Free Republic

You would think that the roles and responsibilities would be clear and there would be a strong line between individuals who call themselves financial advisers and those who call themselves stock brokers. The obvious answer is that advisers give impartial advice based on the best interest of the client and brokers sell products as a third party. Advisers are sworn to put their clients’ interests ahead of their own, thanks to the Investment Advisers Act of 1940. In that case, what is a broker? The act also provides this definition. A broker is, “Any person engaged in the business of...

A US insurer will pay about $70 million in cash and noncash benefits to thousands of military personnel whose investments with the company earned most of them little or no money... The Securities and Exchange Commission said that American Amicable Life Insurance Co. of Texas and affiliates targeted service personnel with a product, Horizon Life, and a ``deceptive sales program that falsely suggested that investing in the company's product would make one a millionaire." Since 2000, about 57,000 armed forces personnel bought the product... ``These companies implemented a deceptive sales program from the top down... This is not a case...