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25 Matching News Items

1.  As the Number of 401(k) Plans Grows, Why Are RPAs Shrinking?
Fred Barstein, via WealthManagement.com Link to more items from this source
Dec. 18, 2023
"Specialists or RPAs are racing to provide wealth services while 'dabblers', who realize the value in DC plans, need help sourcing clients and outsourcing fiduciary and administrative services as the coming tsunami of new 401(k) plans activate them, which could mean a surge in PEP formation and growth. Institutional plans will lead the way on retirement income and retail plans will wait and hopefully follow learning what works best providing a clear roadmap."
2.  Ninth Circuit Decision Threatens Compensation Model for RPAs, Providers
WealthManagement.com Link to more items from this source
Nov. 27, 2023
"Many record keepers have been able to reduce expenses and offer low cost share classes because they receive annual 'stipends' from asset managers willing to pay the entry fee. Should those fees be considered when determining whether their compensation is reasonable? ... Does the Bugielski precedent apply to the 'platform' fees paid to advisory firms by record keepers and assets managers? ... Do advisors disclose these payments?" [Bugielski v. AT&T Servs., Inc., No. 21-56196 (9th Cir. Nov. 8, 23)]
3.  OMB Stakeholder Meetings Mark Final Step Before Issuance of New DOL Fiduciary Rule
WealthManagement.com Link to more items from this source
Oct. 19, 2023
"Since the rule was delivered to the OMB in early September, organizations from the Securities Industry Financial Markets Association [SIFMA] and Financial Services Institute to the Institute for the Fiduciary Standard and the Consumer Federation of America, have held meetings with OMB and DOL officials concerning the new rule ... At the heart of the disputes between these advocacy groups is whether the [SEC's] Regulation Best Interest and National Association of Insurance Commissioners' best interest rule for annuity recommendations negate the need for a revised DOL fiduciary rule."
4.  How RFPs Changed the 401(k) Record Keeping Business
WealthManagement.com Link to more items from this source
Aug. 21, 2023
"Though it has not happened yet, DC plan sponsors will heed the lessons and warnings ... that they must conduct periodic due diligence for all vendors paid out of plan sponsors, even co-fiduciaries.... So what would happen to most DC advisory practices if their plan fees were at or close to zero? Those that cannot offer participants services, which is what most DC plan sponsors want now, will scramble to compete with those who can ... It is a true paradigm shift which may be accelerated as RIAs with deeper wealth management resources and expertise enter the DC market."
5.  The Brilliance of the Ideal 401(k) Plan
WealthManagement.com Link to more items from this source
Mar. 27, 2023
"Now that auto enrollment has been codified and endorsed in SECURE 2.0, it's time to reflect on the Ideal Plan ushered into the 401(k) and 403(b) psyche by esteemed professors Richard Thaler and Shlomo Benartzi and the 2006 Pension Protection Act and how it has enabled defined contribution plans to match the accumulation phase of defined benefit plans. So why do most employers, especially smaller ones, still resist it?"
6.  It's Time to Get Real About 401(k) Plans
WealthManagement.com Link to more items from this source
Nov. 7, 2022
"What's working is payroll deducted retirement plans using auto features to get people in the plans, save enough and invest wisely using professionally managed investments.... Focusing exclusively on accumulation and the asset side of a 'personal pension plan' P&L, which is what DC participants are managing, is not working and is dangerous.... The lack of data sharing and the looming war between record keepers and advisors over who gets to serve and monetize participants will not work."
7.  Why Lawsuits Against RPAs, Smaller DC Plans Are Inevitable
WealthManagement.com Link to more items from this source
Aug. 15, 2022
"As RPAs accumulate more assets or are part of larger groups, they become attractive targets for DC lawsuits as do smaller plans especially those are part of pooled plans like MEPS, PEPs and GOPs. Local, less well-heeled law firms will file copycat lawsuits against smaller plans hoping for a quick settlement. And as RPAs search for additional revenue as fees, funds and fiduciary have become a commodity with declining fees, that quest comes with legal risk."
8.  The Retirement Plan Data Privacy Dilemma
WealthManagement.com Link to more items from this source
July 25, 2022
"[We] need a much more nuanced way of thinking of plan data than we might expect from class action plaintiff lawyers.... As an industry, we need a legal framework that respects the duties fiduciaries owe participants, respects the privacy needs of participants, allows participants to use their own information without derailing plan administration, and allows data to be used to improve outcomes through better financial wellness solutions."
9.  How Retirement Plan Advisor RFPs Could Change the 401(k) Landscape
WealthManagement.com Link to more items from this source
July 5, 2022
"[P]lan sponsors are just starting to understand the various roles of their providers and there is no national resource to help them find the right [retirement plan advisor (RPA)] or conduct due diligence. But the problem has become even worse as RPAs start selling ancillary services like managed accounts and financial wellness for which they get paid an additional fee."
