New Info for Investors 
KEEPING YOUR RETIREMENT SAVINGS INTACT - A recent report by a major retirement plan provider revealed an uptick in the number of investors dipping into their 401(k)s through either loans or hardship withdrawals. If you really need the money and cannot access credit elsewhere, then borrowing from your 401(k), or taking a withdrawal, might be your best option. FINRA points out several good reasons to keep your retirement savings intact if at all possible. Before tapping your retirement savings, consider these reasons, among others: the money you withdraw will not grow if it isn't invested; repayments are made with after-tax dollars that will be taxed again when you eventually withdraw them from your account; the interest is never deductible even if you use the money to buy or renovate your home ... BEWARE FAKE SIPC CHECKS - The Securities Investor Protection Corporation (SIPC), which maintains a special reserve fund mandated by Congress to protect the customers of insolvent brokerage firms, again warned that consumers and job seekers should not accept SIPC checks that are presented online or in person by con artists seeking to buy personal goods or engage individuals for work. SIPC officials said the fake checks include an actual SIPC account number that is used only for deposits. No checks of any kind are issued on the account in question. In over a dozen cases so far, one or more individuals have presented the phony SIPC checks to "pay" for an item on Craigslist or in face-to-face transactions, or to "pay" for services advertised on Craigslist ... PROTECTING SENIOR INVESTORS - The Securities and Exchange Commission, Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) and North American Securities Administrators Association (NASAA) updated a joint report that outlines practices being used by financial services firms to strengthen their policies and procedures for serving senior investors as they approach and begin retirement. The SEC, FINRA and NASAA first published the report in 2008 to highlight proactive steps being taken by some financial services firms in serving senior customers. It was intended to assist the overall industry in enhancing compliance, supervisory and other practices related to older investors. The 2010 Addendum summarizes additional practices now being used by financial services firms and securities professionals in serving senior investors ... INVESTOR TRAPS: DON’T BE SNARED! - The North American Securities Administrators Association (NASAA) released its annual list of traps that cautious investors should avoid when seeking to jump-start their investment portfolios as the impact of the financial crisis and increased market volatility continue to reverberate along Main Street. NASAA President and Texas Securities Commissioner Denise Voigt Crawford said investors rebuilding nest eggs damaged by the market collapse as well as those frustrated with low interest rates are particularly susceptible to speculative investments that most often turn a promise for profit into thin air. "Knowledge, attention to detail and a healthy sense of skepticism are a triple threat to fight investment fraud," Crawford said ... GET HIP TO HYIP PONZI SCHEMES - The Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) warned investors about Internet-based Ponzi schemes called high-yield investment programs (HYIPs), which purport to offer returns of 20, 30, 100 percent or more per day. HYIPs are unregistered investments sold by unlicensed individuals using sophisticated-looking websites. The con artists behind HYIPs are experts at using social media - including YouTube, Twitter and Facebook - to lure investors and create the illusion of social consensus that these investments are legitimate, but investors should know that HYIPs are just Internet-based scams. As FINRA's investor alert HYIPs-Hazardous to Your Investment Portfolio points out, many HYIPs have a worldwide reach ... BEWARE OF INTERNATIONAL SCAMS - Americans report losses of more than a billion dollars a year to international scam artists, according to the Federal Trade Commission (FTC), the nation's consumer protection agency. Con artists can reach out across the globe to victimize people using the phone, email, postal mail, and the Internet, tricking them into sending their cash or revealing their personal information. The FTC has tips for avoiding these scams. It's often hard to tell who is contacting you and where they are calling from. However, there are steps you can take to check out the offers you may receive, and the companies behind them. To learn more, go to Putting a Lid on International Scams: 10 Tips for Being a Canny Consumer... RESEARCH YOUR INVESTMENT ADVISOR - The North American Securities Administrators Association (NASAA) announced the launch of an enhancement to the Investment Adviser Public Disclosure (IAPD) website that will allow investors to electronically access information about individuals who work for money management, financial planning and other investment advisory firms. This enhancement will provide information on investment adviser representatives - the individuals who work for these firms and provide investment advice to clients. The enhancement will allow investors to access information on more than 220,000 individual investment professionals, including background information such as customer complaints, criminal or regulatory disclosures, professional qualifications, and employment history ... TIME FOR A MID-YEAR INVESTMENT REVIEW? - If it's been a while since you last looked at your investment accounts, make sure the securities in your account still meet your investment objectives. Also, make sure you understand and are comfortable with the risks, costs, and liquidity of your investments. As part of this review, you may want to check the information that is on file at your brokerage firm regarding your accounts, such as new account agreements, margin account agreements, option account agreements, discretionary account agreements, and any correspondence to you. You have a right to know what is on file about you. The Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) offers "10 Tips to Keep Track of Your Investments" for more ideas ... ELDER INVESTMENT FRAUD - More than 7.3 million older Americans - one out of every five citizens over the age of 65 - already have been victimized by a financial swindle, according to a major new Investor Protection Trust (IPT) survey conducted by Infogroup/ORC and released to mark World Elder Abuse Awareness Day. The survey results underscore the urgent need for a new partnership between the nonprofit Investor Protection Trust, the North American Securities Administrators Association (NASAA), and the National Adult Protective Services Association (NAPSA) in cooperation with leading U.S. medical associations. The "Elder Investment Fraud and Financial Exploitation" prevention campaign will educate medical professionals about how to spot older Americans who may be particularly vulnerable to financial abuse ...
