A CORROSIVE custom forced on investors is finally getting the axe under new regulations in Europe. Too bad some on Wall Street are working overtime to ensure that United States investors don't get the same deal.
The rule change governs how investors pay for brokerage-firm research. This may seem like a mundane administrative matter, but given the conflicts embedded in the process, it is not.
Currently, big institutional investors pay indirectly for research services provided by brokerage firms; they include analyses on industries and companies as well as access to top corporate executives in events sponsored by the Wall Street banks.
Rather than pay cash for these services, the investors send trades...
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