Products May 1, 2012

BCG Partners With IPA Northeast

 

Benefit Consultants Group (BCG) will be assuming the daily valuation retirement plan clients from IPA Northeast (IPA).  

 

 

Reported by

BCG will be performing all the administration and recordkeeping responsibilities. IPA, an independent actuarial and consulting firm in Cranford, New Jersey, will continue to provide traditional plan services to its clients. IPA specializes in the design, implementation and administration of various types of retirement benefit programs.

“When choosing a partner to work with, we looked for a company with a long history of success, world-class offerings and someone that could provide a service offering that exceeds clients’ expectations. We found that in BCG,” said Marvin Scherb, managing partner at IPA.

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Additional information about Benefit Consultants Group is available at www.bcgbenefits.com.

 

Compliance May 1, 2012

ABG Wants Clarity for Advisers about Participant Fee Disclosure

Alliance Benefit Group (ABG) asked the Department of Labor to clarify certain aspects of the participant fee disclosure regulations that go into effect this summer.
Reported by

Of particular concern is a provision of the 404(a)5 Disclosure Regulation that appears to require advisers to provide fee and benchmarking information for each designated investment alternative (DIA) in a retirement plan. According to this requirement, advisers would have to provide historical performance data, expense information, performance benchmarks, as well as a “sufficiently specific” URL containing pertinent information for every model portfolio in a plan.   

Generating this information would not only be onerous, but unfeasible for some model portfolios. For example, ABG says, risk-based models, which allow investors to choose whether they want conservative, moderate or aggressive asset allocations, often blend mutual funds, making them extremely difficult to benchmark.   

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“We do not believe that the Department of Labor had any idea of the effective use many advisers and plan participants make of model portfolios in their plans,” said John G. Hopkins IV, CPC, and executive director of Alliance Benefit Group. “We have asked that the DOL provide specific clarification on whether DIAs will cover investment education services, investment services that implement education services, asset allocation models, and managed account services.”   

Alliance Benefit Group LLC is a national network of independently owned retirement plan consulting; investment advisory; health and welfare consulting; and benefits administration firms that operate as “Licensees” of Alliance Benefit Group LLC.

 

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