AFO|Wealth Management Forward

Rob and Rory speak with Blake Oliver CPA, the Director of Marketing at Jirav, which combines financial planning and analysis with the latest technology to bring customers effective solutions. Blake walks through changes that accounting firms have taken on in COVID-19 and what it means to fail to adapt. Next, with his expertise in Cloud Accounting, Blake comments on the future of AI and software in the accounting industry. We discuss the “The Silver Tsunami’’, the greatest transfer of wealth in history, and how to use Cloud Computing to assist with it. He also details his opinion on cryptocurrencies and the similarities of consumers within the cryptocurrency market, stock market, and Housing Bust of 2008. Blake walks through possible outcomes of the combination of blockchain and accounting. Then, he shares a few tips on how accounting firms can better market themselves and show the value they provide to clients. Blake has the top-ranked Accounting and Bookkeeping Podcast in the World. See Blake’s Twitter Here.

Rob and Rory speak with the CEO and co-founder of Trust & Will, Cody Barbo. Trust & Will has helped over 200,000 families start their estate plan using their online technology and have transformed the way families plan for their future through affordable and straightforward estate planning. Cody describes the motivation behind creating a modern, intuitive, and affordable solution as an alternative to high-priced attorneys and inefficient processes. He emphasizes the affordability and accessibility of their estate planning platform, which has a Turbo Tax type experience that can be completed in 30 to 45 min. He talks about the importance of having a Trust if you have a property so that it doesn’t fall into probate. We discuss how the world is becoming digital and how Cody has been leading the charge for legislation that allows digital signatures of Will’s, which has recently passed and adopted in a few states. Learn about the basics of estate planning: Trusts, Wills, Guardianship, and Health Care Directives. For Advisors, find out how you can utilize Trust & Will to offer your clients these value-added estate planning services. Whether you need to set up an estate plan for the first time or update an existing one, you won’t want to miss this episode.

Rory and Diane speak with Josh Hirt, a lead economist with the Investment Management Group at Vanguard, who develops Vanguard's understanding of Growth in the US Economy. Josh talks about the pandemic's impact on the economy and how this will evolve over time. He talks about today’s economy, some Optimism coming out of the Pandemic, as well as some comparisons to The Great Recession of 08', the Dot-com Bubble of 01’, and even the Inflationary period of the late 1960s, early 1970s. He covers many areas, including unemployment, the role the government needs to play in the markets to stabilize the situation we are in, the rise of prices in the housing market, and the shift in inflation and what that means for wages. He touches on the Vanguard Advisors Alpha Program and the importance of advisors transitioning to a more holistic approach in terms of wealth management and diversification. Lastly, we talk about the implications of Blockchain technology and Bitcoin. If you want to learn more about the US economy or the resourcefulness of a holistic approach to investing, you won’t want to miss this episode.

Rory and Diane speak with Josh Hirt, a lead economist with the Investment Management Group at Vanguard, who develops Vanguard's understanding of Growth in the US Economy. Josh talks about the pandemic's impact on the economy and how this will evolve over time. He talks about today’s economy, some Optimism coming out of the Pandemic, as well as some comparisons to The Great Recession of 08', the Dot-com Bubble of 01’, and even the Inflationary period of the late 1960s, early 1970s. He covers many areas, including unemployment, the role the government needs to play in the markets to stabilize the situation we are in, the rise of prices in the housing market, and the shift in inflation and what that means for wages. He touches on the Vanguard Advisors Alpha Program and the importance of advisors transitioning to a more holistic approach in terms of wealth management and diversification. Lastly, we talk about the implications of Blockchain technology and Bitcoin. If you want to learn more about the US economy or the resourcefulness of a holistic approach to investing, you won’t want to miss this episode.

