Schwab Retirement Plan Services (SRPS) announced that it plans to work with two industry leaders to launch an expanded set of capabilities to serve defined benefit (DB) and nonqualified deferred compensation plans.
Through the support agreements, SRPS will work with New Jersey-based Conduent Inc. for help with administering DB plans for plan sponsor clients, and California-based Newport, an Ascensus company, will help in the deferred compensation area.
According to the announcement, SRPS will continue to serve as the plan provider, delivering plan services and communications to participants and leading plan sponsor client relationships, with support from Conduent and Newport.
Likewise, both participants and plan sponsors will continue to access their Schwab DB and deferred compensation plans directly through SRPS websites, which will include plan information supplied by Conduent and Newport.
“While we’ve offered defined benefit and deferred compensation plans for years, our primary focus has been on servicing 401(k) plans,” says Ben Sheppard, Managing Director of Schwab Retirement Plan Services. “As we continue to grow market share in the larger segments of the retirement plan market, we have an opportunity to serve the broader needs of these clients.”
Sheppard emphasizes that the firm determined after careful review that it could best meet the plan needs of large companies by leveraging the expertise of Conduent and Newport. “As leading providers, both firms bring a long-standing commitment to workplace financial benefits,” he notes.
Expanded Capabilities
SRPS will begin systems work with both firms this year and offer enhanced plans to new clients in 2024. Current SRPS DB and deferred compensation plan clients also will migrate to the enhanced SRPS offering starting in 2024. In addition, professionals from Conduent and Newport will be available to consult alongside the SRPS service team to help clients optimize plan design and achieve their benefit plan goals.
Following implementation, SRPS will offer DB plan clients—including those with traditional pension plans as well as cash balance plans—a set of expanded capabilities, including:
- Data analytics, compliance and reporting tools for plan sponsors
- Support for data remediation and audit services and special initiatives, such as early retirement windows, and mergers and acquisitions
- Interactive calculators to help participants make decisions about plan options and retirement preparedness
- De-risking strategies, including pension risk transfers, annuity conversion and term-vested lump sum payment programs
- Administration for frozen DB plans
Similarly, SRPS will offer deferred compensation plan clients a range of expanded capabilities, including:
- Comprehensive end-to-end solutions for NQ plan administration with strong risk and Section 409A compliance processes
- Plan design, legal, tax and accounting resources
- Plan sponsor experience with extensive ad hoc reporting capabilities
- Detailed plan sponsor financial reporting
- Monthly FICA reporting for employer contributions
- Direct participant payments and W-2 income statement services
- Asset liability management
- Plan financing options, including company-owned life insurance and company stock
“This integrated benefits delivery approach is widely accepted in the large-plan market,” Sheppard further adds. “We’re excited about this initiative and the opportunity it represents as part of our long-term commitment to serving workplace clients.”