LATINO INVESTING - The ASPIRA Association and the FINRA Investor Education Foundation, along with media partners, launched a national communications campaign titled "ASPIRA y Aprende a Invertir" targeted to the Latino community to promote the importance of investing. "This initiative builds on the rich bilingual educational resources already available on aspira.org ... in order to help Latinos make better and more informed financial investments decisions," indicated Ronald Blackburn-Moreno, President and CEO of the ASPIRA Association. These messages, on the importance of investing for a better future, will be targeted to communities with high concentrations of Latinos throughout the continental U.S. and Puerto Rico. Educational materials will also be made available to a significant number of Hispanic-serving community-based organizations, faith-based organizations and public libraries ... INVESTOR ALERT: OIL SPILL STOCK SCAMS - The oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico poses more than an environmental and economic threat to the region. It also poses a financial threat to investors in the form of scams promising financial gains from investments in companies that claim to be involved in cleanup operations. Millions of dollars are being spent daily on short-term cleanup of the spill, which began in April 2010 with a blowout at an oil-drilling platform off the coast of Louisiana. The cost of long-term remediation remains unknown given the uncertainty about the extent of damage to the environment, the fishing industry and tourism. The staff of the Securities and Exchange Commission and FINRA have issued an alert to warn investors about potential scams that exploit the Gulf oil spill and related cleanup efforts ... BOGUS “SIPC CHECK” WARNING - The Securities Investor Protection Corporation (SIPC), which maintains a special reserve fund mandated by Congress to protect the customers of insolvent brokerage firms, warns that consumers should not accept SIPC checks that are presented online or in person by con artists seeking to buy personal goods. SIPC officials said the fake checks include an actual SIPC account number that is used only for deposits. In over a half dozen cases so far, one or more individuals have presented the phony SIPC checks to "pay" for an item on Craigslist or in face-to-face transactions. In some cases, the bad check passer or passers are trying to purchase items for less than the face value of the phony check and then asking for the balance in return ... BEWARE ‘FAKE SEC’ - The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has issued an Investor Alert about an entity calling itself the "U.S. Securities and Equities Administration" and other similar names. In conversations with members of the public, the entity may have represented that its address is 225 Franklin Street, Boston, Massachusetts. The entity also claims to operate a website at www.gov.ussea.us. It appears that this entity may be requesting up-front fees to remove purported restrictions on shares of stock that investors own, or to release funds purportedly being held by the U.S. government on investors' behalf. Investors should beware that these entities are not United States government agencies and are not affiliated with the United States Securities and Exchange Commission ... FREE FINANCIAL PLANNING FOR UNDERSERVED - The Certified Financial Planner Board of Standards (CFP Board), the U.S. Conference of Mayors and other groups announced a major initiative to provide free financial education and programming to underserved populations throughout the U.S. The first-of-its kind effort is slated to involve thousands of financial planners and consumers with the support of numerous cities in a series of "Financial Planning Days" scheduled for October 2010. Through a series of clinics, qualified and experienced financial planners will provide free, no-strings-attached, financial advice and education to underserved communities, young adults and individuals facing special life circumstances or crises... COMPARING MUTUAL FUNDS - FINRA has just released several new upgrades to their popular Fund Analyzer tool, which lets you compare up to three mutual funds or exchange-traded funds side-by-side and evaluate the impact of fees and expenses over time on your investments. Using the new Fund Screener, you can now search more than 23,000 funds and ETFs on nine key criteria, making the task of finding funds that meet your objectives quicker and easier. And the new Annual Expense Comparison illustrates how a fund's expense ratio stacks up against an industry average of similar funds. Other new features include one-click access to a fund's prospectus and other disclosure documents, a PDF report you can print or save and a "Share This" function so you can send your report to others ... NEW RESOURCE: SENIORS & INVESTMENT FRAUD - Seniors are often the target of fraud. However, with some basic understanding of how scam artists work, they can avoid fraud and protect your hard-earned money. Learning how to invest safely can mean a huge difference in your retirement years. Seniors are particularly vulnerable to tactics of scam artists who are "nice" or attempt to develop a false bond of friendship. Scam artists prey on seniors who are polite to others and have difficulty saying "no" or feel indebted to someone who has provided unsolicited investment advice. The Securities and Exchange Commission's Investor.gov has just released the new brochure, "A Guide for Seniors: Protect Yourself Against Investment Fraud," in English and Spanish ... BUILD AMERICA BONDS - Have you heard about the new Build America Bonds? The Securities Industry and Financial Markets Association (SIFMA) recently released a fact sheet about the bonds for those who want to get more information. Build America Bonds (BABs) are taxable municipal bonds that were authorized under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (ARRA) that President Obama signed into law on February 17, 2009. Unlike municipal bonds, most of which are tax exempt, BABs are taxable bonds, which means that the interest is subject to taxation. The first BAB was issued in April of 2009. The ARRA allows state and local governments to issue BABs in 2009 and 2010 ... FINANCIAL LITERACY MONTH - April is Financial Literacy Month, and the Federal Trade Commission, the nation's consumer protection agency, has information to help you make the most of your money whether you're a student, young adult, parent, older person, or military service member. "There's no time like the present to learn proven money-management skills," said David C. Vladeck, Director of the FTC's Bureau of Consumer Protection. Information from the FTC can help people explore how advertising affects them; understand credit, credit reports, and credit scores; get tips on how to protect their personal information and minimize the risk of identity theft; shop for a home loan; learn their rights when dealing with a debt collector; explore how advertising affects them; and much more ... MAKING RETIREMENT SAVING EASIER - The federal government is making changes to help you save and invest for your post-work future. The new rules are designed to help Americans save for retirement by making it more "automatic" - by having workers automatically enrolled in 401(k) or SIMPLE IRA retirement savings plans, having tax refunds directly deposited into retirement accounts or used to purchase savings bonds, and having more amount from each year's salary