10.  The Case Against ESG in Retirement Plan Investment Lineups, Part 1
WealthManagement.com Link to more items from this source
May 24, 2022
"Retirement plan sponsors largely are taking a cautious approach to ESG.... Fewer than 1/3 of plans reported that they have either implemented or are planning to implement some level of ESG considerations into their investment process/ investment due diligence. Over half of respondents reported having conducted ESG education over the last two years. About 1/3 of plans noted a lack of evidence of ESG performance as impacting their willingness to consider ESG."
11.  Updated Guidance on Managing Missing Participants
WealthManagement.com Link to more items from this source
May 12, 2021
"It's tempting to think that a small, vested balance probably won't make much difference in a participant's financial life so why worry if a small-balance participant drops off the radar? That approach is problematic, however, because plans have both fiduciary requirements and practical motivations to make timely delivery of vested benefits."
12.  Advocates Weigh the Future of Fiduciary Advice
WealthManagement.com Link to more items from this source
Oct. 1, 2020
"Panelists ... discussed Reg BI's future under a Trump or a Biden administration, as well as whether FINRA should be disbanded.... For fiduciary advocates, the [election] outcome could determine whether they take their fight for fiduciary standards to the states ... or whether the SEC's Regulation Best Interest should be overturned[.]"
13.  Making the Fiduciary Case for Annuities
WealthManagement.com Link to more items from this source
Mar. 8, 2020
"No-load annuity product development represents a step in the right direction toward enabling fiduciary advisors to weave together an investing framework that includes protected lifetime income."
14.  2020 Outlook for Plan Advisors
WealthManagement.com Link to more items from this source
Jan. 12, 2020
"Advanced analytics will continue to gain prominence among both plan sponsors and service providers.... Plan consultants should also be prepared to field more questions from sponsors about fiduciary responsibilities.... The possibility of negative interest rates and the growing need for retirement income solutions in defined contribution (DC) plans are 2020's most important developments to monitor."
15.  Oregon Expands State-Run Retirement Plan to Individuals
WealthManagement.com Link to more items from this source
Nov. 14, 2018
"Last year, Oregon became the first state to roll out a mandatory retirement plan, and now the state is expanding the program to individuals, such as self-employed or gig economy workers.... [The program] now includes more than 45,000 employees, who have contributed more than $9 million towards retirement. Workers are saving an average of $114 a month."
16.  Replacing Plan Funds
WealthManagement.com Link to more items from this source
May 9, 2018
"The performances of funds in plans' lineups vary over time and new investment options emerge. Developing a process for reviewing and replacing plan funds is an important practice from multiple perspectives, including the performance of fiduciary duties.... You can evaluate a fund's performance and suitability across multiple qualitative and quantitative dimensions, such as management tenure, cost and risk-adjusted performance, among other factors."
17.  Inside the First State-Run Retirement Plan
WealthManagement.com Link to more items from this source
Oct. 9, 2017
"Some 2,000 Oregon employers with 100 or more employees will be notified this month of the state's new mandatory retirement plan, and have until mid-November to register. Contributions start Jan. 1, 2018. For other states as well as the retirement plan industry, Oregon is the guinea pig."
18.  How Retirement Plan Sponsors Can Manage Liability Risks
WealthManagement.com Link to more items from this source
Mar. 29, 2017
"Plan sponsors can strive to protect themselves ... and ensure a better future for their employees by actively nurturing retirement readiness ... by offering financial wellness resources in connection with company retirement plans.... [K]ey steps to consider: [1] Make plan enrollment automatic.... [2] Offer ongoing and retirement goals-based education and coaching programs.... [3] Provide analytic tools that track progress and quantify key metrics."
19.  How to Make Lump Sum Windows a Win-Win for Employers and Employees
WealthManagement.com Link to more items from this source
Aug. 11, 2016
"One of the hurdles to overcome is the fact that these employees no longer work for the organization. Making a meaningful connection with an employee who may have left the company years ago may not be easy.... There should be a postcard mailing in advance, letting everyone know there is an upcoming opportunity ... This advance notice increases the employee response rate, which for the average plan is about 60 percent."
20.  Why Doesn't Your Company Want You to Put More in Your 401(k)?
WealthManagement.com Link to more items from this source
July 21, 2016
"By getting more workers to increase contributions to their 401(k), you potentially raise the amount you'll need to pitch in as a matching contribution. If you match the first 3 percent that workers put in, for example, and you get another fifth of your workforce to meet that threshold, then auto-enrollment can look like an expensive decision. But auto-enrollment rarely costs as much as employers fear[.]"
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