Bitcoins and Internet Criminality
Bitcoin, with a capital ‘B’, refers to the technology and computer networks by which some people elect to pay each other for goods and services...
Avoiding Costly ‘Closet’ Index Funds
Stockbrokers and other financial advisors are quick to promote expensive, actively managed mutual funds and the alleged benefits that such funds can provide over less...
What You Should Know about Variable Annuities
A variable annuity is a mutual fund-type investment contract between the investor and an insurance company, under which the insurer agrees to make periodic payments...
Getting Justice for Seniors
Every state has passed some form of legislation protecting seniors from financial exploitation in addition to any type of physical abuse or theft of assets. Senior...
The 4 Biggest Myths about Stock Brokers
Myth #1: Brokers are trained in financial planning. Becoming a licensed stock broker requires passing a standardized examination (called the “Series 7″ after the type...
Investor’s Apathy Wrecks Retirement Plans
I was talking to a 5 Star rated financial advisor who is a long-term member of the Paladin Registry the other day. He described an...
Why Retaliating Against Standard & Poor’s (S&P) Matters
In 2011, Standard & Poor’s (S&P) downgraded the bond rating of the US government from AAA to AA+. The other two major bond rating agencies,...
How Much Investment Knowledge should My Stock Broker have?
Did you know that a brokerage firm has an ongoing duty to train its stock brokers to understand the products they sell, particularly complex products? FINRA...
How Effective is Your 401k?
The “Employee Retirement Income Security Act” (ERISA) was enacted to protect pension plan participants and their beneficiaries. Three main themes run through ERISA, (1) the avoidance...
A Retirement Solution for Self-Employed Americans
Are you an entrepreneur, independent contractor, consultant, or temporary worker? According to Intuit, 40% of Americans will fall into one of these categories by 2020....
