What Every Investor Needs To Know About Fiduciary Duty

1. What Every Investor Needs To Know About Fiduciary Duty For financial professionals, trust, transparency and financial expertise are just a few important qualities an investor should look for. In today’s marketplace, there is a significant difference among these professionals that many investors are not aware of. There are those who have a fiduciary responsibility and those who do not. There are plenty of Financial Planners in Toronto, but only 97% of them are called "Financial Advisors." Of these advisors, only about 3% have a fiduciary duty to act in the best interests of their clients. The remainder of these professionals are registered as "dealing representatives," who simply work as salespeople licensed to sell financial products. Here at Bizzy, we believe that a fiduciary responsibility is when you're dedicated to acting in your client's best interests and you don't commit any act contrary to that belief. Financial service fiduciaries are legally required to look after the best interests of their clients. They may be held accountable for legal compliance and are expected to put the client's needs before their own. They're rewarded for good performance and penalized for not meeting expectations. In contrast, "Dealing Representatives" have more incentive to do what's best for the firm, not necessarily the client. Here’s some clarification on industry job titles It's easy to get confused about what different job titles in the financial services industry mean to investors. A wealth advisor, for instance, sells products and offers advice on investments like stocks, bonds, and mutual funds. 97% of Financial Advisors are Registered = GOOD

2. The term "Financial Advisor" is an unregulated job title, meaning that anyone can be one without requiring the appropriate qualifications. As a Financial Advisor, there's no obligation to sell a specific product to a client. Sometimes the most beneficial option will not be the one they're sold. A Financial Advisor Toronto might even sell some of the least beneficial products just because it's in their best interest or they're pressured to meet revenue targets. On the job market, people with the word "adviser" in their title (notice the "e") will usually be referring to a registered financial professional with a fiduciary duty. This differs from someone who is just an advisor, which is not an official term under securities law. One letter makes all the difference The term "Adviser" encompasses a variety of job titles and requires a lot of training. Portfolio Managers, Investment Counsellors, Asset Managers, Investment Advisers, Investment Managers and Wealth Managers all have legal duties to act with care and honesty for the betterment of their clients. These responsibilities are dependent on an individual's education level and professional qualifications before they are best fit to help advise people in their personal financial investments. Here are a few benefits of investing in an "adviser": Working with legal fiduciaries and investment advisers has been shown to be very beneficial in the long-term. If you're thinking about making a new investment, you'll want to start working with an adviser from the very beginning. They can help by creating a personalized Investment Policy Statement and then following that up with your own personalized portfolio. Whether you're a first-time investor or currently managing your investments for several decades, working with an adviser will provide a number of benefits, including: Licensed and certified financial advisers are regulated by the province’s securities commission. In Ontario, this governing body is known as the OSC For your protection and privacy, all of our advisers must meet government regulations on financial reporting, capital, and insurance. Financial advisers are not paid based on commission or by the volume of their buying and selling investments. Advisers can charge you less for their services than what a mutual fund charges. The benefit is that these fees tend to be lower, but the potential risks are also higher. When you invest with an adviser, your money must reside within a custodian financial institution as an extra measure of protection. There are so many financial Investment companies in Canada that it's tough to know who to trust. If you want to make sure you're getting unbiased advice, honest guidance, and the knowledge needed to meet your goals, then you need look no further. As a trusted fiduciary, Avenue Investments is an independent private wealth manager which focuses on the long-term success of our clients. We focus on building trust and confidence through owning 100% of what our clients own. In the rare event that we encounter portfolio losses, we cut our management fees in half for our equity portfolios.