Ric Edelman

Why are Wall Street's most cautious institutions suddenly racing to tokenize everything? @ricedelman and @Bitwise's @matt_hougan break down what's driving this shift – and what advisors need to know. May 12 | 2pm ET | Free | 1 CE credit Register: hubs.li/Q04cLrbR0

@LvngstonThunder We agree! Thank you!

@ricedelman Congrats, great achievement and something that will be a popular course of study for many at the school.

I’m excited to be Founding Head of Rowan University’s new School of Financial Planning, in partnership with Edelman Financial Engines. We’re offering a minor, major and master’s, and we plan to produce more CFP-ready graduates than any other college in the country. Just in time, too. Every day, 12,000 Americans turn 65 – creating a shortfall of 100,000 advisors by 2035. We’ll also make sure our new advisor corps is more diverse, compared to today’s, which is 80% white and 70% male. A more diverse advisor corps can more effectively serve the diverse communities that make up our nation. The need for more advisors is huge: Fewer than 200 colleges and universities offer financial planning degrees – compared to 1,500 offering business, accounting, finance and marketing degrees. The result? Last year, 268,000 seniors graduated with those degrees. But financial planning? Barely 4,000 students got that degree. It’s ironic, because financial planning is a far better career choice. Financial planning offers abundant job opportunities, is far less threatened by AI, offers some of the best compensation of any career in America, and can be performed anywhere. But the best reason financial planning is a great career is because of the people we serve, the lives we improve, the families we help. And help is exactly what families need today. Most adults can’t correctly answer half the questions on a financial literacy quiz; they don’t understand inflation, diversification or compounding. No wonder they make bad financial decisions! Only 70% of workers participate in their retirement plan, and most don’t contribute enough or choose the right investments – so almost all of them enter retirement with far less money than they need. The result: 65+ is the fastest-growing age group for bankruptcy filings. All because most Americans lack a financial planner. In fact, only 21% of adults have a written financial plan. No wonder most Americans are failing financially! Clearly, we need more financial planners to help us end our nation’s retirement readiness crisis. And now, Rowan University is part of the solution, in partnership with Edelman Financial Engines, the firm Jean and I founded 40 years ago, now serving 1.3M households. Rowan students who become financial planners will change the lives of the people they serve – and they’ll be serving our nation at the same time. I’m proud of the generous support of Edelman Financial CEO Ralph Haberli and the board. Through the Rowan University School of Financial Planning, we will lead the nation in efforts to create the next generation of financial planners, we will encourage other universities to partner with us, and we will foster financial literacy throughout our community and the country. I’m proud to be leading this important initiative. Want to get involved? Ping me at edelmanr@rowan.edu ! #college #RowanU #thetruthaboutcollege #financialplanning #personalfinance #financialliteracy #financialeducation #CFP

@tracey_soriano So, you’d prefer that we only educate old white males? We’re not “promoting” diversity - we’re making this degree available to all students, period. It’s really too bad if you have a problem with that.

@ricedelman U lost me when u said diversity. Listen, it’s ur money and u can do what u want with it, but I believe diversity should not be a goal with a CFP. Numbers r numbers and math is math, and when one of ur aims is 2 promote diversity instead of merit, facts r, quality suffers.

@Drjcor @RowanUniversity Thank you! We’re excited!

@ricedelman @RowanUniversity Very proud of all of the great ideas you have brought in and help support at Rowan University. My third child called me with a “Wow” moment on Thursday after stopping in to see the announcement. Truly amazing!

More CFPs are over 70 than under 30. 38% of advisors will retire in the next decade. America will soon have 100,000 fewer advisors than families need. So we did something about it. Proud to announce the @RowanUniversity School of Financial Planning. I'm its Founding Head. Classes start Fall 2026.

@Jim_Murray2 Yes it’s a great idea - and is a key target audience for our new school!

@ricedelman I hear that financial planning can be a good field for mid-career professionals looking to shift into something they are more passionate about. Do you find this to be true? Maybe I'll make my way back to Glassboro for a "2nd Act". Congrats on the School and Thank you!

Had a great day at WETA, recording my new (and 7th) television special for PBS. “The Truth About College” debuts in June in Washington, DC, then nationally in August. The program is based on my new #1 Amazon bestseller of the same name, published this past December by John Wiley and Sons. Big thanks to producer Christine Wolski and the entire WETA team for a great shoot today! Check your local listings for the premiere this summer! #college #truthaboutcollege #PBS #WETA

The Ric Edelman College of Communication, Humanities & Social Sciences is thrilled to host a book reading with Ric Edelman this Thursday, April 16 at 2:30pm! Join us for an enriching conversation about making the right college decision for you and your family.