withheld and invested for future retirement savings. The goal of the program is that by making retirement savings automatic you will be less likely to spend funds and instead invest them to grow into a future financial nest egg for your retirement income needs. To get more information, check out the item at TomorrowsMoney.org ... INVESTOR ALERT: KEEPING TRACK OF YOUR INVESTMENTS - New rules are in effect for investment advisers registered with the Securities and Exchange Commission that have custody of advisory clients' funds or securities. These new rules are designed to provide additional safeguards for investors against the possibility of theft or misappropriation by SEC-registered investment advisers. Investors still have an important role to play, however, in helping to ensure the safety of their investments. Custody by investment advisers means holding client funds or securities, directly or indirectly, or having the authority to obtain possession of them. As the SEC notes: "The rule amendments are designed to enhance safeguards over client assets, but they are not a substitute for investor diligence and care." ... INVESTOR ALERT: REVERSE CONVERTIBLES - Over the past few years, brokerage firms and banks have been issuing and marketing complex investments known in the industry as "structured products" to individual investors. These include "reverse convertibles," which are popular in part because of the high yields they offer. FINRA has issued an investor alert to inform investors of the features and risks of reverse convertibles Also known as "revertible notes" or "reverse exchangeable securities," reverse convertibles are debt obligations of the issuer that are tied to the performance of an unrelated security or basket of securities. Reverse convertibles expose investors not only to risks traditionally associated with bonds and other fixed income products, but also to the additional risks of the unrelated assets ... RETIREMENT WEALTH KNOW-HOW - Many Americans who are nearing retirement have seen their investments drop significantly in the market turmoil of the past few years. Others are more comfortably set for their retirement, but could still be derailed by swindlers, catastrophic medical expenses, and other threats. Some Americans are already retired and worry about how to properly manage their money to last throughout their golden years. The nonprofit, 20-member Alliance for Investor Education (AIE) is making a new resource available today to provide 12 of the best Web-based tools to older investors looking to grow, protect and manage their retirement savings. The Alliance's new "Retirement Wealth Know-How: Investor Education for Seniors" is available now ... WARNING: FAKE SITE TARGETS MADOFF VICTIMS - The Securities Investor Protection Corporation (SIPC), which maintains a special reserve fund mandated by Congress to protect the customers of insolvent brokerage firms, has alerted international regulators and the investing public about a "look-alike" Web site for an organization that is mimicking the SIPC Web site in an apparent attempt to target Madoff victims. The so-called "International Securities Investor Protection Corporation (I-SIPC.com)" copies several aspects of the SIPC Web site artwork and structural design. It is soliciting Madoff victims to submit claims, which SIPC is warning could result in "phishing" or other identify theft problems. The phony group claims to be based in Geneva and also maintains that it has ties to the United Nations and the International Monetary Fund ... PROTECT YOUR MONEY - The Federal Trade Commission's 2010 National Consumer Protection Week (NCPW) will be held March 7-13. This year's theme, "Dollars & Sense: Rated 'A' for All Ages", highlights the importance of using good consumer sense at every stage of life - from grade school to retirement. Organizations from around the country have provided free resources to help people protect their privacy, manage money and debt, avoid identity theft, understand credit and mortgages, and steer clear of frauds and scams. You can check out the NCPW blog to get great tips and connect with consumer protection experts and the NCPW events page can show you if there are local consumer protection fairs, shred-a-thons, or workshops in your area ... GETTING MORE INVESTORS TO VOTE PROXIES - The Securities and Exchange Commission has taken a series of steps to educate investors about proxy voting and support greater investor participation in corporate elections. The series of measures include amending the SEC's e-proxy rules, issuing an Investor Alert, and creating new Internet resources that explain the proxy voting process in plain language. Fewer than a third of individual investors vote their proxies now and the SEC is saying that wider investor involvement is of critical importance ... SMART INVESTING@YOUR LIBRARY - The Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) Investor Education Foundation and the American Library Association (ALA) have announced $1.5 million in grants to 19 recipients as a part of the Smart investing@your library® initiative to provide millions of library patrons with effective, unbiased financial education resources. Smart investing @ your library®, which is administered jointly by the Reference and User Services Association, a division of ALA, and the FINRA Investor Education Foundation, funds library efforts to assist Americans as they manage their day-to-day finances and navigate complex financial decisions ... TACKLING MONEY PRESSURES - It's become an all-too-familiar headline - lay-offs and furloughs, falling housing prices and rising consumer debt, declining retail sales and increasing costs of living. Money - and the lack of it - is a source of stress and frustration. And while people the world over are working to stem the global financial situation we're in, folks at home are trying to gain some control over their own financial situations. Practicing positive, tried and true money management techniques - and learning how to recognize and avoid some consumer scams and rip-offs - can help you weather tough economic times. The Federal Trade Commission (FTC), the nation's consumer protection agency, created the "Money Matters" Web site to help you tackle money issues ... FINANCIAL WEBCASTS FOR CONSUMERS - The current economic situation has countless Americans wondering where to turn for unbiased, ethical guidance and advice. To help consumers deal with the current turmoil, Certified Financial Planner Board of Standards developed a Consumer Webcast Series featuring CFP® professionals addressing key financial planning topics. Each webcast discusses a specific area of financial planning and includes practical information and tips that consumers can apply to their personal finances in today's tough times. Among the topics covered are: Planning for Your Financial Goals; and Young Professionals: Launching Your Financial Plan. The 50-minute long videos are available in English and Spanish and include synchronized PowerPoint slide shows that make it easy for consumers to follow the presentations ... 