A lot of job seekers would rather stay put than accept a new position requiring they leave the place they call home. A new survey of 3,000 job seekers, including many managers and executives, found that the percentage willing to relocate for a new opportunity dropped to a near-record low during the second half of [...] ...Read more

In the research report “The Independent Reps & Independent Broker/Dealers Market: The 21st Century Model?”, Tiburon Strategic Advisors, a strategic consulting and research firm, finds that stronger producing reps, especially the reps at the bigger independent broker-dealers, are doing pretty well, despite the current financial downturn. Independent broker-dealer reps are on the rise, while the [...] ...Read more

Insurance is still an industry that is actually creating jobs in the UK Every other week, there’s a rumor about a bank threatening to pull its headquarters out of London, but the UK’s reputation as an insurance hub remains as strong as ever. [UK] This is not a nice dragon: More job cuts may come after Chinese New Year [...] ...Read more

The world’s bankers are beginning to think small, Bloomberg reports. Citing interviews with bankers at the World Economic Forum in Davos, the newswire says a growing number of participants from the financial sector believe banks should become leaner and smaller to weather the current storm. “Last year, every bank thought they could grow their way [...] ...Read more

Last week, Morgan Stanley revealed it was capping cash bonuses for senior executives at $125,000 and now it appears Bank of America has reportedly told investment bankers it plans to freeze base salary levels and limit cash bonuses to $150,000 for some investment bankers, according to Bloomberg, who quotes two people claiming to have knowledge [...] ...Read more

The Securities and Exchange Commission has a new target: private equity shops. A three-member panel from the SEC’s asset management unit pointed to an increased likelihood of enforcement actions against private-equity firms in the near future, The Wall Street Journal reports. The SEC’s asset management unit was created in 2010 within the agency’s enforcement division [...] ...Read more

Despite Occupy Wall Street protests at top business schools around the country, more Wharton MBA students are accepting private equity positions upon graduation, according to the student paper The Daily Pennsylvanian. In 2001, 2.3 percent of the school’s MBA students accepted private equity and venture capital jobs, a figure which jumped to 7.65 percent in 2011. [...] ...Read more

This year, for the first time ever, assets housed in defined contribution (DC) retirement plans worldwide will be larger than assets held in traditional defined benefit (DB) pension plans around the world, says Kristi Mitchem of State Street Global Advisors (SSgA). DC assets—such as those held in 401(k)s and other participant-driven retirement savings vehicles—will “surpass [...] ...Read more