Cornerstone Research Experts in Focus: Jules van Binsbergen
NOWOTNY KNOWS SQUAT! Helping Financial Advisors Build a Clientele and Assets Under Management (AUM)!
NOWOTNY KNOWS SQUAT! Helping Financial Advisors Build a Clientele and Asset Under Management (AUM)!
Podcast: Federal Court Rejects Mutual Fund Fee Claims and Recognizes Market Realities
Thomson Reuters Session 2: Investment Management, Hedge Funds and Registered Mutual Funds: What's Happening Now?
Cole-Frieman & Mallon partner/co-founder Bart Mallon Discusses CFTC Regulation 4.5, the Volcker Rule & Other Compliance Issues
Exchange-traded funds (ETFs) have gained an increasing foothold in the wealth-management investment universe, with ETF assets under management currently about half the assets under management of mutual funds. As the ETF...more
With the new Department of Labor (DOL) rules on ESG funds, it should be no shock that mutual fund companies starting mutual fund offerings for 401(k) fund lineups. Putnam has launched the Putnam Sustainable Retirement Funds...more
The filing of a new 401(k) plan “excessive fee” or “investment underperformance” complaint is hardly “news” these days given the proliferation of suits that have been filed over the past several years. In fact, hardly a week...more
Since late July, at least 10 lawsuits have been filed against large 401(k) plan sponsors that offer certain BlackRock Inc. target-date funds (TDF) among their investment options. In an unexpected pivot away from the 401(k)...more
On Friday, for the second week in a row, the Ninth Circuit reversed dismissal of a 401(k) plan excessive fee litigation challenging the offering of retail share classes of mutual funds instead of cheaper institutional share...more
On Friday, the Ninth Circuit became the first circuit court to rule in a 401(k) plan fee and investment litigation following the Supreme Court’s January 2022 decision in Hughes v. Northwestern University, 142 S. Ct. 737...more
In the first decision since the Supreme Court’s ruling in Hughes v. Northwestern Univ., No. 19-1401, 595 U.S. ___ (U.S. Jan. 24, 2022), a Georgia federal district court held in favor of plaintiffs and declined to dismiss...more
When you’re a financial services company that offers proprietary mutual funds within your 401(k) plan, expect to get sued....more
When you operate proprietary mutual funds and offer them in your401(k) plan, you will be a target of ERISA litigators. John Hancock agreed to a $14 million settlement in a lawsuit filed by participants in a company 401(k)...more
You must know about the shoemakers’ children and how they go barefoot and have no shoes. In the retirement plan industry, we have retirement plan providers and their employees’ retirement plans....more
I’m still amazed when I find participant-directed 401(k) plans without a financial advisor. While I understand how solo 401(k) plans don’t have an advisor because individuals think they can do it on their own, it makes no...more
If you ever want to know what the top mutual funds were 3-5 years ago, you can look at the mutual fund lineup of many 401(k) plans today. ...more
Advisors ask me all the time of the role of education in participant-directed 401(k) plans. Participant directed 401(k) plans that are governed under ERISA §404(c) offer the plan sponsors liability protection based on a...more
Mutual of Omaha Insurance Co. and its subsidiary United of Omaha has agreed to settle Mutual of Omaha’s 401(k) plan over allegations of self-dealing....more
In life, giving people a wide variety of choices is a good thing. However, when it comes to daily valued 401(k) plans, too many choices isn’t a good thing. It sounds counter-intuitive, but too many choices offered to plan...more
I always say that I come up with many ideas, but most of them are bad. Seriously, there are so many bad ideas out there in the 401(k) space and one of the really bad ideas out there are bundled plan providers using their own,...more
Fidelity Investments settled a class-action lawsuit regarding its own 401(k) plan for $28.5 million. The class-action case alleged that Fidelity breached its fiduciary responsibility to plan participants by including its...more
The Department of Labor (DOL) released some new guidance that might facilitate the inclusion of private equity (PE) exposure in participant-directed defined contribution (DC) plans ERISA. The guidance contemplates the...more
I am still how often I find participant-directed 401(k) plans without a financial advisor. While I understand how solo 401(k) plans don’t have an advisor because individuals think they can do it on their own. I have a solo...more
Shell Oil, along with Fidelity is the target of a class action 401(k) lawsuit. As typical with a suit against a large billion-dollar 401(k) plan, plaintiffs allege that Shell failed to use the multi-billion dollar 401(k)...more
Plan sponsors with their proprietary funds have a unique problem. Using proprietary funds will lead to litigation and not using them, makes them look bad in the eyes of competitors. A 401(k) plan sponsor not using their funds...more
Some "Truths" About The Retirement Plan Business. You may not be able to handle it. I'm very outspoken, probably too much. Many people in the industry don't like flamethrowers who call things as they see it. While it...more
Shelf space payments where mutual fund companies pay to get access on a particular 401(k) custodial platform is a trending topic. The payments made are for access and if you don’t pay if you’re a mutual fund company, you...more
On February 21, 2019, a participant in T-Mobile’s 401(k) plan sued the parent company of Fidelity Investments in federal District Court, accusing Fidelity of receiving indirect compensation through the use of a “hidden” fee...more