Insurance company hopes to help advisors embrace held-away mutual funds. New York-based insurer MetLife's Broker-Dealer Group is rolling out a mutual-fund advisory platform to neophyte advisors that use its hybrid RIAs MetLife Securities, New England Securities, Tower Square Securities and Walnut Street Securities. The better to see you with

"Our goal is to offer an investment advisory solution geared to emerging investors seeking comprehensive investment advice and service from a financial professional," says Rebecca Kovatch of MetLife's Broker-Dealer Group. "At the same time, we're providing our [investment-advisor representatives with] a solution that allows them to continue a dialogue with clients while increasing efficiencies within their own practices." MetLife's new Fund Management Services platform aggreggates clients' mutual-fund holdings -- that otherwise be held directly at multiple mutual-fund companies -- on a single platform and helps advisors using Metlife's RIAs provide automated, on-line application processes and simplified account maintenance and support, consolidated statements and tax reporting -- all with a view to helping them maintain advisory rather than transactional relationships with their clients. MetLife is the biggest life insurer in the U.S. -FWR

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