rule to crack down on retirement advice given by financial professionals, a move that has already drawn fierce backlash from Wall Street. The Labor Department regulation aims to ensure that financial advisers, brokers and insurance agents work in the best interests of their clients. It purports to do so by broadening the scope of when these individuals must act as a fiduciary, meaning they have a legal obligation to put their clients' interests ahead of their own . "America’s workers and their families rely on investment professionals for guidance as they save for retirement," said acting Labor Secretary Julie Su. "This rule protects the retirement investors from improper investment recommendations and harmful conflicts of interest." The rule applies to one-time advice for individuals rolling 401(k) plans into IRAs, retirement advisers regardless of which state they are located in and advice to plan sponsors about which investments to make available as options in 401(k)s and other employer-sponsored plans.