By Barron's Advisor Staff
After years of breakneck growth, private credit has suddenly hit a rough patch. Redemption requests have surged, largely across semiliquid vehicles and business development companies. Managers have had to enforce quarterly withdrawal caps to manage liquidity. Meanwhile, headlines about borrower stress have rattled investors and knocked down share prices of listed alternative managers. For this week's Barron's Advisor Big Q, we asked: What are you telling clients who are rattled by the scary headlines about private credit?
Among other most-read wealth management articles this week:
Advisors' high hopes for AI. Thousands of financial advisors attended the Future Proof conference in Miami earlier this month to learn more about AI and how it is changing their industry. Advisors are generally embracing the new technology as a way to improve their productivity and allow them to serve more clients. However, our reporter heard some trepidation over whether it may one day take their jobs.
Alleged racist remarks cost advisor $800K. A former LPL Financial advisor who had been terminated by the firm after allegedly making racist remarks has been ordered to pay more than $800,000 in damages and fees to her former firm. The advisor, Eileen Cure, says she was blindsided by the hearing and that the arbitration panel ruled against her in absentia. She has hired a new lawyer to contest the award.
Stifel case nears completion. The latest volley -- and perhaps one of the last -- in the legal dispute over one of the largest arbitration awards in the history of the securities industry has arrived. The recipients of the $132.5 million award are asking a federal court to ignore brokerage firm Stifel's objections and let the judgment stand. The court case, which stems from Stifel's efforts to overturn the arbitration award, offers a rare glimpse into the arbitration hearings conducted by Finra. One text revealed refers to "chiseling" clients.
Death knell for DOJ's fiduciary rule. A federal judge has struck down the Department of Labor's rule on retirement advice that classified more financial professionals as fiduciaries. The rule met with fierce opposition from the financial services industry. The Texas court's ruling on Tuesday ends the latest chapter in the long-running, politicized fight over the standard of conduct for advisors working with clients saving for retirement. Now advisor recommendations for handling one-time 401(k) rollovers generally won't be subject to a fiduciary standard.
New enforcement chief leaves SEC. Margaret Ryan, the former military judge brought in last summer to head enforcement at the Securities and Exchange Commission, has resigned, effective immediately. Sam Waldon, principal deputy director of enforcement, is heading the division on an acting basis as the SEC searches for a permanent successor. Ryan joined the agency with a directive to emphasize cases where there was direct evidence of investor harm.
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March 20, 2026 15:07 ET (19:07 GMT)
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