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Defined Contribution Plans
A new report forecasts how the innovations brought on by the Pension Protection Act will continue to evolve, foreseeing a DC industry that takes on some of the traditional features of the DB industry.
In its 250th issue of The Cerulli Edge – U.S. Asset and Wealth Management Edition, Cerulli...
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In spite of continued volatility, April’s “showers” produced some May flowers for average 401(k) balances.
In May, estimates based on the actual contribution records and investment choices of several million consistent participants in the EBRI/ICI database indicated that the average 401(k) account...
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TPAs serving 401(k) plans may want to remind their clients that they should review and update their “special tax notices” in the wake of changes to the plan loan offset rules under last year’s tax reform legislation.An article by Todd Castleton of Kilpatrick Townsend explains that changes to the...
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The average individual 401(k) and IRA balances of Fidelity clients dipped a bit in the first quarter of 2018 compared to the previous quarter, but year-over-year increases remained strong.According to Fidelity Investments’ most recent quarterly analysis of retirement savings trends and behaviors,...
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A measure before the Senate would create a Commission on Retirement Security. S. 2753, The Commission on Retirement Security Act of 2018, would establish a federal commission to review private retirement benefit programs and report to Congress on how to improve private retirement security in the...
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The IRS is now accepting applications for opinion letters for pre-approved defined contribution (DC) plans for the third six-year remedial amendment cycle.
The IRS says that for it to consider a third cycle application, a pre-approved DC plan provider must verify compliance with the second cycle’s...
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Participant transfer activity picked up in April, but was still well short of surges earlier in the year.April had four days of above-normal trading activity — up slightly from March’s value (2), but lower than the values for January (12) and February (9), according to the Alight Solutions 401(k)...
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The glass is half full — or half empty — regarding retirement saving levels, depending on who one listens to. A recent white paper takes a look not only at how employees are doing, but also the habits that can help in achieving greater financial security in retirement.
In the white paper “Scoring...
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A potential negative consequence of litigation involving defined contribution plans is engendering fear among plan fiduciaries to offer innovative plan options, a new report suggests.
With lawsuits being brought against 401(k) fiduciaries for a variety of reasons, an open question is whether this...
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With many workers still lacking access to a retirement plan set against the backdrop of a growing gig economy, vital changes to existing retirement program strategies are needed, attendees at a May 8 policy forum in Washington, DC were told.
At the forum, “Defined Contribution: The Next Frontier...
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Plan design can influence and equip plan participants to make better choices regarding distribution, a recently released report concludes.In “Design Matters: Plan Distribution Options,” the Defined Contribution Institutional Investment Association (DCIIA) examines distribution options and discusses...
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Communicating with participants is bread and butter stuff – a reminder that in the end, benefits administration is about real people. Benefits administrators from two employers in a May 1 session of the Plan Sponsor Council of America’s annual conference in Scottsdale, AZ shared their experiences...
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A panel of experts at the Plan Sponsor Council of America’s (PSCA) annual conference in Scottsdale, AZ, on May 1 offered their take on some of the critical issues and uncertainties facing retirement plans, plan sponsors and the professionals who serve them, as well as the influence of the federal...
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The Wall Street Journal reports that the Labor Department is examining whether Wells Fargo has been pushing participants to move money from their 401(k)s into more expensive IRAs at the bank.The report (subscription required), which attributes the story to “a person familiar with the inquiry,” says...
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New survey results show that a significant majority of 401(k) consultants support additional services in DC plans.Nearly two-thirds (64%) of survey respondents said they believe plans should offer a “separate retirement income tier,” which may include retiree-focused services and products,...
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Editor’s Note: Richard Block and Kevin Donovan have been kind enough to revise and correct our previous report on their April 9 Enrolled Actuaries session in which they shared their insights into testing DB and DC plans on a combined basis. The corrected post appears below; many thanks to Richard...
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Jack Towarnicky, Executive Director of the Plan Sponsor Council of America, shared some some highlights of the organization’s recently completed 2017 Annual Survey of Profit Sharing and 401(k) Plans in an April 16 workshop session at the NAPA 401(k) Summit.
Joined by moderator Doug Prince, CEO of...
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That retirement account is sacrosanct… until it isn’t. Sometimes a rainy day arrives before retirement, and the seemingly untouchable is a tempting source of short-term support and relief. Recent discussions about 401(k) loans look at the scale of the practice, the consequences and what a plan may...
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Not only do individual account assets make up a large portion of the financial assets of those who own them, but those with individual accounts have significantly higher net worth levels than those without them, according to new research by the Employee Benefit Research Institute (EBRI).Based on an...
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The 5th Circuit Court of Appeals recently “vacated” the DOL’s fiduciary rule and exemptions. What does that mean for recommendations to participants that they take plan distributions and roll them over to IRAs?Well, according to the latest blog post from noted ERISA attorney Fred Reish, “It means a...
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