With the fiduciary regulation’s implementation just months away, Morningstar plans to launch a product designed to make it easier for broker-dealers and advisors to comply with the new regulations.
Demonstrating and documenting that plan decisions are in the best interest of participants is growing in importance as the Department of Labor’s expanded fiduciary rule continues to disrupt the financial services industry. Morningstar notes that, in particular, generalist advisors working with retirement plans may have to adhere to higher standards and might be conflicted from providing plan lineup advice beginning in April 2017.
To help address those issues, Morningstar Plan Advantage aims to solve several needs that the expanded fiduciary rule exposes. According to a fact sheet, participants associated with plans of all sizes can reap the potential benefits of institutional-quality retirement advice and fund lineups designed and managed by Morningstar Investment Management LLC.
The platform consists of recordkeeper selection, fund lineup and investment management. The fact sheet notes that Morningstar Investment Management’s fund lineups vary based on participant demographics, investment experience, and the needs of a particular workforce.