Rob and Rory speak with Ted Denbow, the VP and Head of Sales at Right Capital, an industry-leading financial planning software provider. With over 25 years in the financial services industry, Ted discusses the challenges he observed in the field and how Right Capital seeks to solve them. Ted also explains the innovations that have taken place in the industry over the last decade, the challenges it currently faces, and its future. Ted explores the importance of adjusting strategies to counter the changing tax laws under the Biden administration and how clients can use Right Capital’s resources to meet those needs. He also expounds on the effect of developing technologies like AI and automation on the fintech industry. Ted also covers how Right Capital has cultivated partnerships with other fintech providers like Betterment and Vanilla so advisors can provide their clients with a holistic experience. Lastly, we discuss how firms can take advantage of one of the largest transitions of wealth in history, aka “The Silver Tsunami!”

Rob and Rory speak with CPA Eric Pierre, who Forbes has listed as a Top Tax Twitter account to follow, and who is the CEO, Owner, and Principal of Pierre Accounting which provides tax and financial services to clients of all sizes. Eric’s long history in the field includes work at Delloite and Fortune 500 companies. Eric speaks about his firm’s shift from compliance to advisory services and highlights the Employee Retention Credit that has helped many Minority-owned business clients. He also explores the possibility of higher taxes from the Biden Administration and how he is advising his clients to best plan for them. Additionally, he details the nuances of dealing with cryptocurrencies, as an investor and a taxpayer, as well as its future. Lastly, Eric also mentions how Pierre Accounting strives to educate athletes in professional sports on how to best plan for long-term financial well-being. You won’t want to miss this entertaining episode of a Former Professional Athlete turned CPA. To follow Eric’s Twitter, click HERE

Rob and Rory speak with Scott Tarra of Connexian who works with broker-dealers and with both SEC and State Registered Investment Advisors on registration and compliance needs. Scott talks about the new marketing Rule 206(4)-1 which will go into effect May 4th 2021 which sets new guidelines for solicitors and modernizes the marketing rules to reflect today’s landscape of technology and social media use. Accounting firms will be interested to learn about how the new rule will mainly do away with the current solicitor's agreement. He touches on considerations needed to from registration to compliance to filing requirements. Lastly, he talks about the focal points of regulators today being transparency, disclosures, and cybersecurity. If you are working with a registered investment advisor or are looking to become one, you won’t want to miss this episode.

Rob and Rory speak with markets reporter Amrith Ramkumar of The Wall Street Journal to discuss Specials Purpose Acquisition Companies (SPACs). In this episode, we touch on the SPAC craze that has hit the financial markets in 2020 and continued into 2021. Amrith discusses the history of SPACs from a niche product used by a group of wealthy individuals to it now utilized by most of Wall St. and Silicon Valley. He talks about seasoned investors like Bill Foley and Besty Cohen doing SPACs and how this is an alternative to raising money via a VC or Traditional IPO. He provides examples of SPACs such as the SE Asian “Super App” GRAB going public in a SPAC merger that values the business at nearly $40 Billion, even though they aren’t profitable. Lastly, Amirth talks about key investment rounds called (PIPE deals). A Private Investment in Public Equity where investors like Blackrock, Fidelity, Franklin Templeton, T Rowe Price put in vast amounts of money to get exposure to these companies of the future, which has helped make SPAC’s a mainstream alternative.

Dr. Sean Stein Smith joins Rob and Rory on AFO|Wealth Management Forward podcast to talk about blockchain, cryptocurrency, the pending IPO of Coinbase, and NFT’s. Dr. Smith is a Professor at Lehman College and Forbes Crypto, contributor. Dr. Smith breaks down how crypto and NFT’s are taxed and the many common issues taxpayers are running into when it comes to reporting and filing taxes. You’ll be interested to hear his answer on if the 60/40 portfolio is dead. You won’t want to miss this informative commentary on all things crypto.

Licensing and Compliance Episode:   Arrowroot Family Office CEO Rob Santos and Director Rory Henry discuss Licensing and Compliance Basics for accounting firms adopting Holistic Wealth Management. They go over each of the licensing requirements, from outsourcing to partnering to building your own Registered Investment Advisory Firm in house. They touch on easy ways to Get Started and technology innovations in the space that allow you to offer various Holistic Wealth Management Services without needing a license. Licensing and Compliance Basics  3 Level's Outsource, Partner, In House RIA Licensing How to Get Started  Life Insurance and Estate Planning Licensing Requirements