10 FINANCIAL PLANNING TIPS - Even before the recent economic downturn, the financial landscape in the United States was changing dramatically. While many American adults might believe they are adept at dealing with day-to-day financial matters, their actual financial behavior tells a different story. As findings from a recent FINRA Investor Education Foundation survey shows, far too many people tend to engage in financial behaviors that generate excessive expenses and fees. In addition, few people seem to compare the terms of financial products or shop around before making financial decisions. To help you stay on track with your finances, FINRA offers 10 tips ... GEARING UP FOR TAX TIME - Whether you're training for a marathon, landing the job of your dreams or closing a sale, you're not going to excel without being well prepared and fully informed. And the same holds true when managing and preparing your taxes. Waiting until April 15th to put your financial house in order can often mean missed opportunities to minimize your tax bill. To manage your taxes and minimize your tax bill, you need to know the rules of the game, which are constantly changing, and you want to take advantage of year-round tax-planning opportunities. The good news is that it's not too late to get started. This AICPA 360 Degrees of Financial Literacy Tax Savings Tips article can help you get the process started ... INVESTOR ALERT: GREEN ENERGY SCAMS - The Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) issued an Investor Alert warning investors to be wary of green energy investments that promise large gains from investing in companies purportedly involved in developing or producing alternative, renewable or waste energy products. The new Investor Alert, "Save Your Greenbacks-Don't Fall for Green Energy Scams," explains how these green energy scams typically work. In some schemes, con artists are using everything from tweets and text messages to webinars and faxes to lure investors with very aggressive, optimistic and potentially false and misleading statements that create unwarranted demand for shares of a small, thinly traded company. This is a classic "pump and dump" fraud where con artists behind the scheme then sell off their shares, leaving investors with worthless stock ... YOUR MIND AND YOUR MONEY - Want to understand the role psychological and emotional biases play in your decisions about money and investing in order to make better decisions? Behavioral finance teaches us few people always make logical investment decisions. The PBS show, Nightly Business Report, is running a year-long "Your Mind and Your Money" series aims to help investors understand those biases and make more rational decisions. The series is funded by the FINRA Investor Education Foundation. Reports and interviews will appear in the NBR program on select Mondays, and additional information -- including companion articles from Kiplinger's Personal Finance -- will appear regularly on the related Web site. Behavioral finance is a relatively new field of study, so make sure you consult a financial advisor for practical advice about investing ... RISK VERSUS REWARD - As most investors know, risk is an inherent part of investing; it is what makes the reward of positive returns possible. Too often, investors focused on big returns are persuaded to enter into what turn out to be fraudulent schemes promising the moon and the stars for little or no risk. The nonprofit, 21-member Alliance for Investor Education (AIE) is making a new resource available today to provide investors with 12 of the best Web-based tools to learn about investment fraud and how to avoid it. The Alliance's new "The Risk-Reward Relationship: What Investors Need to Understand to Avoid Fraud" is available now ... VIDEO SERIES: NEW FINANCIAL REALITIES - The recent economic downturn has shown us that we may need to re-examine some basic assumptions about the ways we manage our finances. What made sense pre-recession no longer works today. To help explain these new realities, CFP Board is rolling out a series of informational videos by Consumer Advocate Eleanor Blayney, CFPR, entitled, "The New Financial Realities." In the series, Blayney offers nine personal finance strategies to help consumers plan for what's ahead. The video series includes episodes looking at saving and investing wisely, planning for retirement, what to look for when choosing a financial planner, and teaching your children about personal finance ... MILITARY FAMILY “FINANCIAL READINESS” - A life in the military means a life of change-including changes in duty stations and deployments around the world. This life of moves can be a positive experience-for you and for your spouse and children. Of course, a life of moves also can be stressful. The difference between a painful move and a positive one often depends on your family's level of readiness. To help you and your family financially prepare for moves or deployments, the National Endowment for Financial Education® (NEFE®), the FINRA Investor Education Foundation, and the National Military Family Association have joined forces to bring you a new version of the publication, "Money and Mobility" ... ROCK ‘N’ ROLL INVESTMENT TIPS - Are you the type of person who asks, "Why can't radio stations play 'Free Bird' and 'Stairway to Heaven' more often?" or who muses hopefully, "I wonder if there is a radio station that plays 'Born to Run' 24/7?" If so, you should check out some fun and useful investment tips being offered by the CFA Institute. They offer the top 10 investment tips gleaned from the ancient texts of classic rock. These include highlighting songs like "Taxman" from the Beatles, for which the tip offered is to consider the effect of taxes on your withdrawals ... PROJECT CHANGE: FINANCIAL ED FOR KIDS - The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) is promoting a new financial literacy outreach program to foster improved financial literacy among elementary school students. Project CHANGE: "Creating Habits and Awareness for the Next Generation's Economy" is a joint partnership between the SEC, the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) and the Jump$tart Coalition for Personal Financial Literacy. On November 20, top officials from the SEC, FINRA and Jump$tart will visit 18 elementary schools throughout the country to teach a class on financial literacy ... RETIREMENT MADE SIMPLER - Retirement Made Simpler was created specifically to inspire and support employers who want to help their employees save more for retirement. By providing companies with the tools and information they need to automate their 401(k) plans, more Americans will achieve a safe and secure retirement. RMS conducted a survey in the summer of 2009 to better understand Americans' attitudes towards saving for retirement, and more specifically, the automatic features of their 401(k) plans, including automatic enrollment and automatic escalation. Retirement Made Simpler was formed by AARP, the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA), and the Retirement Security Project (RSP) ... THE NEW RULES OF PERSONAL FINANCE - If there is one thing that the financial crisis has taught us, it's that we can no longer afford to think about our personal finances as we did in the bubbly pre-recession days. In today's economy there are new financial realities that every consumer must understand. Eleanor Blayney, CFP®, Consumer Advocate for Certified Financial Planner Board of Standards, Inc. (CFP Board), will help steer consumers through the shifting economic landscape, by outlining the new rules for the new economy, in a series of nine videos ... SEC LAUNCHES INVESTOR.GOV - The Securities and Exchange Commission has launched its first-ever Web site devoted exclusively to investor education, providing investors with in-depth information and "top tips" on how to invest wisely, plan for the future, and