Goldman Sachs and BNY Pershing just swiped right on client referrals.

BNY, the world’s largest custodian, is preparing to launch a matchmaking program that would pair RIAs that use its services with retail customers, according to a December filing. Its Advisor Match service will compete with well-established services from competitors like Fidelity and Charles Schwab. Not to be outdone, Goldman Sachs also entered the referral fray, offering its retail clients to major RIA customers; Creative Planning, Mercer Advisors and Wealth Enhancement are reportedly among the first to join. It’s welcome news to independent advisors, who benefit from having multiple options to buy fresh leads, and could turn the RIA landscape into a high-stakes episode of The Bachelor.

“BNY has a unique opportunity to match advisors and investors across our ecosystem,” Ben Harrison, BNY Pershing’s global head of client coverage, said in an email.

Matchmaker, Matchmaker, Send Me a Lead

The developments, which were first reported by FAIQ, Citywire and InvestmentNews, come as competition in the mid-tier wealth management segment heats up. Schwab significantly raised the barriers to entry for its own referral network late last month, doubling minimum AUM requirements to $500 million. While Schwab pivoted toward larger firms and wealthier clients (asset minimums now begin at $2 million instead of $500,000), BNY is keeping a more open-door policy:

• Advisors using the Advisor Match service will face no AUM minimums.
• There will be an annual fee of $50,000 and an annual asset-based fee of as much as 0.3% based on the value of the assets of the referred client, a potential barrier for advisors with less affluent customers.
• There are also requirements like federal registration, a fee-based compensation model, and liability insurance and fidelity bond coverage, according to the Dec. 26 filing.

Love at First Asset. The moves give two of the world’s largest financial services providers a way to capture a segment of the wealth management market that industry leaders like Charles Schwab and Fidelity have dominated for years. Schwab’s program, which launched in 2002, has 100 to 150 participating firms, while Fidelity’s Wealth Advisor Solutions reportedly lists a roster of about 70. BNY expects to begin the digital matching service later this year, potentially reshaping how mid-tier advisors compete for new assets.

The initiative is “a digital-first referral program that will help BNY Pershing clients scale organic growth through a new channel of qualified leads as more investors seek financial advice,” Harrison told Advisor Upside.

Show me the money … money market funds, that is.

Money market funds attracted $935 billion in new assets last year, surpassing 2024 totals and defying the belief that Federal Reserve rate cuts would trigger mass outflows, according to Morgan Stanley research. The firm expects continued growth in 2026, though at a slower pace, with another $500 billion in inflows projected to push total assets past $8.6 trillion by year-end.

Money market funds are expected to remain a core tool for many advisors even if interest rates drift lower. However, financial planners are staying flexible and considering other investing options, too. “We use them for emergency reserves, near-term spending needs, dry powder and as a volatility buffer when markets feel unsteady,” said Gregory Guenther, CFP and managing director at GRANTvest Financial Group.

Let’s Have Some Fund

Money market funds — which invest in low-risk, short-term debt — surged in popularity as the Fed began hiking rates in 2022. That rate cycle peaked in mid-2023, with the benchmark reaching between 5.25% and 5.5%. Morgan Stanley analysts found that in 2025:

• Retail investors accounted for 34% of total money-market inflows, while institutional investors made up 64%.
• Money market fund yields have topped 3% only twice over the past two decades. For roughly half that period, yields were effectively zero as the Fed held rates at the lower bound.

Even after multiple rate cuts, the federal funds rate currently sits between 3.5% and 3.75%, keeping money market funds attractive for yield-hungry clients. As of Monday, the 7-day yields for the Vanguard Federal Money Market Fund and the Fidelity Government Money Market Fund were 3.69% and 3.43%, respectively. The Crane 100 Money Fund Index from Crane Data stood at 3.58%.

“Yields are still attractive [compared] to where they’ve been for the past 20 to 30 years,” said Pete Crane, president of Crane Data, adding that rates on bank deposit products — including checking accounts, savings accounts and certificate of deposits — remain far less competitive. “The worst money fund is going to outperform the best bank deposit over time by a tremendous amount.”

Change Up. Still, some advisors see the writing on the wall as rate cuts continue. “As the Fed lowers rates, rates on these funds will also decline,” said Catherine Valega, founder of Green Bee Advisory. “So I’ll likely be rethinking my liquid alternatives for clients.”

Others are pulling back from money market funds and going after the underlying assets directly. “Treasury bill yields have moved higher than money market fund yields, so I’ve been shifting some assets into T-bills,” said Hardik Patel, founder of Trusted Path Wealth Management. “I still use some money market funds for cash that will be needed for upcoming expenses or short-term obligations.”

Start when you’re young.

It’s probably the most important financial advice when it comes to saving for retirement, and young Americans are heeding it far more than prior generations. On average, Gen Z and millennial savers began contributing to workplace retirement plans at ages 23 and 28, respectively, according to a Nationwide Retirement Institute survey. That’s roughly a decade earlier than each group’s predecessor: Gen X at 34 and Boomers at 40.

That head start, and an overall greater level of financial confidence, is also translating to younger clients for advisors, as over half of Gen Z and millennials say they’ve sought help from a planner. “This presents a strong opportunity for financial advisors to step in and fill this need for younger workers,” said Cathy Marasco, head of protected retirement for Nationwide.

Living Young, Mild and Debt-Free

Starting last year, most new retirement plans were required to automatically enroll employees under the SECURE 2.0 Act. Even before that mandate, adoption was accelerating after the Pension Protection Act of 2006 streamlined and codified the process. Since the end of 2007, automatic enrollment in defined contribution plans has more than tripled, according to Vanguard research.

Many Americans now begin planning for retirement early in their careers as opposed to midway through them.

• Roughly 70% younger savers say they have a strategy to safeguard their savings before retirement, compared with 55% of Gen X and 44% of Boomers, Nationwide found.
• Younger savers check balances weekly, increase contributions annually and plan ahead for market volatility.
• Some 8 in 10 Gen Zers and millennials feel positive about their retirement plans, and nearly half say they’re confident in what they’ve saved so far. That compares with just one-third of Gen X and one-quarter of Boomers.

“The dollar amounts may be smaller, but the habits are strong, and that makes a huge difference over time,” said Nathan Sebesta, CFP and owner of Access Wealth Strategies. “Just yesterday, I had a 20-year-old meet with me who wanted to max out and start a Roth IRA.”

Never Too Late. Many older Americans regret not saving earlier, but they didn’t have the same tools, especially since 401(k)s didn’t exist until the 1980s and it took them a while to become the standard. “A later start does not mean failure, but it does require more intentional planning and higher savings rates to stay on track,” Sebesta said.