Deals & People April 27, 2012

NFP Chair and CEO Bibliowicz Announces Plans to Step Down

National Financial Partners Corp. (NFP), a provider of benefits, insurance and wealth management services, said Friday it had begun implementing a management succession plan. 
Reported by

Chairman and Chief Executive Jessica Bibliowicz informed the company’s board of directors she is stepping down as president immediately and intends to step down as CEO in 2013.

Bibliowicz said she plans to end her chairmanship at the end of the first quarter of 2012. The board asked her to become the nonexecutive chairman at that time.

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The firm’s chief operating officer since 2008, Douglas W. Hammond, was named president effective immediately. He will continue to serve as COO and is expected to become CEO in April 2013.

Bibliowicz has served as NFP’s president and CEO since joining the company in April 1999.  She has also served as a director since June 1999 and as chairman since June 2003. 

“We have accomplished a great deal at NFP over the past 13 years. With a strong team leading our core businesses, a clear strategy and sound financial position, NFP is well positioned for continued growth,” Bibliowicz  said. “Now is the right time for us to begin the implementation of a smooth year-long leadership transition.”


 

 

(Cont’d)

Bibliowicz joined NFP in April 1999 as the firm’s president and CEO. She has been chairman of the board of directors since June 2003. Before joining NFP, she served as president of John A. Levin & Co., a registered investment adviser, and as executive vice president and head of Smith Barney Mutual Funds. Since May 2006, Bibliowicz served as a director of The Asia Pacific Fund Inc.

Bibliowicz is also a member of the Board of Overseers of Weill Cornell Medical Center, serves on the boards of directors of Riverdale Country School and John Jay College Foundation, as well as the board of trustees of Cornell University.

Hammond was NFP's executive vice president and general counsel from 2004 to 2008, and NFP's executive vice president and deputy general counsel from 2002 to 2004. Before joining NFP in 1999, he was an attorney with the law firm now known as Dewey & LeBoeuf LLP, where he specialized in corporate insurance and regulatory matters, and represented NFP's capital sponsor before and during the formation of the company. He also held various business and legal positions in the financial institutions division of Gulf Insurance Group Inc., a specialty lines insurance company. 

Hammond serves on the Advisory Board of Trustees of the Dolan School of Business of Fairfield University.  He received a B.A. from Fairfield University and a J.D. from St. John's University School of Law.

 

Compliance April 27, 2012

Calif. Bills that Would Tax Financial Advice Are Amended

Two California Assembly bills that would have imposed taxes on a variety of services, including services from financial advisers, were amended.  
Reported by

California AB 1963 would have expanded the category of taxable services and imposed a 4% sales tax for their use, while reducing the rates for state sales and personal income taxes.

The bill was introduced by Assembly Member Alyson Huber and opposed by a coalition of organizations, including the Securities Industry and Financial Markets Association (SIFMA) and the Financial Services Institute (FSI).

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“This amendment prevents an unnecessary obstacle to investors getting financial advice,” said Dale Brown, president and chief executive of FSI. “We have worked with a coalition of organizations that also believe investors have a right to advice without any extra costs, and without our members having to become tax collectors.”

Amendments turned the bill into a piece of  legislature for a study on such taxes.

FSI also registered its opposition to California AB 2540, introduced by Assembly Member Mike Gatto, which would have expanded the sales and use tax base to include specified categories of services, and exclude $10,000 of personal business income from taxes. For the first time, services, such as providing advice and financial services to investors, would have been subject to taxes. Advisers and broker/dealers would have been responsible for collecting taxes from clients, possibly creating a barrier to receiving advice and support, FSI said.

That bill was substantially revamped, and no taxes will be levied on financial services.

A copy of AB 2540 bill with amendments is available here and a copy of AB 1963 is available here.

 

 

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