The deal to buy Arizona- and Southern California-based MJM401k adds 100 retirement plans and eight employees to SageView.
The DOL could issue guidance “to ensure that plan participants and beneficiaries with access to a brokerage window are adequately informed and protected under ERISA."
The 529 market can be more difficult to break into than the 401(k) world, which has an abundance of small plans that can be eager to hire fintech providers. States hiring 529 managers aren't likely to consider firms that don’t have track records.
So far, about 100 advisers, including those from 11 of the 15 biggest aggregator firms, have used the service, which recently began including quotes for pooled employer plans.
It’s unclear how much business PEPs have attracted in the first seven months they’ve been in existence, but some plan providers are banking on more demand on the 403(b) side, which could become eligible for the plan structure if Congress passes legislation.
Small businesses are being told to sign up for coverage. Fintech firms and established 401(k) providers see an opportunity to showcase their services as an alternative to state-run programs before what is essentially a brand-new market.
Last year, account holders moved an estimated $623 billion from their 401(k)s to IRAs, up from $565 billion in 2019, a 10% increase, according to a report Tuesday from Limra’s Secure Retirement Institute.
Legislators focused on whether there was a need to improve retirement saving and sought to address whether the 401(k) system has failed Americans by disproportionately favoring affluent and white savers. Republicans also used much of their speaking time to deride the Democrat-led American Rescue Plan signed into law in March, which included bailout money for underfunded multiemployer pension plans.
Pensions are all but nonexistent for younger workers, and many are worried about cuts to Social Security.
Much like 401(k)s, 403(b) plans have very little explicit consideration for environmental, social and governance criteria. An estimated 1% of plan assets are in ESG funds.
