It has become something of a truism in our industry that defined benefit plans are “better” than defined contribution plans. We’re told that returns are higher[1. In the days following publication of... Read More
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Industry Trends and Research
BY Warren Cormier | 8/5/2013
In the 2013 edition of the DCP Online Survey of 7,000 active DC participants, published in June, we focused on the behavior and attitudes of Job Changers — defined as active participants in DC plans... Read More
BY Fred Barstein | 8/2/2013
It’s no secret that DB plans generally outperform DC plans, but the gap in 2011 was striking — almost 3% — according to a study by Towers Watson. DB plans have outperformed DC plans in 13 of the last... Read More
BY NAPA Net Staff | 8/2/2013
Amid the ubiquitous reports over the last five years that Americans are not saving enough to retire, there emerges some much-needed good news regarding IRAs. According to recent research from... Read More
BY Nevin E. Adams, JD | 7/30/2013
As most retirement plan advisors are well aware, behavioral finance drives much of the discussion around retirement plan design innovations these days, for the very simple reason that it seems to... Read More
BY NAPA Net Staff | 7/29/2013
Last week’s top five most-read stories on NAPA Net reflected keen interest in Yale’s response to Brian Graff’s original “Love Letters from Yale” post, a six-month delay on the second round of... Read More
BY Fred Barstein | 7/29/2013
While there’s no going back — and perhaps no good reason to even want to — there is a price to be paid for participant disclosure, according to research by EBRI. Of the 7% of participants who noticed... Read More
BY Andrew Remo | 7/25/2013
On Tuesday, July 24, the Aspen Institute’s Initiative on Financial Security organized a briefing for congressional staff to discuss how reforming the tax code could affect the retirement security of... Read More
BY NAPA Net Staff | 7/23/2013
Last week’s top 5 most-read stories on NAPA Net reflected keen interest in a Yale Law professor’s letter to thousands of plan sponsors, the fast approaching 2013 requirement for fee disclosure,... Read More
BY Nevin E. Adams, JD | 7/23/2013
As advisors know, over the last several years, the trend in employment-based retirement plans has been to put in place structures to make more decisions for workers through the expansion of automatic... Read More
BY Andrew Remo | 7/23/2013
Congress is in the middle of a four-week, in-session work period before Members head out of town for the traditional August recess. Last week, the House of Representatives passed legislation to delay... Read More
BY Craig Hoffman | 7/23/2013
On July 22, 2013, the Department of Labor (“DOL”) provided relief to plan administrators in the form of Field Assistance Bulletin (“FAB”) 2013-02. The FAB announces a transitional enforcement policy... Read More
BY Fred Barstein | 7/22/2013
With the societal shift from reliance on DB plans to DC plans, there could be a number of unforeseen and unintended consequences. The drop in DB coverage from 1985 to 2011 has been precipitous,... Read More
BY Fred Barstein | 7/22/2013
If you’re looking for retirement and medical benefits, it’s better to work for larger companies or state and local entities, according to a recent Bureau of Labor Statistics report covering data... Read More
BY Fred Barstein | 7/18/2013
When given the choice between a high-cost, no-deductible health care plan and a cheaper one with a high deductible, 60% of employees choose the cheaper plan, according to a recent study. As part of... Read More
BY NAPA Net Staff | 7/18/2013
As the economy improves and the job market strengthens, many companies are opting to enhance their employee stock purchase plans in an effort to improve their benefits package, according to recent... Read More
BY Nevin E. Adams, JD | 7/16/2013
Recently, we looked at how the trends in employment-based retirement plans and employment-based health plans seem to be heading in opposite directions; fewer choices for workers to make in the former... Read More
BY Fred Barstein | 7/16/2013
A study by the French National Institute of Health and Medical Research based on 429,000 self-employed workers indicates that there is a 3% reduction in Alzheimer’s for every extra year worked. Prior... Read More
BY Fred Barstein | 7/16/2013
Wells Fargo has released Q1 2013 data that reveals some interesting developments. Compared with the same period in 2012 —• Roth usage is up slightly, from 8.9% to 10%, but for people in their 30s, 16... Read More
BY Fred Barstein | 7/11/2013
Money managers’ AUM rose to $62.4 trillion in 2012, according to a study by the Boston Consulting Group. That figure, which surpasses the previous record (set in 2007, before the Great Recession),... Read More
BY NAPA Net Staff | 7/9/2013
Last week’s top 5 most-read posts on NAPA Net reflected keen interest in understanding what to expect from a DOL audit, Brian Graff’s take on the proposed ‘Blank Slate’ approach to tax reform, EBRI’s... Read More
BY Nevin E. Adams, JD | 7/9/2013
Having just concluded a long driving trip, I was reminded again just how helpful the technology under the hood of today’s automobiles can be: the warning lights when you’ve still got enough gas left... Read More
BY John Ortman | 7/9/2013
Last week we posted about Aon Hewitt’s 2013 “Hot Topics in Retirement” report, focusing on participation and saving rates. The report also included a raft of benchmarking information on investments... Read More
BY John Ortman | 7/5/2013
Participation in DC plans is at an all-time high and DC plan balances have regained pre-recession levels, according to Aon Hewitt’s “2013 Hot Topics in Retirement” report. However, Aon's analysis... Read More
BY John Ortman | 7/5/2013
After a little more than five weeks' worth of voting — totaling more than 3,000 votes — here are the top 10 ideas in our online poll of ideas for sessions at next year’s NAPA 401(k) Summit:1. the... Read More
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