Products November 22, 2011

ADP Introduces Tool for Paying 401(k) Plan Fees

ADP has launched the ADP ACCESS FlexAccount, a plan-level administration tool designed to give 401(k) plan sponsors greater flexibility in paying plan fees and expenses.
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ADP ACCESS FlexAccount lets plan sponsors choose how to pay plan fees and expenses. Service fees that are paid to ADP from the various plan investment options can be credited to the ADP ACCESS FlexAccount (providing the company’s plan meets certain underwriting requirements).  Alternatively, a company may have a service fee charged to its plan’s participant accounts – known as a “fee-from-trust” transaction – and credited to the ADP ACCESS FlexAccount.

At the plan sponsor’s direction, funds in the ADP ACCESS FlexAccount may be used to pay administrative expenses such as recordkeeping or consulting and advisory fees.

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In order to track payments made from the account, plan sponsors will receive an annual ADP ACCESS FlexAccount report. This will identify any surplus amounts that remain in the account and help plan sponsors effectively manage plan resources.

To learn more, visit http://www.adp.com/401k.

Products November 22, 2011

Kingdom Trust Offering Custodial Services for Physical Precious Metals

Gold Bullion International (GBI) and The Kingdom Trust Company are collaborating on a physical precious metal alternative investment offering for financial advisers and investors.  
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Advisers will be able to buy, store and sell physical precious metals for their clients through Kingdom Trust, just as they would direct the purchase of equities or any other investment. According to GBI and Kingdom Trust, the demand for precious metals has grown over the last few years, yet there has not been an efficient or cost-effective solution for advisers to meet this interest.

GBI’s order-entry platform allows investors to trade physical metals as they would a stock or a bond through their existing order entry platform. Clients can choose to store metals at four different locations – New York, London, Salt Lake and Zurich. GBI acquires the metals from London Bullion Market Association (LBMA) approved dealers and arranges for delivery of the metals to the insured vault chosen by the investor. GBI also uses LBMA-approved partners to audit the holdings and provide valuations, utilizes an internationally recognized auditing firm to provide a 100% physical count of the holdings of each client, and provides a monthly statement of holdings and valuation to each investor.

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GBI chose Kingdom Trust as a custodian for these assets. As an independent, qualified custodian, The Kingdom Trust Company provides custodial accounts and retirement accounts to individual investors and qualified custodial services to the advisory space. “We are dedicated to providing alternative asset custody services to the investment industry… This allows [investors] to diversify their portfolios by utilizing alternative investments such as physical precious metals,” said Doug Lawson, President and CEO of The Kingdom Trust Company.

For more information, contact Gold Bullion International at 877-424-9507 for information on purchasing physical metals and The Kingdom Trust Company at 888-753-6972 for information on custodial accounts, individual retirement accounts and other qualified custody solutions.

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