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New Trade Association for Retirement Plan Advisors Grows Much More Than Expected

"The National Association of Plan Advisors (NAPA) -- an individual membership organization created by and for retirement plan advisors ... announced it has exceeded its first-year membership goal just six months after its launch."

A Plan Advisor's Best Defense Against Robo-Advisors Is Being an Expert on Robo-Advisors (PDF)

"The robo-advisor community has initiated contact with plan sponsors across the country.... Marketing and sales pitches in this segment are polished.... In most cases, low fees will be the bait, along with efficiency, technology and simplicity.... [T]he plan sponsor may truly have a fiduciary duty to 'listen' to what is being sold. A retirement advisor's challenge is to remain at least two steps ahead of whomever may be approaching the plan sponsor client."

NAPA Comment Letter to SEC on Duties of Brokers, Dealers and Investment Advisors (PDF)

"The Commission should not implement the Staff's recommended 'uniform fiduciary standard' for broker-dealers and investment advisers because such a standard would effectively result in a non-uniform 'uniform fiduciary standard' leading to significantly increased confusion for retail customers when selecting an Investment Professional.... The Commission should instead require Investment Professionals to provide retail customers with clear and concise pre-engagement disclosures designed to assist retail customers in the selection of Investment Professionals.... The Commission should take the lead to ensure that consistent disclosures are provided by Investment Professionals to protect retail customers' access to investment advice, regardless of the method by which their investment accounts are taxed."

ASPPA Launches New Association for 401(k) Advisors

The National Association of Plan Advisors (NAPA) will serve as an advocate for advisors to 401(k) plans[.]

2016 NAPA Black Book

"A TPA can be a plan advisor's best friend. But it's important to understand the various types of TPAs and how to best leverage them depending on the plan profile and size." [Chart lists 36 TPAs, with number of plans and participants, total assets, and other metrics.]

TPAs Making Inroads with Advisors

"A TPA can be a plan advisor's best friend.... Roughly a third (35%) of this year's respondents sold more than half of their new business with these partnerships, and nearly one-in-ten (8%) have relied on these relationships for 100% of their new business. But ... the results were quite varied."

Investment Advisors Respond to Report by Yale Professor

"In his attempt to drum up outrage about high fees in 2014, [Yale Law School professor Ian Ayres] bends 2009 fee data -- without an analysis of the quality of services being paid for by those fees or the complexity of plan design -- to ignore the fact that, since 2011, more than 75% of companies have reduced 401(k) plan expenses ... [T]he professor even acknowledges that 'putting untrained workers in charge of managing their retirement portfolios comes at a significant cost.' That, professor, is why their plans give them the option of paying for professional advice. Advisors can help minimize that 'significant cost.'"

The American Retirement Association: A New Name for an Expanding Mission

"For nearly half a century, the American Society of Pension Professionals and Actuaries (ASPPA) and its affiliated organizations have been working for America's retirement. As of today, it does so under a new name as broad and expansive as the members it represents: the American Retirement Association.... [T]he American Retirement Association is a nonprofit professional organization with two major goals: to educate all retirement plan and benefits professionals, and to create a framework of policy that gives every working American the ability to have a comfortable retirement.... The American Retirement Association is composed of four premier retirement industry associations: [1] the American Society of Pension Professionals & Actuaries (ASPPA); [2] the ASPPA College of Pension Actuaries (ACOPA) ; [3] the National Association of Plan Advisors (NAPA); and [4] the National Tax-deferred Savings Association (NTSA)"

Exclusive Use of Advisor Benchmarking vs. Periodic Use of RFPs

"[T]hrough an RFP, plan sponsors not only get a chance to speak with other advisors and get their perspectives on how they can help companies manage their retirement plan, the RFP engages the plan sponsor in the process -- beginning with what is important to them when selecting or using a plan advisor. Engagement in their retirement plan by plan sponsors is key to a successful plan, and selecting the right plan advisor is arguably the most important decision they will make."

What Kind of Plans Are Targeted for Audit by the DOL or IRS?

"Just 22% of employers with only a DC plan report that they faced an audit, in contrast with 38% of those with open DB plans. Roughly a third of sponsors with closed (30%) and frozen (33%) DB plans also report being audited."