avoid being scammed. At www.investor.gov, investors can access information in a user-friendly format that is specifically tailored to their needs. The site includes sections specifically for those just getting started investing, for those saving for a child's education, and for those planning for retirement. It also has a detailed "Seniors Care Package" section for senior citizens and caretakers. Investor.gov also offers a section exclusively in Spanish ... MORE THAN OK: INVESTOR ED ‘STARS’ - Who is going to teach Oklahoma high school students how to prepare for their financial futures? The Oklahoma Securities Commission (OSC), a member of the North American Securities Administrators Association (NASAA), believes that their outreach program Invest Ed® STARS (Students Tracking and Researching the Stock Market) answers that question. In 2005, OSC set out to change high school students' perceptions of the stock market. This resulted in an interactive online investment portfolio project program that emphasizes the importance of investing for the long term and raising awareness of securities fraud. STARS differs from other similar programs due its focus on investor protection ... UNDERSTANDING ESTATE PLANNING - Have you thought about wanting to develop a plan for your estate but worry that it's too daunting a task? Do you have pieces of your estate plan done but want to make sure your plan is comprehensive? Join the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants' Personal Financial Planning Section and the National Association of Estate Planners & Councils for a free Webinar with leading financial and estate planning experts on October 19th at 2 p.m. This comprehensive two-hour presentation will focus on the basic elements of an estate plan, including elder law planning, financial planning, insurance, investments, retirement planning and wills, as well as common mistakes and some of the consequences of improper planning in light of these difficult economic times ... CALCULATORS FOR EVERY FINANCIAL DECISION - Are you trying to figure out how much you need to save to have a comfortable retirement? Are you curious how a consistent approach to savings can make your money grow? Do you want to know whether it makes the most sense to buy, sell or stay put with your stock investing and mutual funds? Do you want to see how much you should set aside for your child's college education? The Choose to Save program from the Employee Benefit Research Institute (EBRI) and its American Savings Education Program (ASEC) offers a comprehensive list of calculators to help you with any saving and investing decision you need to make ... INVESTOR ED IN THE CLASSROOM - Are you a teacher looking for finance and investment-related educational resources for your classroom? Are you searching for ways to let your pupils have fun while also learning important financial lessons they'll need for the future? Are you a parent looking for tips for the best way to teach your kids about finances and investing? The nonprofit, 21-member Alliance for Investor Education (AIE) is helping teachers and parents by outlining 10 of the best Web-based resources for educating children about saving and investing. The Alliance's new "Back to School: Investor Education in the Classroom" is available now ... PHONY FED FRAUD - The Federal Reserve Board issued a warning to consumers about fraudulent solicitations that appear to be made with the approval or involvement of the Federal Reserve, Federal Reserve officials, or other U.S. government officials. These solicitations promise bogus financial services or large sums of money in exchange for either payment or personal information that can then be used to access a consumer's bank account. The Federal Reserve is advising consumers that it has no involvement in these solicitations. Consumers are strongly urged to verify the legitimacy of potential service providers. Information related to how to identify a fraud or scam may be found on the Federal Reserve Board's Consumer Help Center website ... MANAGING FINANCES IN A DISASTER - As fires endanger homes in the Los Angeles Basin, residents are packing their important belongings and escaping the path of destruction. While many are doing their best to protect their homes now, some will face the daunting task of recovering financially from this disaster later. The California wildfires remind us that life can change in an instant. Our daily routines are disrupted, property is destroyed and lives might be lost. The National Endowment for Financial Education (NEFE) offers these tips to financial issues that disaster victims must address immediately... ASK THE MONEY DOCTOR - Are you looking for guidance on a personal finance question and want input from an expert? AICPA's 360 Degrees of Financial Literacy site features an "Ask the Money Doctor" feature. Consumers can get guidance from a qualified Certified Public Accountant (CPA) that have attained the Personal Financial Specialists (PFS) credential for comprehensive financial planning to act as Money Doctors and answer questions from consumers regarding their financial planning issues. he program is offered as a public service and is designed to help and protect consumers by providing guidance on basic financial planning issues ... ORGANIZING YOUR FINANCIAL RECORDS - What do you do with your retirement account statements when you get them in the mail? How about your brokerage account paperwork? And your savings account records? Investing can involve a lot of paperwork. Do you need some pointers on how to keep it all in order? The latest addition to FINRA's Investor Podcast series offers tips to help you organize your financial documents and keep track of your money ... TOP 10 INVESTOR “SNARES” - The North American Securities Administrators Association is urging investors to spot and avoid this year's "Top 10 Investor Traps." Fred Joseph, NASAA President and Colorado Securities Commissioner, said that investors under pressure from the struggling economy need to resist the lure of sales pitches to rebuild their savings. Many of the traps identified by NASAA's Enforcement Trends Project Group promise high returns to cash-strapped investors but provide little if any disclosure of risks and offer high commissions to aggressive sales forces ... SEC LISTENING TO INVESTORS - In an effort to get more direct input on matters of concern to investors in securities markets, the Securities and Exchange Commission established the SEC Investor Advisory Committee to advise the Commission on matters of concern to investors in the securities markets; provide the Commission with investors' perspectives on current, non-enforcement, regulatory issues; and serve as a source of information and recommendations to the Commission regarding the Commission's regulatory programs from the point of view of investors. The Committee recently agreed upon a wide reaching agenda for the future to advance efforts to help protect investors, including topics like proxy voting, direct-investor communications, valuation financial literacy and others ... SMART FINANCIAL CHOICES AFTER LOSING YOUR JOB - Do you know how to keep your long-term finances on the right track when experiencing an extended period of unemployment? Want to know the right questions to ask about your company's benefit plans and how to protect yourself when seeking financial advice? Check out this two-part podcast series from FINRA ... FINANCES FOR FIANCES - For couples, compatibility means a lot