A price war is coming to bitcoin ETFs – and that's actually good news for your clients. @ricedelman explains why Morgan Stanley's 14 bp ETF changes the calculus for every advisor in the room. 🔗 hubs.li/Q04bBTsq0

Why does bitcoin still matter when stablecoins exist? @ricedelman and @LowBeta from @Grayscale explained it in last week's webinar – plus covered Ethereum, Solana and Chainlink. Access the full replay. hubs.li/Q04bpXxk0

Morgan Stanley’s launch of its bitcoin ETF is a huge milestone in the annals of crypto. The massive inflows on its opening day ($34 million, most likely all by Morgan Stanley clients) prove there’s massive demand among wirehouse clients and equally massive support among wirehouse reps. The successful debut of the firm’s bitcoin ETF will compel every other brokerage firm to do likewise – and when they do, they will enjoy similar success. And because Morgan Stanley priced their ETF at just 14 bps, we may experience another price war, like when the first bitcoin ETFs launched in Jan 2024. In fact, the new Morgan Stanley crypto ETFs (starting with their first, bitcoin, with ETH and SOL to come) will have a three-fold impact on the market: First, they will attract assets from other crypto ETFs because they are cheaper (sometimes massively cheaper, depending on the competitor). Second, because these ETFs come from a trusted name in the financial services industry, they will bring new asset flows to crypto as Morgan Stanley’s 16,000 financial advisors allocate to them. And third, these new ETFs help legitimize crypto by virtue of having one the nation’s largest brokerage firms issue their own funds (which is much bigger statement than merely putting others’ funds on their platform). The result; broader adoption of crypto by investors nationwide. Consider the impact: Morgan Stanley manages $7 trillion. Its clients depend on their advisors for investment recommendations, and until now, Morgan Stanley advisors have not recommended bitcoin. Now they can – and they are. The first day’s flows represent a pace of $7 billion piling into bitcoin in just the first year. And by pricing their ETF at just 14 bps, Morgan Stanley both eliminates any criticism over conflicts of interest and gives their advisors a strong argument for recommending its fund over any of the competitors. This will likely lead to a price war as the other ETF providers are forced to respond. It will also force all the other brokerage firms to engage – to avoid losing clients and AUM to Morgan Stanley. This flywheel is just starting to spin. The fee war not only benefits investors, it demonstrates to them that there’s a huge demand for this asset – causing those who have not yet invested (either because of high fees or perceived lack of investor interest) to finally invest. Those new flows will increase the price of bitcoin over time while expanding the number of people who own it. And all that is good for bitcoin. All this means it’s essential that all financial advisors get the knowledge they need to effectively advise their clients. We’re seeing an uptick in enrollments in our CBDA program, and it’s easy to see why. It’s time you too became Certified in Blockchain and Digital Assets. Visit DACFP.com to learn more – before your clients ditch you for another advisor ready and willing to give them effective advice on crypto.

What would it take to find a conference built entirely around the future of your profession?  ✅ Digital assets. ✅Crypto. ✅AI. ✅ Regulatory shifts that are changing everything your clients ask you about. #CryptoConvergence is the place where financial professionals go to get ahead of all of it – and it's happening June 8–10 in Dallas.🔗 hubs.li/Q04bfSZY0 #DigitalAssets #FinancialAdvisors #Crypto #DACFP #RicEdelman

Hope you'll join us!

TOMORROW: Which crypto assets belong in client portfolios? @ricedelman and @LowBeta from @Grayscale explain Bitcoin, Ethereum, Solana and Chainlink. April 9, 12-1pm ET. 1 CE. Register now. hubs.li/Q047ZzGT0

Overwhelmed by crypto? Focus on these 4. @LowBeta from @Grayscale and I break down the assets that matter most for advisors. April 9, 12-1pm ET. 1 CE. Join us! hubs.li/Q047ZCLN0

Crypto overwhelming you? @ricedelman and @Grayscale's @LowBeta break down the Crypto Starter Pack: BTC, ETH, SOL and LINK. Get a clear framework for client conversations. April 9, 12-1pm ET. Free webinar. 1 CE. hubs.li/Q047Zq4N0

It's the 8th year of the longest-running digital assets conference. @fundstrat's Tom Lee and @CathieDWood keynote. No breakouts. No PowerPoints. Just real conversations. #CryptoConvergence June 8-10, chaired by @ricedelman. Register now: hubs.li/Q047-5dM0

Thousands of digital assets exist – but only 4 truly matter for client portfolios. @ricedelman and @LowBeta from @Grayscale explain which ones and why. April 9, 12-1pm ET. hubs.li/Q047ZjbB0

Today’s system: banks, debits, credits, settlement cycles. Stablecoins: send value directly, instantly, peer-to-peer. That shift is bigger than it sounds. Hear @LowBeta of @Grayscale explain with @ricedelman: hubs.li/Q0484bLK0