September 2024
24Sep

US. DOL vs. IRS rules: Courts asked to decide how 401(k) plans can use forfeiture assets

What started as a small law firm filing a handful of suits against 401(k) plans' use of forfeited funds has metastasized into a broad attack on sponsors that raises questions about reducing participants' expenses. It's a trend of more law firms filing more lawsuits seeking to use Department of Labor regulations regarding fiduciary duty to supersede IRS rules. Although there are differences among the various sponsor-defendants, the general theme is the same: What can sponsors do with company contributions to a...

September 24, 2024
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19Sep

US. Less Than Half of Pre-Retirees Actively Saving for Retirement

Only 40% of pre-retirees—those between five and 10 years away from their desired retirement age—say they are financially preparing for retirement. This according to New York Life’s latest Wealth Watch survey, released Sept. 17, which found that American adults overwhelmingly report they are not financially preparing for major life events like purchasing a home, starting a family, changing careers, or retirement. The survey also found half of pre-retirees think they will retire later than expected, and 22% think they may never...

September 19, 2024
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August 2024
01Aug

The Time is Right for a National Retirement Savings Plan

Experts on retirement saving have plenty of assorted ideas for making 401(k) plans work better. But most agree on the top priority: get them into the hands of more people. Only about half of private-sector US workers are covered by an employer-sponsored retirement savings plan at any given time—and that figure hasn’t budged much over the years. The lost opportunity to save at the workplace translates into far too many people retiring with paltry savings or none at all, leaving them reliant...

August 1, 2024
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July 2024
02Jul

US. It’s time for Gen X–ers nearing 60 to give their retirement plans a reality check

The oldest members of Generation X — that generation born between 1965 and 1980 and known for its irreverence, sarcasm and indifference — are hitting 59½ and eligible to start withdrawing money from retirement accounts without penalty. But should they be touching their nest eggs so soon? As the first do-it-yourself generation funding retirement largely without private pension plans, many members of Gen X graduated college or high school during a recession. They got their first jobs when 401(k)s were...

July 2, 2024
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May 2024
03May

The ‘father of the 401(k)’ talks about the death of pensions, the future of retirement, and what disturbs him about his own creation

Americans have a lot of anxiety around retirement. Many people are dipping into their nest eggs to make ends meet amid soaring inflation, some boomers aren’t prepared to leave the workforce as they enter their golden years, and people are increasingly working past the typical retirement age. The most popular method for workers to save for retirement is the 401(k), which allows employees without employer-backed pensions to independently contribute to their own retirement savings, often with employer matching. But it’s not right for everyone, and the man who...

May 3, 2024
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March 2024
15Mar

Unpackaging ESG: Evidence from 401(k) Investment

By Jiaxing Tian & Jiahong Shi We study how investors respond to scandals related to three distinct aspects of ESG--E(nvironmental), S(ocial) and G(overnance)--in their retirement savings. Using data on 401(k) investments, we show that nearby ESG scandals correlate with increased ESG fund additions and flows, possibly through ``evoking'' their existing sustainable preferences. Investors with different characteristics respond heterogeneously to E, S and G scandals. In magnitude, old investors are twice as likely as young investors to add ESG funds to...

March 15, 2024
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December 2021
30Dec

US. New Lifetime Annuities in 401(k) Plans Could Cut Advisors Out of the Picture

One of the primary reasons many retirees seek out financial advice is to convert their savings into a steady stream of income that can support their current lifestyles for the rest of their days. That’s why, to some advisors, the news this November that State Street Global Advisors launched a deferred lifetime income annuity within the University of California’s retirement plan could seem unsettling. That retirement plan has $35 billion in assets that advisors might not be able to manage...

December 30, 2021
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October 2021
07Oct

BlackRock Adds Annuity Product to Meet Participant Demand

BlackRock’s annuity product just got a lot more popular. The New York-based investment management company announced that five plan sponsors, representing $7.5 billion in target date investments, are electing to use BlackRock’s annuity product as their default investment option in company retirement plans. BlackRock is anticipating a 2022 adoption by the plans of its LifePath Paycheck, which will affect 120,000 U.S.-based 401k plan participants, including those in the Tennessee Valley Authority Retirement System. The announcement comes on the heels of its...

October 7, 2021
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01Oct

These are the key differences between 401(k) and Roth IRA retirement plans

This story is part of CNBC Make It’s One-Minute Money Hacks series, which provides easy, straightforward tips and tricks to help you understand your finances and take control of your money. If you’re thinking about starting to save for retirement, chances are good that you are looking at both Roth IRA and 401(k) plans. Both offer tax benefits and can help you grow your wealth over time, but there are several key differences between the two. The biggest one? When...

October 1, 2021
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June 2021
25Jun

US. American Express boosts auto-enrollment contribution rate to 6% for 401(k) plan

American Express Co., New York, is increasing the amount of automatic enrollment for participants in its 401(k) plan to a before-tax contribution of 6% of total pay, effective Jan. 1, 2022. The company will continue its current policy of an automatic escalation rate of 1% each year until the employee contribution hits 10% of pay, it disclosed in an 11-K filing Wednesday with the SEC. Currently, eligible employees are automatically enrolled to make before-tax contributions of 3% of total pay. The company's...

June 25, 2021
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