more than liking the same movies or flavor of ice cream. For couples, it also means being able to successfully talk about and manage your finances. Before you tie the knot, the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants (AICPA) 360 Degrees of Financial Literacy Web site recommends taking a poll to see how you and others are doing in your financial union to your partners. Then, they provide some tips to help you and your partner enter into your union without contention over money matters in their Couples and Marriage section, including "Getting to "I Do" Despite Investing Differences" ... INVESTOR ALERT: OLD VS. NEW GM STOCK - The SEC and FINRA have issued an Investor Alert to head off any misunderstanding by investors that stock in the "old" General Motors Corporation is related to the "new" General Motors Company. FINRA halted trading in old GM (which had been using the GMGMQ trading symbol) on July 10, 2009, and has since issued a new ticker symbol for the old GM stock-MTLQQ-to avoid having it confused with the new GM, which currently has no publicly traded securities. Investors should be aware that holding shares of any company involved in bankruptcy, or buying shares in a bankrupt company in the hope that those shares will surge in value down the road, are highly risky courses of action ... INVESTING IN BONDS - Are you considering using bonds as a savings tool but don't feel you know enough about them? Are you looking to learn how bonds work and what returns you can get? Are you unsure whether to use bonds as part of a short- or long-term investment strategy? The nonprofit, 21-member Alliance for Investor Education (AIE) is helping investors with their questions by outlining 12 of the best Web-based resources for investors to educate themselves about bonds. The Alliance's new "Investing in Bonds" is available now ... RECESSIONARY SURVIVAL TIPS - Are you looking for ways to save, invest, plan for retirement and pay for college but feeling stretched thin in this difficult economic climate? Do you need help with achieving your financial goals and need answers? To help you through these tough times, the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants (AICPA) has pulled together resources on how to cope with job loss, paying for college, saving, investing, funding retirement and home buying & foreclosure. You can find a series of recessionary survival links through AICPA's 360 Degrees of Financial Literacy Web site, which offers information to help consumers make sound financial decisions at every stage of their lives, from childhood to retirement ... MICRO-CAP STOCK WARNING - Information is the investor's best tool when it comes to wise investing. But accurate information about "micro-cap stocks"-low-priced stocks issued by the smallest of companies-may be difficult to find. Many micro-cap stocks trade in the over-the-counter market and are quoted on OTC systems. But many micro-cap companies do not file financial reports with the SEC, so it's hard for investors to get the facts about the company's management, products, services, and finances, according to a recent AAII Journal article ... GAUGE YOURSELF ON SCAM AND RISK METERS - Even as the current financial crisis has battered the portfolios of many investors, so too has it fueled investment fraud schemes. In turbulent economic times, ongoing schemes tend to unravel as wary investors begin demanding their cash. And the opportunity for new fraud can rise, as fraudsters look for any hook to exploit those who hope to recover their losses. FINRA issued an alert to warn investors about classic types of investment fraud and to help investors spot and avoid the types of persuasion tactics fraudsters use. Their Scam Meter can help investors assess whether an opportunity is too good to be true, and the Risk Meter reveals whether you share characteristics and behavior traits that have been shown to make some investors vulnerable to investment fraud ... PROTECT DAD FROM PHISHING - The Federal Trade Commission's Father's Day e-card is the perfect gift for the man who already has enough ties. But even more important, it can save your dad a whole lot of headaches. Available from the FTC in English and Spanish at http://www.ftc.gov/dad and http://www.ftc.gov/padre, the cards offer dads advice on keeping their personal information secure. Help your dad figure out how to spot fraud on the Internet. When Internet scam artists go "phishing," they send spam e-mails or pop-up messages asking for personal information, Social Security numbers, and/or passwords. To gain the trust of those they wish to con, these hustlers often pose as representatives of a bank or credit union, an investment firm, or a government agency ... RETHINKING RETIREMENT SAVING AND INVESTING - You commit yourself to saving for retirement. You take steps to understand how long your financial resources must last in retirement years so you don't outlive your savings; you test guideline amounts needed to retire using an online calculator; you start contributing to 401(k) or IRA or SEP or other savings or investment account and keep contributing regularly and as a result, you watch your retirement savings steadily increase. The economic recession has fundamentally challenged that thinking but it doesn't mean you should give up hope, stop taking actions to plan, save and invest for retirement--or stop working toward your important life goals. Tomorrowsmoney.org offer several tips to rethink your approach to retirement planning ... STANFORD “RELOAD” SCHEME WARNING - Some investors in the Stanford International Bank CD program are being contacted by individuals who are offering their "services" to help return investors' lost funds. Unfortunately, unscrupulous individuals often approach victims with false promises of faster or larger returns of their lost money. Investors can be tricked into paying for these "services" thinking they are merely paying a little to get back a lot more. Instead, they are often victimized a second time. In SEC enforcement cases involving an asset freeze of a firm or individual, the court often appoints a receiver to act in the interests of all investors by identifying, locating and liquidating assets ... SURVEY: RETIREMENT EXPECTATIONS PLUMMET - The recession has cast a pall over the retirement expectations of the vast majority of Americans, leaving a record-low 13 percent this year able to say they are very confident of having enough money to live comfortably in retirement, according to the 19th Annual Retirement Confidence Survey (RCS) released by the nonpartisan Employee Benefit Research Institute (EBRI). Among workers, those feeling very confident about retirement has tumbled by a full half in the last two years ... AVOIDING A REVERSAL OF (MORTGAGE) FORTUNES - If you are in your sixties, and own your home, chances are you have heard about reverse mortgages. Reverse mortgages can be helpful to homeowners who want to stay in their homes but are having trouble keeping up with their mortgage payments, or who have no other source of funds to pay bills. But as more Americans near retirement age, some financial institutions are aggressively marketing reverse mortgages as an easy, cost-free way for retirees to finance lifestyles that can jeopardize their financial futures. The Financial Industry Regulatory Authority has issued an alert to urge homeowners thinking about reverse mortgages to make informed decisions and carefully weigh all of their options before proceeding ...
