Treating Customers Fairly

What Treating Customers Fairly Means to Raymond James

Raymond James fully endorses the principles of Treating Customers Fairly (TCF) and we believe that they are aligned with Our Vision to be a financial services firm as unique as the people we serve, transforming lives, businesses and communities through the power of personal relationships and professional advice.

Raymond James considers fair treatment of our clients to be fundamental to our business. Raymond James aims to ensure clients are fairly treated by creating an environment and culture that promotes the consistent delivery of the six consumer outcomes:

Outcome 1: Consumers should have confidence that the fair treatment of clients is central to our corporate culture;

Outcome 2: Products and services should be designed to meet the needs of specific consumers and should only be marketed to those consumers;

Outcome 3: Consumers should be given clear information on the products and services they choose, and they should be kept appropriately informed before, during, and after the point of sale;

Outcome 4: Consumers should receive advice that is suitable for them and that considers their circumstances;

Outcome 5: Consumers should be provided with products and services that perform as we have led them to expect and the associated service should also be an acceptable standard; and

Outcome 6: Consumers should not face unreasonable barriers to change products, switch providers, submit a claim or make a complaint.

Our corporate culture is a vital ingredient to ensure we meet our TCF objectives. You can see more about our culture here.

Raymond James’ Approach to TCF

Raymond James places great value on independent thinking, objective advice and individual solutions.

Because every client is unique, a one size fits all approach is rarely in a client’s best interest. At Raymond James we believe that by giving wealth managers the ability to deliver a customised solution that meets each client’s specific needs, and make investment choices on a purely unbiased basis, wealth managers are able to create the right investment strategy for investors.

In addition, Raymond James has a clearly defined target market. We ensure that the products and services we offer are designed to meet the needs of clients and their wealth managers. Clients receive – either from Raymond James directly or through wealth managers – clear and frequent communications. Wealth managers are not required by us to meet quotas and are under no obligation to use certain products or services. Clients can be confident that Raymond James does not create any unreasonable post sale barriers for them to change products, change firms or make a complaint.

Further examples of our practices that help to foster consistent fair treatment of clients:

Raymond James presents a clearly defined, transparent pricing structure. A fee schedule is provided to each client as part of the account opening documentation. Therefore, clients can understand the services they are paying for and the relevant costs. In addition, Raymond James works with fund companies to ensure our clients receive access to competitive terms, thereby reducing the overall cost of clients’ portfolios.

Raymond James allows in specie transfers on and off the platform, and has done since inception. Raymond James does not charge to transfer assets onto the platform. Raymond James charges a reasonable administration fee to transfer assets off the platform to defray a portion of the relevant costs, and this fee is disclosed on the fee schedule.
We do not grant intermediary firms using our platform with an allocation of shares of Raymond James, thereby alleviating this potential conflict of interest.

As part of our efforts to ensure that the principles of Treating Customers Fairly are embedded within our organisation, we conduct a regular Client Opinion Survey. The goal of the survey is to monitor feedback regarding client satisfaction with the service that Raymond James provides, understand what is important to clients, and identify where improvements could be made. We conduct this survey every two years, and the results of our most recent survey are found here.

We believe our approach harbours a culture of consistently treating clients fairly throughout our organisation. Please see here for further information.

Back to Personal Investing

We appreciate that market commentary can be informative and helpful, particularly in times of market volatility.

To view our most recent Market Commentary click here.

If you require further information about your portfolio, your wealth manager will be happy to assist. If you don’t have her/his contact details to hand, you can easily search by name or location via our Find a Wealth Manager Tool. Click here to access.

You are able to see your portfolio details via Client Access. Click here to login.

If you do not yet have your login details, your wealth manager will be happy to assist.

Black Monday

On 19 October 1987, the stock markets experienced a dramatic plunge that prompted many firms to shut down their trading desks and turn off their phones to minimize internal losses. Raymond James refused to do the same. Our desks stayed open to help meet clients’ needs, resulting in our first and only unprofitable quarter since the firm went public in 1983.

Who was Raymond James?

The Raymond in our name is actually from Edward Raymond, owner of a 15-employee mutual fund sales group, Raymond and Associates, along Florida’s west coast. He sold his company to Bob James on 15 July 1964, on condition that the surviving firm be called Raymond, James & Associates.

Three days after the sale, Ed Raymond was involved in a near-fatal automobile accident and never joined the firm.

Nonetheless, even after Raymond had passed away, Bob James insisted that his name remain on the door – ahead of James’ own. That was a promise he made to Ed Raymond three days before the accident, and Bob James was a man who kept his promises.

Bear Market of 1974

The severe bear market of 1974 threatened the existence of Raymond James, which was bleeding capital by the day. Tom James, his father and other leaders took extreme measures to keep the firm afloat, slashing costs, foregoing paychecks and even attempting to sell the firm for just enough capital to protect client assets and retain as many associates as possible. The story could have ended very differently if not for a sharp upturn and continued rebound in the stock markets late in the year.
This “fortunate near-death experience” (as Tom calls it) permanently marked his psyche, and has influenced our firm’s character and culture since, solidifying the conservative nature that emphasizes a determined focus on the long term – both for clients and the firm.

Taking Raymond James Public

When consideration was being given to taking Raymond James public, Tom James penned a letter to shareholders (largely employees at the time).
He wrote:

” … the public offering should be considered as a statement of our independence. While this is a psychological rather than an economic rationale, it is nonetheless very important. We have asserted for some time that we are not interested in becoming a small part of a very large corporation. That assertion results mainly from the inclinations of management rather than the economic benefits associated with either alternative. The public stock offering affords us the opportunity to enjoy a little bit of the best of both worlds. While shareholders will be given liquidity at fair market value, we will still have the ability to control our own destiny.”

After 40+ years of Tom’s leadership, upon becoming CEO, Paul Reilly was often questioned about whether the company might ultimately surrender its cherished independence and be acquired by some larger entity. His response: “Not while I’m around.” It’s a theme that continues today.