Murphy Leaves, Popp Pops in as JPMorgan Retirement Plan Services CEO

JPMorgan announced the appointment of Pamela Popp as CEO of JPMorgan Retirement Plan Services, after seven months with the previous CEO.

James Murphy served a brief reign as CEO, after leaving State Street in February to take the job (see JPMorgan Taps Murphy for Retirement Plan Services Post).

Popp will be responsible for leading the strategy for the firm’s retirement plan recordkeeping business. She will report to Eve Guernsey, chairman of the firm’s Retirement Plan Services business and CEO of JPMorgan Asset Management in the Americas.

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Popp has spent the last 13 years with JPMorgan, most recently as COO of Retirement Plan Services’ Emerging Markets business, as well as more than 20 years in the industry overall, a press release said. At JPMorgan, her responsibilities have also included heading the sponsor services organization and leading the CCA Strategies acquisition in 2006.

Prior to joining JPMorgan, Popp held several roles with American Century Investments and Hewitt Associates.

“We are fortunate to have someone with Pam’s tested leadership, industry expertise and dedication to Retirement Plan Services to lead the company,” said Guernsey, in the release.

Most Mutual Funds Still Held Through Advisers

Most mutual funds were purchased through an adviser in 2007, demonstrating a slight increase since 2006.

More than 51 million U.S. households, or 44%, own mutual funds. More than three-quarters of mutual fund-owning households owned funds outside their defined contribution (DC) retirement plan. But of the those households who owned funds outside of their DC plan, about half also held funds inside their DC plan. Of the households with funds outside of their DC plan, 80% used a financial adviser to purchase the mutual funds outside their plan, which was consistent across all demographics, according to research from the Investment Company Institute (ICI).

The percentage of mutual funds purchased through an adviser last year was up slightly at 56% (verse 54% in 2006), according to data from ICI and Cerulli Associates. The percentage has been steady in recent years, but has gone down dramatically in the last couple decades (in 1990, 72% of mutual funds were sold through advisers) with the rise of DC plans. The data show that the percentage of mutual funds purchased from a DC plan in 2007 (24%) was down slightly from 26% in 2006. The number of purchases directly from the fund companies remained steady at 14%. (The remaining 6% of mutual funds in 2007 were held through discount brokers and mutual fund supermarkets.)

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About half of the households owning funds outside DC plans used two or more types of advisers, according to the research. Full-service brokers and independent financial planners were the most commonly used professional financial advisers. Fifty-five percent of households that owned mutual funds outside DC plans purchasing through a full-service broker, and nearly half owned funds purchased through an independent financial planner.

Most people found their adviser through a referral through a friend, family member, or business associate. Only 9% already knew their adviser.

The full publication is available here.

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