PARENTS—THE BEST FINANCIAL HEROES? - Now wrapping up its first year, the Arizona Pathways to Life Success for University Students (APLUS) study already offers promising data for how, as a culture, we can begin to move toward healthier personal finances. Study findings show that parents are poised to be the true heroes when it comes to better money management. APLUS researchers found that parents have more influence over their children's financial knowledge, attitudes and behaviors than work experience and high school financial education combined. The National Endowment for Financial Education funded the first wave of research ...
PREVENTING ELDER FINANCIAL ABUSE - The Employee Benefit Research Institute's American Savings Education Council new study on elder financial abuse prevention, "Broken Trust: Elders, Family, and Finances," provides a comprehensive understanding of the extent and implications of all manifestations of elder financial abuse-personal, institutional, and societal. While underreported, the annual financial loss by victims of this type of abuse is estimated at $2.6 billion dollars. And the increased aging of the population will dramatically increase the opportunity for it to grow. The perpetrators of such abuse are typically not strangers, and the victims come from all walks of life, regardless of gender or race ... MICROGRANTS FOR INVESTOR ED - The Investment Company Institute Education Foundation (ICIEF) is launching a pilot program to provide microgrants--up to $25,000 each-- to schools and other nonprofit organizations within the greater metropolitan Washington, DC, area to incorporate investor education into existing financial education courses, programs, and activities. Children and adults alike need a better understanding of financial markets and how these markets work to benefit both individuals and society. The program's objective is to identify, inspire, or replicate best practices in investor education--innovative, hands-on efforts that not only build knowledge, but change attitudes and create confidence as well ...
TOLERATING RISK IN LEAN TIMES - The April issue of Better Investing magazine features the article, "What's Your Tolerance for Risk?" After experiencing the 2008 stock market, many shell-shocked investors may seek to escape risk by avoiding investing altogether--an unwise decision, according to the authors: "Although this past year's experience has been very difficult for everyone, it may have some good long-term results. Perhaps people will realize that you can't make fortunes overnight, that you should avoid being heavily in debt, that you shouldn't spend all your income, that it's important to accumulate a cash reserve for a rainy day and that you really need to investigate before you invest. In other words, they may start believing all those maxims that financial planners have been preaching for years" ... “MONEY MATTERS” IN DIFFICULT TIMES - It's become an all-too-familiar headline: layoffs and furloughs, falling housing prices and rising consumer debt, declining retail sales and increasing costs of living. Money--and the lack of it--is a source of stress and frustration. To help, the Federal Trade Commission has launched Money Matters, a new Web site for people dealing with debt and struggling to find a job. It's a guide to creating a budget, saving, and spending wisely during these difficult times. It offers short, practical tips, videos, and links to reliable resources for more information on topics like credit repair, debt collection, jobs scams, managing mortgage payments, and foreclosure rescue scams ... LEARNING FROM TAX REFUND DELAY - With the economy in a tail spin, everyone is having a hard time making ends meet. So too are states, which face not only declining revenues, but the need to find millions of dollars for income tax refunds. California and Kansas are the first two to face that dilemma. California is suspending refunds for a time. The Kansas governor and the legislature are trying to fashion a solution. Could this happen where you live? It's possible. And if you were counting on that refund, now what? According to the National Endowment for Financial Education, one solution is to plan for the unusual ... rather than always have to scramble with the unexpected happens. NEFE explains why you shouldn't count on your tax refund to pay down debt, purchase a big-ticket item, or contribute to an IRA ... BEWARE THE AFFINITY SWINDLER - State securities regulators are warning investors to be on guard against a rise in affinity group fraud. In a world of increasing complexity, many feel the need for a short-hand way of knowing whom to trust. So, many fall prey to affinity group fraud in which a con artist claims to be a member of the same ethnic, religious, career or community-based group. The North American Securities Administrators Association offers tips for avoiding this type of fraud: beware of the use of names or testimonials from other group members; obtain a prospectus that details the risks in the investment and procedures on how to get your money out; contact your state or securities agency to learn more about the firm ... STIMULUS SCAM ALERT - The Federal Trade Commission is warning consumers that they could get stung by an economic stimulus scam. On the Web and in email, scammers tell consumers they can help them qualify for a payment from President Obama's economic stimulus package. They merely have to provide a little information (e.g., a bank account number) or a small payment. "Web sites may advertise that they can help you get money from the stimulus fund. Many use deceptive images of President Obama and Vice President Biden ," says Eileen Harrington, acting director of the FTC Bureau of Consumer Protection. "Don't fall for it; you'll get scammed" ... SEC IMPERSONATOR SCAM - The Securities and Exchange Commission is warning investors and financial services firms about con-artists who may use the names of actual SEC employees to mislead potential victims. The agency also is providing information to help potential victims protect themselves from SEC impersonators. In some instances, investors in the U.S. and abroad have been tricked into revealing private information, giving fraudsters access to their brokerage accounts, and even sending money and other assets to imposters ...
