September 3, 2010
While I am personally satisfied wih the services of my financial advisor/broker and appreciate that she has never pushed any particular investment, I do feel that the industry should in totality be governed by the principle of fiduciary responsiblity to clients, not generating the highest commissions.
The two issues are not mutually exclusive. The financial servies companies need to make money some way, so either they have to be fee paid, commission paid, or a combination of the two. I don't have any qualms paying mutual fund or commission charges on sales/purchases. That is the cost of doing busniess. The fiduciary rule should be impsoed for those brokers/advisors who do not put the interests of their clients first. The public should be protected against the few unscrupulous financial services advisors who mislead their clients, push inappropriate investments, or provide false information.