On the surface, it looks like President Obama’s overhaul of the financial system has one very good plank, to require brokers to adhere to a fiduciary standard when working with consumers. This proposal seems to be an end run around Mary Schapiro, the new head of the SEC and former FINRA executive, who is a proponent of continuing to allow brokers to escape having a fiduciary duty to consumers. Whether Congress and the President will prevail, or what actually becomes law is anyone’s guess. At least this is a hopeful start. Here is a WSJ article on the proposal that is an excellent recap of the past issues and the proposed regulation. Click here.
