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Benefits play a major role in the employee experience, as most can attest on a personal and professional level, but new research suggests that it’s simply not enough to make benefits available to employees.
Instead, employers must go out of their way to educate employees about their benefit...
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The industrial revolution, 21st century-style, mass-produces information—but at the same time makes it an individual experience. And that includes information about retirement plans and one’s own retirement plan and account.
One of the ways in which that information is delivered is via apps. But...
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Almost 26,000 New York Life customers had their names and Social Security numbers exposed to a data breach, the latest in a massive hack that affected hundreds of companies and millions of Americans.
The hack occurred in late May and involved Progress Software, the provider of MOVEit transfer...
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The EFAST2 website authentication process is being modernized in 2023. Some changes have already taken place; some deadlines are still ahead—including a grace period that ends Sept. 1.
The Department of Labor (DOL) is changing the method of logging in to the EFAST2 website with an EFAST2-issued...
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Plan costs and an uncertain economic outlook are driving plan sponsors to look to digital recordkeepers, representing an opportunity to solve a need and unexpectedly disrupt the market.
The report, a new Cogent Syndicated release from Escalent, shows retirement plan sponsors face more cost...
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Building off the SECURE 2.0 Act and taking a page out of the “behavioral finance playbook,” two influential senators introduced bipartisan legislation to establish an automatic reenrollment safe harbor.
SECURE 2.0 soon will require new 401(k) and 403(b) plans to automatically enroll participants...
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Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary for the DOL’s Employee Benefits Security Administration (EBSA) Ali Khawar on July 25 shared with delegates at the 2023 NAPA D.C. Fly-In Forum the key priorities of the department, including new guidance on SECURE 2.0, an update to the fiduciary rule, and...
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It’s hurricane season. So far, it’s been mild, but that may not last. The current lull offers an opportunity to take preparations that will protect your plan and participants if you have not already.
The IRS offers the following tips to help be ready in case a disaster happens.
Take Advantage...
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Cybersecurity—and its importance to retirement plans and savings—being top of mind, Assistant Secretary of Labor Lisa M. Gomez has some suggestions on reducing the risk of fraud or loss to your retirement account.
Register, set up, and regularly monitor an online account.
Regularly checking a...
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At the recent PSCA national conference, ARA CEO Brian Graff and EBSA Assistant Secretary Lisa M. Gomez discussed a wide range of topics, including the many misunderstandings about cyber liability insurance (which could be a huge fiduciary failure) and the ESG rule.
This session follows Graff...
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Retirement Clearinghouse, a Charlotte, NC-based firm, which helps to automatically move participant’s retirement account balances from a former employer to their new employer, has notified individuals in various states of a data breach.
As many as 10,509 individuals may have had their personal...
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The Treasury Department and the IRS seek feedback regarding the tax treatment of a nonfungible token (NFT) as a collectible under the tax law. The matter has relevance not only for saving and investment, but also for IRAs.
The announcement comes in IRS Notice 2023-27.
The IRS also seeks...
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It is a growing club that no one wants to join: the club of companies who became victims of cyberterrorism. Whether the release of credit card data from the infamous Target inside job, the gas pipeline shutdown at Colonial Pipeline, or the more recent CNA Financial ransom attack, it is often not a...
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The IRS has issued proposed regulations on the use of electronic media to make participant elections and spousal consents. The proposed regulation generally affects sponsors and administrators of, and individuals entitled to benefits under, certain qualified retirement plans.
The proposed...
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The Certified Financial Planner Board of Standards (CFP Board) has released a new guide about cryptocurrency-related assets to help CFP professionals uphold the Code of Ethics and Standards of Conduct (Code and Standards) in their practices.
While the same standards apply to cryptocurrency-related...
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Mobile apps increasingly have become the first resource that investors consult to review their investments, make transactions and conduct research, positioning digital as a critical component of the wealth management client experience, a new study suggests.
According to J.D. Power’s 2022 U.S....
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The IRS has issued an updated version of Publication 4810, Specifications for Electronic Filing of Form 8955-SSA, Annual Registration Statement Identifying Separated Participants With Deferred Vested Benefits. The IRS has done so for use in reporting about tax year 2022.
Publication 4810 provides...
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The SPARK Institute recently updated its Industry Best Practices for Cybersecurity and released a new Plan Sponsor & Advisor Guide to Cybersecurity to accompany it.
As part of its efforts to help strengthen cybersecurity throughout the retirement industry, the organization’s Data Security...
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You may have missed it, but there’s been a bit of a “hub-bub” brewing on social media…about the impact of, and perhaps even the utility of, social media. Here’s some thoughts — and some tips.
JD Carlson of Retireholics “fame” kicked things off with a post intriguingly titled “Forget About Social...
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A recordkeeper that has sued the Labor Department based on its comments regarding cryptocurrency in defined contribution plans has told a federal judge it’s fine with dismissing its suit—if the court will hold the agency to its previous statements.
Basically, the ForUsAll plaintiffs—a 401(k)...
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