Drawing on the growing academic literature on financial advice to retail investors, we document both its potential in the light of complex decision making and limited financial sophistication as well as its current shortcomings. Policies mandating more disclosure, both on products and on conflicts of interest, can create benefits to consumers, but they fall short of releasing the full potential of advice, as this should be insufficient to ensure competition for high quality advice as well as better adherence to good advice. A main task for regulators and researchers is to create tools and policies to enhance such transparency.