Page 27 - Investment Advisor - December 2021

Cover Story

We review the major developments affecting

financial advisors — from Wall Street to

Washington — over the past 12 months.

By Jeff Berman, Bernice Napach, Ginger Szala and Melanie Waddell

hile the influence of the COVID-19 pandemic continued in 2021, other news
and trends in financial services came to dominate headlines. Much of the most
W significant news of 2021 concerned President Joe Biden — such as his tapping
of Gary Gensler to lead the Securities and Exchange Commission — and potential changes in tax
rules that aim to raise government funding for different economic and social programs. But the
rising popularity of Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies also made waves, as the financial markets
generally remained robust.
Over the past year, though, prices have risen due to supply chain and related issues. This led to a
higher Social Security cost of living adjustment, for instance, and there will be a hike in Medicare
premiums, too. There also have been numerous discussions in Congress about the impact of
potential tax changes on retirement plans, including Roth IRAs.
Meanwhile, several high-profile criminal cases and other scandals in the broker-dealer space
attracted lots of attention on social media and beyond. There also have been lots of shifts tied to
the $22 billion Schwab-TD Ameritrade deal of 2020, as well as numerous mergers and acquisitions
this year in the rapidly consolidating financial services industry.
The following 2021 highlights reveal several trends and key industry developments that should
carry over into 2022 for financial advisors, financial services firms and their investor clients. They
also illustrate the rapid pace of change in the industry and the need for advisors to keep up.

DECEMBER 2021 INVESTMENT ADVISOR 25