THE STIMULUS BILL AND YOUR FINANCIAL PLAN - For the members of the Financial Planning Association, the new stimulus bill means it's time to go back to the proverbial drawing board. On February 17, 2009, President Obama signed into law the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009, a $787 billion stimulus package aimed at lifting the economy out of recession, creating millions of jobs, and boosting consumer spending. The plan includes numerous tax breaks for Americans who are struggling to make ends meet. Financial planners say it is a great opportunity to revisit and tweak your financial plan. "This is a huge wakeup call to every person in America to get your own financial planning done, to get your financial house in order," said FPA member Marty Kurtz, CFP®, of The Planning Center. Part of getting your house in order will require spending time "absorbing everything" about the new law before taking any action that could affect you over the next few years. "Spend time understanding the bill," said FPA member Paula Hogan, CFP®, of Hogan Financial Management. "There is a lot of money being given away." ...
MONEY ADVICE FOR THE NEWLY UNEMPLOYED - "Managing Your Job Transition: Making Smart Financial Choices after a Job Loss" is a helpful brochure published by the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority and distributed in collaboration with the Better Business Bureau of Metropolitan New York, Inc. It offers tips for consumers about managing their finances in the event of unemployment; asking the right questions about their companies' benefit plans, checking on financial advisers, and avoiding fraud. "Individuals can't control when they may face unemployment," said John Gannon, FINRA senior vice president for investor education. "But when faced with a sudden job loss, they may be able to ease the financial impact on themselves and their families. FINRA wants to help workers make sound decisions that preserve their hard-earned retirement savings" ... BUILD WEALTH, NOT DEBT - America Saves Week is February 22-March 1, and the Investment Company Institute is pleased to join more than 1,000 corporate, nonprofit, and government organizations in a nationwide campaign to promote individual savings. Each year, during America Saves Week, tens of thousands of Americans set a savings goal and commit to saving. Nearly 93 million Americans use mutual funds to save for long-term goals. "Now, more than ever," ICI President and CEO Paul Schott Stevens said, "it's important to stick with it. History tells us that markets will recover-and your accounts will rebound along with them" ...
FINANCIAL ED FOR COLLEGE STUDENTS - CashCourse - NEFE 's online financial education resource for college students - is now in use at more than 200 universities, colleges, and alumni associations. NEFE has improved CashCourse so that the resource engages students more and helps college administrators better reach their students with financial education. The five workshop kits include PowerPoint presentations, facilitator's guides, hands-on learning materials for students, and post-workshop evaluations. The workshop topics cover budgeting, money management, identity theft, credit, and debt. To learn more, visit www.CashCourse.org ... IRAS: HELPING AMERICANS SAVE - Seven in 10 U.S. households have some type of tax-advantaged retirement savings through work or through Individual Retirement Accounts (IRAs), according to a new Investment Company Institute study. "The Role of IRAs in U.S. Households' Saving for Retirement, 2008," found that IRAs have played an increasingly important role in Americans' retirement savings. Forty-seven million, or 41 percent, of U.S. households reported owning IRAs in May 2008. The study also finds that rollovers from employer-sponsored retirement plans have fueled the growth in IRAs, and more than half of households owning traditional IRAs have rollover assets in them. In 2008, traditional IRAs were the most common type of IRA owned, followed by Roth IRAs and employer-sponsored IRAs ... AVOIDING MADOFF-STYLE PONZI SCHEMES - How can investors protect themselves from financial losses in a Ponzi scheme of the type associated with Bernard Madoff? What red flags should they look for to alert them to a possible Ponzi scheme? What do investors need to know in general about spotting and avoiding investment fraud? The nonprofit Alliance for Investor Education (AIE) is responding to those concerns by outlining 12 of the best Web-based resources for investors to educate themselves about investment fraud, particularly Ponzi schemes. The Alliance's new "Avoiding Madoff-Like Ponzi Schemes: What Investors Need to Know to Protect Themselves" is available now ... KEEPING PERSPECTIVE IN A “MELTDOWN” - At times of financial turmoil, such as those we have experienced for the last year and even more severely over the last month, many investors may feel lost in unfamiliar-and extremely discomforting-territory. In times like these, when the media headlines are screaming "meltdown" and "unprecedented crisis," fear and uncertainty can prompt an emotional response that causes investors to flee their stock holdings and run for the cover of more certain investments such as Treasury bills. But this emotional response is based on a short-term perspective, and it could result in the opposite of what you intend-substantially increasing the risk that your long-term investment goals will not be reached. Instead, you need to take emotions caused by short-term conditions out of the equation by putting things into perspective and sticking to the fundamental rules of investing. The American Association of Individual Investors offers some advice on how to keep perspective in turbulent times ... SEC WARNING: BEWARE OF FAKE REGULATORS - Securities and Exchange Commission staff are aware of a number of ongoing investment scams in which con artists have used the names of real SEC employees to trick victims, including non-U.S. investors, into giving the fraudsters access to their brokerage accounts, revealing private information, and even sending the perpetrators money and other assets. Even where the fraudsters do not request that funds be sent directly to them, they may use the personal information they obtain to steal the individual's identity and then misappropriate his or her financial assets. If you receive a call or email from someone claiming to be from the SEC (or another government agency), always verify the person's identity. Use the SEC's personnel locator, (202) 551-6000, to verify whether the caller is an SEC staff member and to speak with him or her directly. You can also call the SEC at (800) SEC-0330 for general information, including information about SEC enforcement actions and any investor claims funds ... MADOFF CLAIM FORM UPDATE - The Securities Investor Protection Corporation (SIPC), which maintains a special reserve fund authorized by Congress to help investors at failed brokerage firms, and the court-appointed trustee for the liquidation of Bernard L. Madoff Investment Securities LLC (BLMIS) of New York, NY, issued the following joint statement this week: "... Trustee Irving H. Picard mailed on Friday (January 2, 2009) the following: over 8,000 customer claim forms, with detailed instructions for the completion and filing of the forms with the trustee; claim forms and related information to general creditors of BLMIS; and claims filing information to brokers and dealers ... The published notice provides information regarding the claims process, including instructions on how, where and by when to file a claim." ...
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