With all the hoopla from the DOL about their new "Conflict-of-Interest" (aka "Fiduciary") Rule being about fees, it could be there's a bigger and more dangerous conflict-of-interest that has absolutely nothing to do with fees.

I was recently reminded of this in a revealing interview with Princeton's Andrew Golden (see "Exclusive Interview: Andrew Golden Reveals the Huge Fiduciary Conflict-of-Interest Nobody Talks About," FiduciaryNews.com, September 22, 2015). What struck wasn't that I had overlooked it (in my real job, I'm forced to deal with it every day), but that the vast array of talking heads have ignored it.

It has the potential to be more misleading and more destructive that all but the most heinous of fee conflicts.

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Christopher Carosa

Chris Carosa has been writing a weekly article and monthly column for BenefitsPRO online and BenefitsPRO Magazine since 2011 and is a nationally recognized award-winning writer, researcher and speaker. He’s written seven books, including From Cradle to Retire: The Child IRA; Hey! What’s My Number? – How to Increase the Odds You Will Retire in Comfort; A Pizza The Action: Everything I Ever Learned About Business I Learned By Working in a Pizza Stand at the Erie County Fair; and the widely acclaimed 401(k) Fiduciary Solutions. Carosa is also Chief Contributing Editor of the authoritative trade journal FiduciaryNews.com and publisher of the Mendon-Honeoye Falls-Lima Sentinel, a weekly community newspaper he founded in 1989. Currently serving as President of the National Society of Newspaper Columnists and with more than 1,000 articles published in various publications, he appears regularly in the national media. A “parallel” entrepreneur, he actively runs a handful of businesses, including a small boutique investment adviser, providing hands-on experience for his writing. A trained astrophysicist, he also holds an MBA and has been designated a Certified Trust and Financial Advisor. Share your thoughts and story ideas with him through Facebook (https://www.facebook.com/christophercarosa/)and Twitter (https://twitter.com/ChrisCarosa).